Do it. Or don't do it.

People tell me that I’m awesome at writing. Or I wish they did.

I haven’t told anyone that my biggest hobby is writing because I’m too embarrassed to tell them or even show them anything I’ve written.

I only tell them that I have a secret job and that sends them on a treasure hunt because no-one really thinks that writing is a full-on job unless you get paid a whole heap of money. I think that’s a pretty dumb stereotypical thought and I wish more of the younger generation would think like me for once and actually open their mind to something different or new.

Some people think that writing is for old people and yeah, I guess most of the bad classic books are way too old for the modern-day world now but there are tons and tons of new books and novels being released every year but sometimes people don’t want to give anything new a try because they’re too scared. Scared of change or something different because that’s not what they’re used to.

I’ve been writing since I was about six, and one of the first ‘short stories’ I wrote was about a princess being saved by a prince. I look back on that now and roll my eyes with a sigh. All of those Disney movies, stories and books shouldn’t be what children grow up reading anymore, it should be empowering women, or changing for the better, because those annoying skinny princesses are what men think women should be like. Frail and fragile and being saved all of the time.

I have seen a massive change however, and most of the younger writers are making a huge difference and I love watching our world grow.

To become better at writing is not just something you learn to do, it’s something you want and you choose to do, so if you want to write, sure, go ahead. But we really don’t need any more crappy ‘classic’ books.

Even if that’s what the older generation wants us to read because that’s what they grew up with.

Instead, we should tell them to grow up and read some modern-day novels because they’re too used to misogynistic, sexist, homophobic and all of that awful stuff because that’s what they grew up with.

Something that helped me write was whatever was in my head I would just write down and then later on I would come back to it and a story idea would pop into my mind.

To all the new writers out there, please do not be afraid to try something that no-one has ever done before because if it’s never been done before then that pretty much shows how much people are afraid.

Don’t write if it’s not your thing. We have enough bad books out there already.