What Writer Personality are You?
Burn and Churn, or Stare and Fear?
P for Personality (She says sounding like a Sesame Street character)
I’ve talked before about my obsession with personality psychology. It’s one of my favorite topics next to writing.
They go hand-in-hand in my opinion.
Personality and Writing. Like Macaroni and Cheese.
For a writer, your personality is what makes your writing unique.
It’s also what holds you back sometimes.
But we can overcome that.
What’s your writer personality?
Are you a Burn and Churn writer? Write fast and publish faster.
A Learn and Yearn writer? Always feeling like you’re a beginner, never quite reaching the level you want.
A Stare and Fear writer? Spending far too much time staring at a blank page and too scared to publish.
Or something else?
I’d like to see you succeed with your writing dreams.
Learning, but then applying.
Writing, polishing, AND publishing.
A Go and Show writer!
Whatever your personality, you can work your way towards being a Go and Show writer.
It’s not instant, but you’ll get there
I was asked this week, “Did you initially feel shy publishing personal stories?”
Of course! I’m actually quite shy in real life. I’m no spotlight-seeker.
(There’s no way you’d find me doing Karaoke or entertaining a crowd!)
But over time—its been 14 + years now—you get less and less shy about it.
When you realize the impact you can make as a writer, that overpowers your shyness.
When you realize it doesn’t matter if you publish a few imperfect stories you get more confident at sending work out into the world.
And sometimes you need a bit of a push.
Which push are you ready for?
I’m launching my new course in October where 10 writers (max) will work with me for 6-8 weeks developing their personal and timely essays.
But it’s a challenging course and not for brand new writers.
If you’re new to writing, the Introductory Personal Essay Course might be a better push for you.
Or commit here in the comments to publishing a certain number of stories in September—whether on Medium, LinkedIn, or pitched to editors.
How many do you want to send out into the world?
Perhaps your push is challenging yourself to pitch a new publication. Where would you like to see your work? What’s your dream publication? Let me know in the comments.
Starting in August I committed to 100 days of writing - doing 100 days before the end of 2022 gave me a bit of flexibility. I have been writing and I publish on Medium.
I vacillate between "learn and yearn" and "stare and fear." It's painfully frustrating and completely self-imposed. But I pretend it's somehow outside factors that keep me stuck.
I always appreciate your newsletters, Kelly. They give me reason to reconsider where I'm at.