I follow a few authors on social media. Many because of social media swaps, where we follow each other to boost our following, and others because I want to, like Jackie Collins, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Karen M McManus and Joanna Penn.

But I will also occasionally go and have a look at other authors, and wannabe authors, to see what they do, what they post, what they sell to get some inspiration for myself.

In my two decades of doing this thing called being an author, I have come to see many differences between amateur authors and writers, and professional ones.

This year, I decided to call myself a veteran author as I wrote my first novel 19 years ago. Regardless of the fact I wrote short stories in school and songs in my teens and twenties.

But there’s a lot of differing opinions about the difference between amateur and professional, namely being about work ethic and money. “Pros make money, amateurs don’t” kind of thing.

But after reading Steven Pressfield’s “Turning Pro” and seeing the amateur chapter, it started my Taurus brain rampaging about all the ways amateur writers behave over pros.

Am I a “professional” writer? If you’re going to make it about earning money, I do, just not regularly, but then not many authors do. If you’re going to use book and word count as a gauge, then sure, I’m a professional.

So because this idea went from rampaging to gallivanting around the ethersphere of my brain, I decided to do some googling to see who else had a list of differences. Many were the same, many were different and enlightening. I have also collected a few ideas from different books on writing that I’ve read because those authors also know the difference. And so, here is my list (so far) of differences between amateurs and professionals when it comes to writing and creating in general.

 

Amateurs use flowery, dramatic words to describe themselves to cover their insecurities about who and what they are.

Professionals use clean, concise words because they know exactly who and what they are.

 

Amateurs whine about how hard writing is.

Professionals write.

 

Amateurs wait for inspiration.

Professionals inspire themselves.

 

Amateurs think about writing.

Professionals write.

 

Amateurs think about what they want to write.

Professionals write it.

 

Amateurs steal other people’s ideas.

Professionals come up with their own.

 

Amateurs make excuses for not writing.

Professionals write.

 

Amateurs write when they want to.

Professionals write to a regular schedule.

 

Amateurs whine, “Somebody’s going to steal my story.”

Professionals say, “Your story’s been done, I come up with my own”.

 

Amateurs love purple prose and big words.

Professionals use language people can understand.

 

Amateurs don’t care about spell check.  They’ll let “their editor” fix it.

Professionals know spelling and grammar are important and fixes it themselves.

 

Amateurs will write “the end” and send it off to an agent or publisher the same day.

Professionals will rewrite and rework until it’s polished before submitting or publishing.

 

Amateurs compare themselves to other writers and despair.

Professionals use other writers for inspiration and to drive themselves forward.

 

Amateurs constantly talk about being creative.

Professionals get on with being creative.

 

Amateurs wait for permission.

Professionals don’t need it.

 

Amateurs wait for affirmations.

Professionals have no need for them.

 

Amateurs allow their fears and insecurities to run their life.

Professionals kick those bastards to the curb and get on with creating.

 

Amateurs allow myths to cloud their brain.

Professionals laugh in their face and gets on with writing.

 

Amateurs wait for their tribe.

Professionals create their own tribe of one.

 

Amateurs learn to a point.

Professionals never stop learning.

 

Amateurs think everything they write is amazing.

Professionals think they can write better.

 

Amateurs don’t like taking advice.

Professionals take on board all professional advice and decide what’s for them.

 

Amateurs think everyone else is wrong.

Professionals listen and learn, and then take what they need.

 

Amateurs take on an uneducated fake air of dictatorial authority.

Professionals ARE the authority.

 

Amateurs wonder what people say about them when they leave the room.

Professionals don’t care.

 

Amateurs show up for the short-term.

Professionals show up for the long-term.

 

 

Well, there we go. Anyone have any Amateur versus Professional thoughts?