Seven sensible steps to success as a writer.

Step 1: Have something worthwhile to say...

It might seem an odd way to start by posing the question, ‘Do I really need to write this book? Does the world want it?’

But unless you’re motivated as a writer by something other than vanity and a desire to see your name on a book cover (in which case a mock up of the phone directory would do), it’s a fair question to ask.

After all, so many thousands of new books are published in print and electronically every year, it’s quite a healthy exercise to ask yourself if you need to add another to the stack?

And if the idea has really gripped you so strongly that it’s like an obsession that has to be expressed, the only answer, of course, is to say: Yes! Writing it out is the one way to rid yourself of the fixation.

It’s also one of the unresolved issues behind the question that many would-be writers ask: Where do you get your ideas from?

Almost invariably it means that they’ve not yet found what they wish to say. For once they do, and the idea is strong enough, the question no longer arises.

Next: Inspiration…