Nine attitudes that can hold writers back

Here’s a good checklist that can help any writer think just a bit more clearly about the job of writing. It’s from the Word Count blog: Nine Ideas Writers Need to Give Up:

Here they are (with my comments added):

1. Give up the sentiment that writing depends on talent.
   (Talent is nice. Hard work gets the job done.)
   
2. Give up on the whim of inspiration. (Be a professional and bring you’re a-game to work every day, even when you aren’t inspired.)
   
3. Give up the opinion that you don’t need an editor.
   
4. Give up the idea that spending more time at your desk is always effective. (A lot of your best writing happens when you aren’t writing.)
   
5. Give up the hope that you’ll ever find writing “easy.”
   
6. Give up the belief that anyone writes a perfect first draft. (The best writers are the ones who are willing to work harder.)
   
7. Give up the thought that simple, straightforward writing appears “uneducated.” (Or that people will not respect you if you aren’t formal enough.)
   
8. Give up the notion that all writers are good at spelling and grammar. (Some are good at it, and some aren’t; there’s no correlation between those skills and the ability to write with power.)
   
9. Give up the desire to feel you’ve ever “arrived.” (Anyone at any level of experience can screw up!)