The Value of Patience For the Aspiring Author

Waiting isn’t an easy task when you’re striving toward your dreams—especially in an industry that moves like a snail pace. And yet, it’s probably one of the most important attributes an aspiring author can have.

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If you’ve followed my blog for any time now, then you probably know I love to encourage young writers to pursue their writing dreams. I don’t think teens should let their age hold them back from pursuing publication, especially if their craft is quality. But even so, if we make a rushed decision in our writing journey simply out of impatience, then we’re withholding ourselves from the reward and growth that result from waiting seasons.


If begin to struggle with patience this year, remind yourself of these 5 reasons why impatience can be harmful:


1 - Impatience makes us discontent.


If we long to hurry and rush into the next season of our writing journey, then we fail to enjoy our current season and appreciate the progress we’ve already made. We’ll never be satisfied until we reach the next milestone—then once we reach that, we’ll be restless until we've achieved the next one, and so on.


2 – Impatience makes us rush into decisions that we could cost us down the road.


This is why I encourage teen writers to develop as a writer and study the industry first before they dive in. Preparation for the journey ahead is key to understanding the road we’re setting out to navigate.


Sure, you might long to become an author and see your story in print—but is it worth rushing the quality of it? It might take a while to study the craft and receive feedback from critique partners, but trust me: You’ll be grateful, in the long run, that your name will be tied to work that’s quality rather than sloppy.


3 – Impatience keeps us from the best.


What if your story idea could develop over time and eventually become a #1 best-seller? That’s an exciting thought—however, this pursuit doesn’t necessarily happen over night. Every bestselling author has had to walk a long road of growing as a writer, writing drafts of their book, editing, receiving feedback, implementing feedback, etc. before they could see this success. What would’ve happened if they had rushed into publication prematurely?


4 – Impatience takes away the joy of working hard, seeing the fruit, and knowing it was done with excellence and carefulness.


I love the various publishing options that us writers have today. Even a six-year-old can see their work in print! Yet even though it’s exciting to think anyone can write a story and load it onto Amazon, the reward is much more thrilling when it’s a result of hard work, excellence, and patience.


5 – Impatience often gets us out of God’s perfect will for our lives, especially when we’re determined to make things happen our way and in our timing.


If God has given you the desire and gift to write, then don’t you believe He has a plan for your writing journey? You might have an idea as to how you’d like for your writing career to play out, and that’s completely fine—but there’s no safer place to be than in His will. Let’s be faithful to use the gifts He’s given us and give Him control over the steering wheel of our dreams. His timing might be different from what we hope it’ll be, but you can be assured that it will be perfect and well worth the patience.

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So as you make your New Year resolutions and strive toward your writing goals, keep in mind that it’s okay to have a big picture goal in mind—as long as this goal doesn’t cause you to make rash decisions along the way. And be prepared to wait. A lot. Even as your writing style and skills continue to develop. Just remember that time, hard work, and patience are necessary ingredients to producing lasting fruit in your writing career.

What’s the hardest stage in the writing journey for you to cultivate patience?