Anyone can write (yes, even you)
A rant on the power of delusion and reading bad writing
This is part of Grace Rants, a newsletter by Grace Ryan.
When I’m in the depths of self-loathing, when I feel all my ideas are bad ideas, when I read an influencer-written book so bad I wonder who was brave enough to publish it — I remind myself, anyone can write.
It started years ago as a joke between a friend and I. “They’ll let anyone be a published writer these days,” we’d laugh after spotting a particularly egregious editorial error in a magazine, or reading the back cover of a light-on-plot-but-heavy-on-use-of-the-word-member romance ‘novel’ (okay, fine — sometimes we read more than the back cover). It was a way to roll our eyes at the state of the industry; or, even further, the state of society and its rejection of literacy. It was a way to feel superior, right.
Over the years, though, it’s become an earnest mantra for us. A go-to phrase of encouragement. A propulsive, motivating motto. A way to — a la the famous Ratatouille principle, anyone can cook — remind ourselves that our dreams remain unfulfilled probably more as a result of our self-doubt than our actual abilities.
You can write — and bad writing is proof
Think of the worst book you’ve ever read. Maybe it’s boring, plot-less, erroneous, one-dimensional, too philosophical, too vapid, lacks conflict, lacks tension, too predictable, or too unfocused. Maybe you thought, this was a waste of my time and money, and felt angry. Or disappointed. Or confused.
But it got published. And your book didn’t.
Actually, you probably haven’t even written your book. Or if you have, you haven’t shared it with anyone because, maybe, you’re too afraid. “Who am I to believe in myself,” you think. “I’m probably not even that good of a writer.”
Last week, I attended a wonderful event put on by
. A group of (truly lovely!!!) female Substack writers gathered at Bedford Studio in the West Village to discuss, among other things, why we write. “Sometimes I’m scared to put myself out there because what if it isn’t any good” was something I heard from no less than three different women.Who cares if it’s any good? Is being good the point? Whatever happened to writing for writing’s sake? Why, in our achievement-oriented society, do we constantly seek validation from everyone around us? Is something not good until at least 10 of our peers deem it so? Why can’t we just write bad things that we love?!
The existence of poorly written, published writing is evidence enough for me that you, yes you, can be successful too — and good has nothing to do with it. Anyone can write.
My undeniable, 5-part recipe for success
I have this theory on success. I worked it out a few years ago and I’m confident it’s perfect (nobody tell me otherwise — I won’t listen). If you have the right mix of all 5 of these things, you will become successful (at some point).
Of course, not all of it is in your control.
1. The life you’re born into
Listen, I know we all love to complain about nepo babies and how easy they have it, but the reality is that even a good, middle-class upbringing can give you a real leg up. Could you afford to pursue writing, either because you get financial support from your parents as an adult or because they helped offset your higher education? Did you go to the kind of prep/private school (or live in an area with well-regarded public schools) that helped nurture your creative writing or exposed you to great works of literature?
How about if your parents read to you as a child? Did you even know that the number of parents reading to children is at an all-time low, with only ~41% of 0-4 year olds read to frequently (in that representative study of ~1,600 children in the UK). You’re much less likely to enjoy reading — or access the critical skills for quality writing — if you aren’t exposed to it early as a fun activity. Parents, read to your kids!
2. Your natural talents
Some of you are going to be better at this than others. A talented nepo baby gets a head start. Life’s not fair.
3. Your work ethic
If you work at something consistently, you will get better and, not only that, you will get noticed. Do you know the most common* thing that successful creatives point to as being critical for their success?
Consistency. Show up and do the work. Keep doing it even when it’s hard, when it bores you, when you don’t want to keep going. I think the greatest lie we’ve collectively been told is if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life. I’ve loved plenty of projects and yet there were times — mostly in the middle, which is much less exciting than either beginning or end — that felt like wading through mud.
Become a person who is known for showing up anyway. Don’t underestimate the power of having a reputation of someone who can deliver on a schedule, who does what is needed (even the un-fun parts!), who is reliable and consistent.
*I have no data on this but it feels directionally right
4. How you treat others
On that note, I will remember if you’re a bad person. Now, there are obviously plenty of creative geniuses who get away with bad behavior (please see #1 and #2 for why this might work out for them) but you are not those people. Unless you are equally able to deliver on every other success dimension laid out here, listen up:
Being kind and easy to work with is the lowest-cost (free) investment you can make in yourself. I will go out of my way to lift up good people. I’ll help make connections, I’ll give advice, I’ll refer you for jobs — whatever you need. On the flip side, I remember every single person I’ve come across who left me feeling bad (or who I watched treat others poorly). I promise you: they will get nothing from me.
It might not feel like good karma comes back to you, but a bad reputation lasts forever.
5. Your positive self-delusion
If you don’t believe in you, why should anyone else? Delusion is the most powerful tool in your toolbox. I meet so many people who want to start some sort of creative project but are deeply afraid: of failure, scrutiny, negativity, anyone in their life finding out that they have a new hobby, etc.
What if — and hear me out on this — something good happens? What’s the best that could happen? What if it turns out that you have been hiding a deeply talented inner self from the world and, once unleashed, that inner self will change the hearts and minds of everyone. Or, more realistically, one person will DM you and say “wait, this is amazing pls don’t stop writing” and you will be fueled with enough light for at least three more posts.
Speaking from personal experience.
Even if you’re deeply talented, kind, and hard-working, you still have to take the leap of faith and put yourself out there. I guess the alternative is you can have a close friend who believes in you enough to publish your work anonymously and then reveal your identity once it becomes famous and there’s a Cinderella-style investigation for the true author— okay, yeah, probably not going to happen.
If you’re writing things in secret and scared to put them out in the world, never forget: the only difference between you and a published writer (if you aren’t one already and, if you are, hello! cool that you read this!) is that they are published. And that, dear readers, is an achievable milestone as long as you keep the self-belief high and the writing consistent.
Remember: anyone can write.