In the writing world, writers hang on understanding how another writer found success. They want to know the secret, the magic, or the inherent talent required to duplicate that success. We want to know the right path out of the woods.

No two writers find success the same. That is the wonder and the bane of this profession. A writer’s career is as unique as writing itself, and what works for one person is not going to work for many others.

Yet there are so many how-to-become-successful classes out there, and they do quite well. The eager and the excited, the desperate and the seeking-short-cut folks, sign up these classes thinking this is how to keep from having to do the research themselves.

The best way to become successful is to get down in the mud and figure it out on your own.

Why not capitalize on someone else’s experience? Because you cannot duplicate it. Writing success depends on:

-the ability to write
-the ability to write a specific genre
-family composition
-other income
-health
-place of residence
-mobility
-technological savvy
-connections
-introvert vs. extrovert
-age
-education
-experience
-upbringing
-simple luck
-the discipline to sit in the chair

I am finding success with my Edisto Island Mysteries. That path was as crooked as a dog’s hind leg. Some of the journey was purposeful, but a lot of it was crossroad after crossroad, and then selecting one road or another. My journey cannot be duplicated. Yet people still want to know how I did it and what I suggest for them.

So, the question is not how I did it. The question is how to see success on the horizon and choose the right path to it. My suggestions are these.

1) Quit looking for why something will not work. Look for why it will. Thinking negatively silently infects everything you are trying to do and sabotages potential.

2) Commit to the journey. It may not happen this year just because that was your New Year’s resolution. You may have to think long distance, as in numbers of years.

3) Accept all sorts of detours. Take the speaking engagement. Take the feature article for the local mag. Create a banner and show some self-appreciation. Write somebody’s website copy. The key is to become known as a writer.

4) Respect people. You never know who is going to open a door . . . or shut it on you.

5) Love every single reader. Respond to them.

6) Do not brag. Nobody likes it. There’s an art to self-promotion.

7) Do not criticize others in the profession. Keep quiet about what you disagree with unless what you stand up for is in your platform. Be careful being opinionated. The world is sick of negativity.

8) Be flexible when opportunity strikes. Sometimes it doesn’t announce itself as opportunity.

9) Be forward thinking and positive.

You want to be depicted as positive and someone who sees only potential. Why? Because everyone wants a piece of that. Not everyone thinks that way, and if you do, no matter what you do, sell, or promote will be more open-armed accepted.