Do you write to be average?

Writing, for all of us, means something. We don't usually write and share what we write because we believe we're not any good. Neither do we write because we feel we are just about average.

We write because we have something to share. We write because we love writing. We write because we have something to sell we hope readers will want. We hope we have that little something different that makes our work stand out from the crowd. 

I don't write to be average, and I suppose you don't.

One of the best ways I know of to stand out from the crowd is to write. And to write a lot. Another is to read. And to read a lot. Another is to meet and talk with other writers who have hopes like you do. Hiding gets you about as far as the front room door. If you want others to get to know you, you have to been seen and heard.

Photo by The Climate Reality Project on Unsp

I love writing conferences. I love the people I meet and the things I learn that I can apply to my own writing. Stuff like editing until it hurts. Keeping an open mind when rejection seems to be the only constant thing coming your way. Being willing to listen to others and their opinion of your books. Keeping a stiff upper lip when your book sales don't go as you planned. Being willing to step out of your comfort zone again, and again, and again.

For those of you wanting to step out of the average zone, I have a request. No, an assignment. Coming up this month is a writer's conference in American Fork, Utah. If you don't live in Utah, you're not off the hook. Find a writer's conference that you can attend this month or next, and be a part of it by showing up.

Showing up means more than attending, right? 

Step up. See what happens.