Esteem for Writers

The article is longer but these sections appealed to me and I want to remember them.

Affirm Your Esteem as a Writer
by Ron Kurtus (revised 3 April 2003)

Your esteem as a writer is established by self-appraisal of the quality of your work. You must constantly reaffirm that you area good writer. Self-esteem is fragile, and there are some who may try to lower your esteem through unfair criticism. You must not let others affect how you feel about your work. You should feel that your writing is good and certainly the best you can do.

Obviously, there are some people with more talented than you. Don't compare yourself with the geniuses or the stars. Rather emulate them and use them as models.

Instead, compare yourself with the average and with your past abilities. If you are better than average, you can hold you head up high. If you are writing much better than you used to, it is something about which to be proud. That builds up your esteem.

There are also people looking to elevate themselves by putting others down. They will not only criticize your work but may make personal comments about you. "Your writing is terrible. And not only that, you're fat too."

Realize that such people aren't talking about you. They are talking about themselves and their own insecurities. Consider the source and don't let their opinions affect you. Rather, avoid getting an opinion from such people, if you can.

When you look at your work, you should be proud of what you did. You should feel that you do good work. You've got to constantly tell yourself this to overcome the negative people. Telling others may convince a few, but it may also be considered bragging.

One important thing in having pride in your work is to make sure that everything you write is well done. This includes letters to friends and relatives and e-mail. Always use a spell-checker before you send an e-mail. Use the spell-checker and grammar checker for any document written on a word processor, especially those you send to other people. Taking such care means you have pride in your work and affirms your self-esteem as a writer.

In conclusion
You must look at your work and feel it is well-done to have self-esteem as a writer. Compare yourself with the mass of writers. Remember that every writer is critiqued or edited. Don't let critics get you down. Look at your work and reaffirm that you are a good writer. A writing career is a lot of work, but it is well worth the effort.

You do good work. You are a champion.