Q = Qualifications

What does it take to become a writer?

I wanted to be a novelist. That was the dream. I wanted to take the things that I could imagine, write them down, sell them to people who would appreciate them. I wanted to be a published author.

I went to school for it and everything. I really do feel that my writing improved with my education, I’m not saying it didn’t. But the dream never came true… And now I work in manufacturing and write novels at night that will probably never see the light of day. Hindsight being everything, I should have gone to school for accounting.

But there are a lot of successful authors out there who never went to college. It didn’t hurt them. The lack of education doesn’t negate raw talent. They had the vision, the skill, and the dedication it took to write down their ideas and get them to the finish line. Maybe it’s simply those three traits that qualify a writer.

I can’t look at any one novelist and compare them to the next. I can’t find a common life thread that unlocked the door to their successes. Some went to school, others did not. Some joined the military, others did not. This one had a life altering epiphany, that one just liked to make things up and put it on paper.

You don’t have to meet a specific set of criteria to become an author. You just have to be good. Which maybe I’m not. 

But surely there must be qualifications for reviewing books?

As previously stated, I went to school for writing. On top of my many writing classes, I took many literature courses including Ancient, Classic, and Children's, where I learned how to think about fiction critically. The dream may have been novelist, but here I am writing this blog about what separates a book from a 5 star review and a 1 star, instead of winning a Pulitzer Prize. 

The truth is, despite what I studied in my younger years, I'm probably not at all qualified to be taking apart other people’s work. It isn't like I graduated summa cum laude. I don’t know if I could do it professionally, it’s not a career path I have considered. I don’t think I’d enjoy reading as much if I had deadlines to meet. This is a hobby that sucks up time that should be spent adulting. But we all need a hobby and this is one of mine.

Much like having an opinion, we are all doing something for which we are either unqualified or overqualified to be doing... We all have a hobby. Whether it's writing blogs or novels or reading either of the two. Whether you're a fashion guru or poet or amateur sleuth we've all got a thing. That thing that sucks up time.

What is your thing? Are you 'qualified' for it, or do you just enjoy it?