Monthly Archives

December 2019

(For Free) Download the Book On Writing: Writer’s Doubt

For this week only you can easily download the bestselling book, Writer’s Doubt and several other great books on writing by Jeff Goins, K.M. Weiland, Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi, and other brilliant minds, for free!

FREE for This Week Only:

If you sign up for the Remarkable Writers Course Bundle, you will receive the first month free using the code 1MONTHFREE! (This offer is only good for this week and then goes away like the morning’s mist.)

Within the BONUS sections of the course curriculum you can download the complete books, Writer’s Doubt by Bryan Hutchinson, You Are A Writer by Jeff Goins and other bestselling books (all for free)!

And that’s just the gravy.

The Remarkable Writers Course Bundle includes:

The Serious Writers Masterclass (Brand New!)

Writers Crushing Doubt (Most Popular!)

The Art of Positive Journaling (Highly recommended for those who want to cultivate the habit of writing every day!)

How to Get Attention (Students Love this! It Works. Get attention for your writing and your art.)

Obviously these courses are an enormous amount of content and an entire month for free is quite a bit of time to get your feet wet, learn the lessons you want to learn right away, AND, don’t forget, download all of the bonus content entirely for free!

In order to get in, simply CLICK HERE and use the code: 1MONTHFREE

Yes, it’s true you can sign up, download all the bestselling books and absorb as much of the lessons possible in 30 days, but I think once you realize just how much content there is and how valuable it is, you’ll stay around for a while and take the lessons in a way that truly benefits you. You’ve got nothing to lose, either way.

Once you sign up you’ll have access to all of the content in the Remarkable Writes Course Bundle, including all of the bonus books for download and absolutely zero limitations.

One Month Entirely Free!

CLICK HERE and use the code: 1MONTHFREE

What are you waiting for? It’s Christmas!

Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the miracle process all begins. ―Jim Rohn

Fear and the Writer Within You

written by Bryan Hutchinson

A long time ago, when I was still in my teens, a good friend of mine, Phil, used to tell me, “It just doesn’t matter.”

He’d say this whenever we were about to do something daring (better said, crazy) and we would either end up looking like a couple of idiots, brave as all get out, or we’d be ignored and no one would give a damn.

Right, so in order to get me to go along with whatever scheme he had come up with, he’d look me in the eyes, shrug and say, “It just doesn’t matter.” All my arguments and fears would be swept to the wayside and we’d get to creating whatever ruckus was next.

However, to be completely honest with you, at the time I didn’t understand what he was really saying. Sadly, I’ll never get the chance to ask him because he passed away.

Over the years of writing, blogging, publishing in public and failing more often than succeeding, I think I finally realize what he was saying:

Whatever we fear, or whatever shame we may suffer, we’ve got to go for it anyway. The risk is worth it and even if it doesn’t seem like it, it just doesn’t matter, let’s do it!

And boy, did we. I’ll never forget those firecrackers! (But that’s another story.)

Phil never really cared about glory or being noticed, he simply wanted to live life and do whatever we were afraid of. He was so brave. The bravest person I’ve ever known.

Such unwavering bravery is sorely missed in the world today, especially in the arts, when everyone is so worried about being criticized, of making a mistake, and looking like a failure.

So what!?

I mean, who gives a damn if you fail?

I don’t, and you shouldn’t either. I’ll tell you why.

It took me a long time to really understand what a 16-year-old understood already so young.

Life is full of risks, but it’s also very short and if you don’t live your dreams now you may die later regretting that you never took your chances.

People often think of fear as life and death, fight or flight, but there’s another fear and it’s just as dangerous. It’s the fear of looking like a failure and being shamed. Such as what might come if you do something risky and fall flat on your face.

The fear of shame is the fear most people allow to control their dreams and, if we’re being honest about this, it controls the direction their lives take and how they interact with others.

Over the years I’ve met people who work day-to-day doing the daily grind as they call it and they ask me why I bother taking the risks of writing and publishing books. They ask this as if all I’m doing is sticking my neck out and looking foolish. These are the people who sadly will likely never accomplish much outside of a 9 to 5.

On the other hand, I’ve had people ask me for advice on how to write books, how to publish them and how to market them. These folks assume that publishing is worth it and many have gone on to do just that, several, I’m happy to say, surpassing my success.

I’m sure you noticed, there’s a striking difference between those two groups.

