How Writing Helped Me Regain My Self-Esteem, And 5 Things I Love About This Profession

Written By: Raina Trivedi (My Writer Story)

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.” – Benjamin Franklin

I strongly believe in this. As you may have picked up by now, I’m a WRITER (or as I like to call myself “a creative problem solver!”). Though in my formative years, I always had this picture of a writer milling around in my head - a scruffy, geeky human being, addicted to either coffee or alcohol with a tactile sense of words and tattered bag on shoulders. That’s a sorry statement indeed! The dross of fate thwarted my dream of joining Indian Civil Services. Never in my dreams had I imagined to be one of the comrades of the writers’ brigade. And today after 7.5 years, I’m proud to be one among them.

No, I won’t be spouting off my history of wanting to write here. Rather, how this creative side of my personality helped me win plaudits and regain my self-esteem that had hit rock bottom, after not being able to cash-in any job opportunity in spite of being the recipient of the highest academic honor from one of the most prestigious educational institutions of the country.

So without any further ado, let me tell you how “writing” as a profession helped a frog (that’s me!) just out of well understand that the pen is mightier than the sword. After having learnt the skills of editing and proof reading at a leading publication house, which are prerequisites for flawless writing, one of my seniors was kind enough to give me managerial medication – a precious advice to switch over to writing.

Being a new victim of the urban jungle and corporate marathon, I had cultivated this abrasive hunger for gaining a strong toe-hold in the Internet industry. So there I was off to pastures new! Of course, with professional hunger and an additional stream of income as critical source of inspiration for an amateur writer like me!

No sooner did I start scouting for freelance writing projects, I came across a service seeker on Quikr, who was aggressively looking for a writer to craft movie reviews at some throwaway creative charges. That was my first assignment, and there I was pumping out mediocre (at least I can call it that today!) content left and right, and increasing my income by a few thousand bucks every month.

Torn between the zeal to carve a niche for myself in this fiercely competitive creative cum marketing industry and responsibilities as a writer, I was looking for a guide, who could inspire and shine a light on creating quality content pieces. Fortunately that was the period when Mr. Pawan Agarwal, ex-CEO, Lime Labs India Pvt. Ltd., mentored me and helped me hone my blogging skills incredibly. That was the turning point for me in my writing career.

Suddenly, I could see my writing strike a positive note with my bosses and a few friends, for whom I was freelancing then. I had started earning admirers, while firing my opinion and broaching different subjects on the Web. And WHAMMO -- the company got shut down!

I turned to full-time freelancing then.

Scraping off the layers of hype, here are a few Confessions of a Writing Junkie..................

1.      Getting to do what I love doing every day

Being a voracious reader and an ambitious writer, I love to play with words and get paid for the same. This is what I love doing every day. I love putting on my writer’s jacket every morning, and bringing my ideas and characters to life. It’s priceless! I love exercising freedom to air my opinion on different industry trends and political subjects, and my writing abilities help me do just that. As I do the quick roundup of all the stories and happenings around me, my online community gets regaled and sends me their precious feedback that enables me to face them head on and amp up my authority in content writing with each passing day. This fetches me full dose of creative satisfaction. Check out my blog for better insights into my writing abilities.

2.      Doing exhaustive Internet research

One of the most interesting aspects about writing is “learning” through extensive Internet research. The essential grains of knowledge that fall into my kitty every day are invaluable and add incredibly to my treasure trove of knowledge. Once I have all this information down pat, I translate it into creative and marketing stories in a format, that’s much easier to digest for the readers online. Though sometimes I need to my work my socks off for some real bizarre research on the World Wide Web to craft a content piece, nevertheless it’s always enriching and helpful in making me a better creative problem solver.

3.      Meeting Readers Online

There’s no bigger reward than a positive review or feedback from your online readers. A virtual pat on the back, constructive criticism or simple feedback leaves me with a smile and truckloads of satisfaction as a creative soul. Interacting with virtual community gives me tremendous joy and wealth of ideas. I love jumping and bouncing off ideas on one another, and getting inspired by their opinions and thoughts. It pays off in spades.

4.      Being known as someone who can't NOT write it

When you mention that you’re a writer, most people are extremely fascinated and assume you know stuff. It’s a stereotypical perception. It’s gratifying to be known as someone who knows and can write it all. Fine, writing is my passion now, and I can’t let a day pass without hammering out my thoughts online. It’s akin to breathing for me today. My research skills coupled with flair for writing help me write just about anything, everything.

5.      Taking Revenge

Last but not the least! Revenge is an action of passion, and injuries ought to be revenged. I believe in taking revenge, though creatively and harmlessly. If I’m left seething with anger by someone’s actions or words, s/he will be an integral part of my next story. Beware my enemies! I can make you a conniving villain/vamp, or even a dead body. Trust me on this one - if I despise you, you WILL be in one of my content pieces as a recipient of cuss words. And there won’t be an ounce of regret!

My life is absolutely FUN as a writer. And, I’m enjoying it to the hilt.

About the author:

Raina Trivedi is a Brainbench and ExpertRating Certified Professional Content Writer and Social Media Marketer with more than 7.5 years of comprehensive experience in writing online. She runs a widely acclaimed personal blog. Having served MNCs of high repute across varied domains, she ideates, strategizes, researches, authors and promotes user-centric content driven by brand guidelines to help brands positively impact their bottom lines.

Specialties: Market Research (Secondary), Inbound Marketing, Marketing Content Writing, Content Curation, Corporate & Promotional Blogging, SEO Writing, Social Media Engagement & Marketing, Social media Optimization, and many more!