By William Daniel

Do you wonder what you’re supposed to write? A problem nowadays is that writers are not writing what represents them. I see this commonly in fiction as well as devotionals. The last thing you want is to be known as someone who doesn’t write what lines up with who you are and what your passions are. These passions are what separate authors into categories of writing. For example, I love humor so I wanted to write a humor book. Categories, like humor, are then sub-divided into more categories. I love humor but I specifically love jokes more, so I wrote a joke book. These categories distinguished me into someone who writes jokes and because it’s a passion, that writing will be even better.

I believe these are some ways to make sure you are writing what represents you.

Starting off, we need to look at setting boundaries. Setting boundaries is how you should operate as it limits the number of writing genres to digress into that you don’t necessarily need to be in because you think you should write in that field. What this means is by setting these boundaries, you will be sticking with what you think is most important, and that is what represents you. A good way to set boundaries is by exploring different writing styles and types to see what you like the most and what you think is the most natural for you. From there you can choose where you put boundaries around your writing.

If you haven’t done so already, start a list of things you’d like to try and things that you’re good at. This also means making a few changes in your personal life to do what you write, as we’ve all heard the phrase “practice what you preach.” You may want to spend some time living in the topic or leaning into the subject you are writing about.

The second biggest part of representing yourself in your writing is making changes to your writing itself. As I mentioned before, find your writing style. For me, I wanted a goofy mood so I used easier words to fit the mood. If you are writing mysteries, you should use words that you would hear a detective say; more descriptive words. Most importantly, find which writing style seems the most natural to you. In choosing this writing style, you must further build your reputation by putting some sort of emotion within your work. For example, as a joke book author, I strive to apply humor within my writing. Some writers are known for their serious works, while others are known for happy, feel-good stories.

Overall, no one wants to be known as a writer that isn’t true to their personality and passions. Building a reputation within your work and sticking to you boundaries will ultimately help make you match your writing. The outcome will ultimately build you as a writer and an author as it will establish you and set you apart from others. The importance of this is measured not only in book sales, but other opportunities within the writing community. And with that, go establish yourself as a distinguished author!

William Daniel is the author of You’re Joking Me: Jokes for Kids by a Kid. He is a middle schooler, a WWII enthusiast, and a competitive gymnast. He builds model airplanes and wants to be a pilot someday. He has an older sister, Maris, and a twin sister, Calyn, and is the younger by four minutes. As you can well imagine, he enjoys making people laugh, which he does for family, friends, and at school. William lives in Colorado with his family and dog, Riley.