There are too many writers out there who are way too afraid to claim their writer’s status.
When someone asks them the pretty simple question of, “Are you a writer?” they respond with, “Well, no. Not really,” or some such variation… right before they say something along the lines of, “I mean, I guess I am sort-of working on something right now. But it’s not anything big.”
I’m not trying to make fun of those shy and timid writing souls. Really, I don’t think it’s funny at all. If anything, it’s rather sad that they have such a lack of confidence in doing something they love.
Here’s the thing, guys: You don’t have to be working on something to rival C.S. Lewis in order to call yourself a writer. And you don’t have to be a published author, or have years and years of experience under your belt.
You just have to be writing.
Do you like to sit down with your laptop or notebook and jot down paragraphs in a
story? Are you working on a manuscript, whether fiction or non-fiction? Have you written a collection of short stories or poems that you keep in a binder in your room?
Then you’re a writer.
That’s all there is to it.
Admittedly, I do understand why it might be a little bit scary to admit such a thing out loud. After all, that’s a lot of pressure!
If we writers were more extroverted as a general rule, I’m sure it wouldn’t be such a big deal. But the majority of us aren’t. We’d much rather be all alone, working on our stories or editing our stories or fantasizing about how our stories are going to make us the next big internationally known author with boku bucks – enough to build ourselves beautiful, gated, isolated, introvert paradises.
Problem is, that fantasy probably isn’t going to ever come true if we can’t even admit what we do – what we are. Which means we really, really, really need to overcome our writing-related insecurities.
One way to do that is to literally own the status with some swag: some merchandise. In other words, deck yourself out in T-shirts or baseball caps that put it right out there for everyone to see. Or if that’s a little too bold a move right off the bat, how about a coffee mug?
I have one of those, and it makes me smile every time I look at it. Of course, I never drink out of the thing because 1) It only holds 10 ounces, and I just don’t think that’s an adequate amount, and 2) I like my purple Tinker Bell coffee mug more than I like my writer’s coffee mug.
Then again, it doesn’t matter in my case. I already claim my writer’s status quite happily. So I don’t actually need the motivation or confidence boost. Most of the time. If you do though – and you’re not obsessed with Tinker Bell – then you might want to consider one of Kingdom Pen’s swag offerings: Writing Genius Level (as pictured above).
Or, if you’re feeling a little more daring, how about this T-shirt (pictured below, and also available in men's) with a uniquely accurate definition of what a writer is? I saw someone wearing it earlier this month and instantly fell in love with the thing. Now I’m just trying to figure out how to make someone else buy it for me without it being my birthday or Christmas.
... Maybe a few more items from Kingdom Pen’s array of worthwhile swag too.
Etsy, I know, has some great stuff as well, especially for ladies. One specific collection I’m thinking about is a series of writing gloves with actual literary snippets scrawled across them, such as this Peter Pan one, which features Tinker Bell.
Not that anyone but me cares.
And if you have a slightly twisted sense of humor – another common trait among writers, right up there with being an introvert – then this T-shirt might just be for you
And no. Nobody paid me a cent to feature any of this writing swag. It’s just awesome stuff that’s fun to have and might possibly boost your confidence enough to admit that, yes, you are in fact a writer.