You’re halfway through your first book and you come up for air. You read an article on self-promotion: getting your name out there and becoming recognizable in the world of the written word. The fact that you actually have to turn to the social media machine that you have been avoiding (because it potentially could suck up all of your writing time) hits you like a ton of bricks. Panic wells up inside you.

You read a few articles, hoping against hope that you have misunderstood. But, nope. The message is loud and clear. What to do, now?

Should you run, bury your head in the sand, pack it up, give up the dream? Could you even do that? 

Of course not. That world that offers you solace and a creative outlet. It challenges you to look deep within and inspires you to become more than you ever thought possible.

So, you begin building a platform. Putting your ego aside. Inviting criticism through your door. Fighting your insecurities. Finding a voice. Calming those fears of rejection and perhaps being misunderstood at times.

But I promise, you’ll wake up one day in the not-too-distant future and put your name into your computer’s search bar and it will pop up. You’ll get a few emails from followers—some, even, in other countries! You’ll read positive comments to your posts. You’ll get encouragement from friends and family.

You are suddenly on the brink of a whole new life, filled with endless possibilities.

All because you dare to write. To challenge yourself. To share all of who you are about. What you’ve got going. What you bring to the table that no one else does in quite the same way.

We’re writers—and life doesn’t get any better than that!