‘You’re a Great Writer! But …’

Every writer wants to be told they’re good at what they do.

It’s not that we constantly need our egos inflated — well, not most of us, anyway. Praise is a comfy form of encouragement (even if it makes you cringe a little, it still gives you the warm fuzzies deep down and you know it). We all need to feel validated every once in a while. We all need to be reminded that we are doing good work and people are noticing. Or one person. Whatever.

Unfortunately, good writing is only half of what makes a writer successful. There are many, many good writers out there. That’s not to say being able to write well doesn’t matter or that good writers are somehow “less than” because of market oversaturation. Having “a way with words” is just one small piece in the puzzle that makes up a writer’s journey toward…