How to Succeed as a Writer

As a professional copywriter, I’m often asked by aspiring copywriters what they need to do to succeed. Most of their questions center around writing ability. They want to know how to find out if they have the talent to succeed, or if there’s a “test” they can take that will tell them if they’re a good enough writer to actually get paid to write.

Well, for better or for worse, writing ability has very little to do with a writer’s ultimate success. (Business owners who want to write to promote their business, take note — I’m talking to you as well.)

If there was a test out there (and there isn’t by the way) but if there was, I would say the test would deal only with your attitude about writing and leave ability flat out of it.

Yes, you heard me right. Attitude over ability. That’s the key to success.

I know. It’s hard to hear. As writers, we want so badly to be told our work is good, that it has merit, that we truly are talented. I’m not sure why so many of us need that exterior validation — perhaps because writing is such a solitary, inner activity that when we do finally...