One group is afraid of the risk of being shamed or they think they’re not talented enough to do anything on their own and fear failure, and the other group is willing to take risks and just wants to know how best to go about it.

Both groups are projecting the outcome they see on to me, success or failure.

We are all in one of those two groups. (I know there’s a lot of grey area I’m skipping here and I’m doing that on purpose.)

There’s the group of doers and the group of those afraid to do whatever their “it” is.

And believe me, everyone, every person on this Earth of ours, has their own “it.”

What’s yours? Are you pursuing it? If not, why not? What’s stopping you?

Pretend if you have to, pretend until you’re not pretending anymore.

Are you an introvert? Pretend to be an extrovert for at least a day.

Scared? Pretend to be brave for a day.

Can’t focus? Pretend, just for a day, that you have all the focus in the world, sit down, turn off all the distractions and get to it.

Whatever your fear or hangup, it just doesn’t matter. Today might be your last.

It’s interesting how realizing today might be your last, really, truly understanding this, that our daily hang-ups suddenly vanish and we let go of fear, shame, and guilt.

Phil went after his dreams every single day that I knew him. He was one of the most joyful people I’ve ever met, and yet, he had issues outside of his control that eventually led to the end of his life at an all too early age.

The day came when it was Phil’s last, but I’ll tell you this about my friend, while he was here there were things that scared the shit out of him, there were things he was clearly afraid of, but one thing he never let stop him were his fears, certainly not of failure or of shame.

“It just doesn’t matter.” In the right context, are powerful words. Fear and shame, just do not matter, they’ve got another thing coming if they think they can stop us!

You’ve got another thing coming! Was another one of Phil’s sayings whenever someone hinted to him that he was afraid to do something. We first heard it in a Judas Priest song and it became our anthem.

Out there is a fortune waiting to be had

If you think I’ll let it go you’re mad

You’ve got another thing comin’

―Judas Priest, 1982

Even today, when I get a little freaked out, a little too overwhelmed and I start worrying and letting anxiety get the better of me―because let’s face it, I’m human―I turn on that song and I feel the anxiety melt away. I see Phil’s smile in my mind’s eye as we walked down the road with his boom box blaring, “You’ve got another thing comin'”

Sometimes I have to pretend I’m a badass again, the way I was when I was with Phil.

The introvert

A lot of people don’t realize this about me, but I am in introvert. As a kid, I was terribly shy and I stayed mostly to myself. I was very lucky to befriend Phil in school.

If it hadn’t been for Phil, I would be in the first group I talked about, afraid of taking risks and being shamed, living safe day-to-day, only working the grind and hating every minute of it. Instead, I’ve written hundreds of articles, published in magazines, newspapers, and on blogs across the net. I’ve published a few books, too.

A lot of what I’ve tried hasn’t worked, and yet, I still finish and ship, like another friend I admire is keen to say.

Have I been embarrassed by some of my failures?

You bet. But I’ve never felt ashamed for trying any of it.

If I died today, would I regret taking any of those risks?

Ha! You’ve got another thing coming!

I don’t know what your “it” is, but I’ll tell you this, find a way, don’t take no for an answer, do it! Whatever it is.

Live life to the fullest, shame is just imagination gone wild and failure is just another lesson learned. (Click to Tweet This)

Your story is starting. You might not finish.

It just doesn’t matter. Write anyway.

But, since you’re writing,

give it your best,

get serious, be brave,

and never quit.

Show ’em, they got another thing comin’

Serious Writers Never Quit!

The One True Fan You Need For Your Writing To Be A Hit

written by Bryan Hutchinson

That person in the audience, you know, the one who was clapping after every song.

That dude way up in the rafters who was whooping and hollering after every hit for his team.

And that lady, the one who stayed and listened until you completed your reading at the local bookstore.

Those, my friends, are the kind of fans we need.

Readers who LOVE our work, fans who send us emails saying how our words touched them, and fellow writers who give us props, that’s our tribe. They are treasures to be cherished.

But how do you get dedicated fans in the first place?

How do you get readers, listeners or viewers to notice you?

Believe it or not, a fan base starts with one fan.

Just One

You don’t need to convince a thousand people to read your work, or even a hundred―you only need one person to fall in love with your words.

