Finding my way

Okay, I'll admit it. I'm a follower. I see something I like, and then I try to copy it. Twittering, for instance. There are several people I really admire on there, and I'd love to emulate their humor, spontaneity, and excellence. And then there's this blog. I started it for a number of reasons, a big one to increase my profile as a writer and editor. But the problem is that I've been inconsistent.

So I realized the other day that if I want to accomplish a goal, I actually have to set one. Duh. And then I have to plan out how I'm to go about doing so. These are simple things, but sometimes I look for the complicated and the simple eludes me.

Instead of trying to copy what others have done before, or even to emulate them, I'm going to be myself. I'm going to set some goals, put my thoughts into coherent plans and then accomplish those plans using my intelligence and craft—not anyone else's.

I'm not saying it's wrong to get ideas from what someone else is doing, but really, I need to take an idea and make it my own, not a cheap imitation of someone else's brilliance.

That's what I'm going to do, and I hope you enjoy the efforts.

But now I'm going to relate this to writing. As in just about everything in life, the copycats are never as good as the original. The first. The only one people really think about. (There are obviously exceptions, but we're not dealing with those today.)

Think Harry Potter and all the knockoffs that tried so hard to capture the magic that J.K. Rowling created. They couldn't do it.

Don't think that success will come as a writer by copying the big trend. Be original. Be your self. That's where true success comes. Trust your instincts and mold all of your outside influences into something truly you.