Michael Moreci
This is a great question, and my advice is simple:
Don't give up.
There's two parallel tracks that you have to conquer, and you have to understand that it takes a long, long time for both (or either) to happen. First, you have to get good. You have to hone your craft, discover your voice, and build up the mental longevity it takes to put pen to paper every single day. Second, you have to find ways to get your writing out to people--readers, agents, editors, whoever--as you create it. To achieve even a modicum of success at either takes a long time, it really does. You have to look at becoming a writer as a marathon, not a sprint.
Also, READ. Read, read, read. And read everything. It's great if you want to write, for example, YA sci-fi. You should devour as much of that as you can. But, read other stuff as well. Literary fiction, fantasy, thrillers. There's also something to learn (and enjoy) by having a broad palette. Not only that, but read non-fiction. Read comics. Read magazines. It's so important to consistently be engaged in a conversation with the written word, I cannot stress that enough.
But again, most of all, know that this takes time. I wrote my first novel (unpublished, mercifully) over ten years ago, and I'm finally seeing a novel of mine published--Black Star Renegades--in January 2018. So, go easy on yourself. Celebrate whatever successes you achieve, no matter how big or small (and celebrate the successes of others as well) and use your failures, your rejections, as fuel for your determination. Use it to make sure you never--never evereverever--give up. The only one who can stop you is you.
Don't give up.
There's two parallel tracks that you have to conquer, and you have to understand that it takes a long, long time for both (or either) to happen. First, you have to get good. You have to hone your craft, discover your voice, and build up the mental longevity it takes to put pen to paper every single day. Second, you have to find ways to get your writing out to people--readers, agents, editors, whoever--as you create it. To achieve even a modicum of success at either takes a long time, it really does. You have to look at becoming a writer as a marathon, not a sprint.
Also, READ. Read, read, read. And read everything. It's great if you want to write, for example, YA sci-fi. You should devour as much of that as you can. But, read other stuff as well. Literary fiction, fantasy, thrillers. There's also something to learn (and enjoy) by having a broad palette. Not only that, but read non-fiction. Read comics. Read magazines. It's so important to consistently be engaged in a conversation with the written word, I cannot stress that enough.
But again, most of all, know that this takes time. I wrote my first novel (unpublished, mercifully) over ten years ago, and I'm finally seeing a novel of mine published--Black Star Renegades--in January 2018. So, go easy on yourself. Celebrate whatever successes you achieve, no matter how big or small (and celebrate the successes of others as well) and use your failures, your rejections, as fuel for your determination. Use it to make sure you never--never evereverever--give up. The only one who can stop you is you.
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