You don't need to convince a thousand people to read your work, or even a hundred―you only need one person to fall in love with your words. Click To Tweet

The Catch

But, here’s the catch, not just anyone, you need that one to be the fan that is absolutely, unashamedly, enthusiastic about your work.

You need one sincere and dedicated fan.

If there’s one, there’s a hundred, if there’s a hundred, there’s a thousand.

All you need to do is focus on the one.

But who is that one person, that one mysterious fan who matters so much? I’ll tell you.

The problem today is that the internet gives us this belief (and fear), that we can reach a million people just by showing up. Anyone who has been blogging for a while can tell you that is simply not true. It’s a lie that only seems real because you don’t need anyone’s permission to post a comment, an article or even a manifesto.

Warning: This is going to get depressing first before it gets better.

A blogger is lucky to gain 100 readers in his or her first year and even luckier if they stay.

To get a million people to visit your blog you have to do something so extraordinary that it’s too overwhelming to even contemplate. And even if you do something so brilliant, all the stars, moons and planets in the night’s sky will need to align just right, and then maybe, only maybe.

Once the new blogger realizes this reality they’re most likely to surrender, give up and quit. Indeed, according to a New York Times report, as many as 95 percent of all blogs created have been abandoned.

Frankly, if they simply up and quit the artist and temporary blogger wasn’t all that serious in the first place. My advice to any aspiring writers out there, please don’t start writing and publishing online if you’re only doing it to instantly reach millions of people. You’ll drive yourself silly and it’s unlikely to work.

You can reach the masses! Yes, that’s true. But not the way most people think.

If you start a blog right now, this minute, you likely will not be able to get a single stranger to visit it today, much less read it.

Sure, you might be able to convince a family member or a close friend to read your blog, but that’s probably where it ends.

It doesn’t matter what you post about or how awesome it is.

I know, this is depressing news, but I’m a positive writer so I promise you it gets better.

One Person. That’s What You Need.

The right person.

If you focus your writing, publishing and marketing efforts on that one ideal fan, you have a chance. A real chance to reach people who will care about your writing.

Define for yourself who your ideal fan is and what they want to read, view or listen to. Once you have that person in your mind, create only for him or her. Often, the best person to start creating for is yourself.

Once you start creating this magnificent art for your ideal fan, start visiting the places he or she would hang out online and find places where it’s acceptable for you to share and post your links. Attract one reader at a time. Those who love it will share it.

This takes time and that’s is why 95% of blogs are abandoned. Worse, you go on Facebook and you see established bloggers sharing their articles and have 12k likes, but you can’t even rub together two fans.

What a lot of people don’t realize is that many of the blogs you see going viral have already been online for a long time and for years they couldn’t attract true fans either. Sooner or later you find the sweet spot and it all changes, but no one can tell you what that sweet spot is and then when you find it everyone will act as if they knew it all along. Sure they did.

Darn those liars!

Not really, what people often miss is that creating for someone else hardly ever works outside of a 9 to 5. Writing what you love for yourself first often is where the answer is and it will seem like we knew this all along because deep inside maybe we did, but we didn’t have trust in ourselves.

Your Assignment:

This is what I want you to do, I want you to write something NEW you would show up for, something you would love to read as a reader and a fan. Something you would share if you weren’t the author.

Create something so compelling for you that you must read it over and over again because you can’t get enough of it.

Be your one true fan first, before anyone else.

Once you convince yourself, and you become the ultimate fan of your own art, the rest will follow.

Lead us by writing something you love for you, no one else. If it’s good enough for you it will be good enough for others.

When you’ve written and published such a post, do me a favor and post a link to it in the comments. Here’s the thing, don’t rush, no, don’t do that. I know you can create something quickly, but that’s not what I want, I want something you LOVE. Don’t share until you’ve written THAT article.

That’s what it takes today. All the bullshit about SEO, interlinking, Social Media and all that jazz doesn’t matter a hoot if the art doesn’t have that intangible something. Bland, SEO perfect articles don’t get shared, no one other than Google cares about them.

Don’t get blinded by algorithms. The artist, YOU, matter more than any system!

Write something that if a critic were to shred it you’d cry, but not quit. No, never quit.

Because remember, Serious Writers Never Quit!

Anyone could be lazy about this and post an old link of theirs, but wouldn’t it be amazing if you took the above advice and created something new with this specific goal in mind?

Here’s a warning, though:

If this works, things could change. Are you ready for that?