What Kind of Writer Are You?

You are… Norman Maclean, author of A River Runs Through It, published for the first time at the grand age of 73 years old.
You love the idea of being a writer and you’re really great at gathering ideas, making notes and talking about your vision (which really is worth talking – and writing! – about). The actual writing of your book is a little trickier. You may have been called, at one stage or another, something of a procrastinator.

You are… Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist, among many other soulful masterpieces.
You write because you feel a deeper calling to the work, and because you want to explore the soul element of life. You’re not shy of adding a moral to the story and most want to reach readers who will understand your unique view on life. Writing is more than just putting words on paper for you – it’s a written prayer.

You are… E.L. James, author of the bestselling erotic romance Fifty Shades of Grey.
You write because you can – and because you’re good at it. You’re not shy about telling others about your work, or letting them read it, because you plan on having an audience of millions, in the very near future. You’re not trying to change the world with your writing, but you are trying to change your world – ideally by becoming the author of a runaway bestseller.

You are… Ernest Hemingway, author of The Old Man And the Sea whose economic and understated style had such an influence on 20-the century fiction.
You are an artist: first and foremost. You take your writing seriously because you know that it is a craft that must be honed. You’re not just writing a book, or scribbling down some words on the page, you are creating a world that your reader will live in, and remember, for years to come.

You are… J.K. Rowling, author of the hugely popular Harry Potter series.
You work at your writing the way other people work at puzzles: putting together one piece of it at a time, as often as you can, between real life commitments. You know that one day all this hard work will pay off and you’re confident that you will be a success story and that the world will finally get to see the words you have been adding to your book, day by day.

You are… Sylvia Plath, author of The Bell Jar and the art of confessional poetry.
Anyone who says writing is easy clearly hasn’t ever tried to write anything of worth. You take your writing seriously because you know that it is the one true art that can express the plethora of human experience and suffering. You feel it is your duty to transcribe this expression.