Tying your sense of self to your productivity may be affecting your mindset and holding you back from a happy and thriving writing life. Many writers have learned that the more they do or accomplish, the more valuable they are. It could even be what drew them to writing a book in the first place. Writing a novel, after all, is a huge accomplishment.

You’re ready to write a book, but you’re not sure where to start. Or maybe you’re an avid creative writer and you want to level up your story skills. Whatever your reasons, the best thing you can do for your writing life is to invest in continuous learning. When you take the time to understand storytelling at a deep level, writing gets a lot faster and easier. Here are my 10 favorite resources for aspiring authors.

When it comes to writing a book, there are different definitions of the word “theme”. It can get confusing, but it’s really important to get strong themes in a novel and be able to express them clearly. If your novel lacks a purposeful theme, it will lack direction and continuity and it won’t hold the interest of readers.

The other day I cringed when I saw a writer post something on IG about how publishing their book would be a great way to get back at all the people who had ever doubted them. I admit, I’ve felt like this in the past. There were times in my early writing life when I thought about the people who doubted me and imagined how they might react when they found out I was a published author! Now though, I find these types of sentiments (and posts) cringy. It’s like seeing someone shout their insecurities from the rooftop.

Readers can get tired of too many lines of straight dialogue, so what should we do to break up our dialogue? One of the toughest things about getting dialogue right is figuring out what should surround it. Below are three ways to break up your dialogue and expertly draw readers into your scenes.

Your main character is the beating heart of your story. Your goal is to take them on a transformation journey so powerful that your reader is itching to turn the pages of your novel. Considering how important character is, I’m always surprised at how many writing teachers don’t know how to build proper character arcs.

It’s embarrassing to admit this, but there have been times along my writing journey when I’ve spent more time thinking about how my writing can serve me than how it can serve readers. I became a much better writer when I realized the purpose of my writing is to entertain and inspire others. When I shifted my focus outward, I could better see what I needed to work on to improve my reader’s experience and ultimately my own writing.

When I was younger, I spent a lot of time imagining myself as a best-selling author. I pictured days pouring my ideas into my laptop at a coffee shop with a steaming Chai Latte beside me. I imagined myself signingbooks for fans at my favourite book store. There was just one problem. I didn’t have any of the habits I needed to make any of this a reality. I was stuck in dreaming when I needed to be doing.

Rejection is part of the writing process. Rejection is normal. All writers face rejection. A famous author we all know was rejected multiple times!

These things are all true. And I have deep respect for the writers who went before me. I am glad they share their stories of rejection and make us all feel more positive about the whole submission process. But after a recent string of rejections, these commonly recited facts weren’t making me feel any better.

Choosing writing, whether it’s your hobby, side-project or dream career, means choosing patience. While it can be incredibly frustrating when everything from your individual progress to the industry itself seems to be moving at a snail’s pace, there are a lot of lessons to learn when we slow down.

During my MFA program, I purposely didn’t take any poetry classes, even though they were available to me. I knew I wasn’t any good at poetry. I wasn’t good at coming up with beautiful images or smart sentences to ellicit emotion from readers. I liked reading it. Absolutely. But writing it, not so much. Now I regret not taking a poetry class.

“When you finally find yourself ready to sit down at your desk to write, or in that studio to paint, or in that sanctuary to speak, or at that sunrise wedding to photograph … or wherever it is that you stand or kneel or walk or sit to create and cause beauty to be and beam from the hollow of your hands - you will find that everything, and I mean everything, will rise up against you.” — Rachel Marie Kang

This quote from the book Let There Be Art brought tears to my eyes. In the ten years I’ve been trying to successfully write and publish a book, it feels like there has been so much to fend off, just to make a little space for my creativity.

We so often look ahead, waiting for our happiness to begin. If I just had …. fill in the blank …. then I could be happy. These are some of the things I’ve thought along my writing journey: “If I just had a literary agent, I’d be happy.” “If I had a publisher, I’d be happy.” “If I had a book on the shelf in a bookstore …” Well, you get it. Maybe for you it’s things like more book sales, a bigger following or better reviews. We have big dreams and big goals, that’s what keeps us going, but when we pin our happiness on future outcomes we have little control over, it can leave us feeling crushed when things don’t happen the way we expected.

Giving feedback is an art and most of us are not good at it. As writers who will likely (and really should) exchange work with other writers, feedback is a skill we really need to hone and develop. What’s hard about it is that it requires both empathy and the courage to tell the truth. If we’re not kind enough with our feedback, we could discourage someone or even drive them to quit writing. If we’re not honest with our feedback, we are not helping writers improve and hone their craft. If a writer shares their work with you, it’s a sign of trust. Here are a few ways you can take good care of them and help them improve their story.

It may be well-intentioned but there are a few statements that aspiring authors hear all the time. I don’t think people mean to be hurtful, but these types of statements can really discourage us. Here are a few of the most common (and unhelpful) things we hear:

From imposter syndrome to negagive thoughts about ourselves, we all live with lies in our heads. Writers have some common lies that affect us and if we put up with a lie for too long, it can influence our choices and behaviour. At the very worst, a lie left too long unchallenged can stop us from writing. With that in mind, let me share four common lies writers believe and the truth that will set you free.

Writers are never promised an easy path. Most of us know we have to take our lumps, whether it's writer's block, criticism or ongoing rejection. Dealing with all of this on top of jobs, school, family and other life stuff sometimes leaves us asking why do I write? Here are four good reasons to keep writing, even if you’re feeling so discouraged, you can't get another word down.

With a steep learning curve and an extemely unforgiving industry, writing and publishing a novel takes a lot of time and patience. If you feel called to write a book, you should go in with a clear idea of what you’re getting into. Let’s look at four hard truths about writing a novel.

There are many reasons my first book failed, but most of those reasons come down to the fact that I did not plan it. I literally just sat down and wrote. I felt like plotting my book out would infringe on my ability to be spontaneous, creative and write from the heart. I didn’t want to painstakingly plan everything, that sounded boring. I’m a writer and I wanted to write.

I started writing my first book in a pink notebook when I was in elementary school. It was called The Best Friends Club, it was kind of like The Babysitters Club. I never finished it. All through high school and university I dreamed of writing a book one day, but I only wrote things sporadically when inspiration hit me.