As most writers know, making it as a writer is very difficult. So you’ve studied communications in college. Or maybe you were a creative writing major. Perhaps you focused on journalism. Either way—you want to write and you want to be noticed. You want your name printed in bold print on the table of contents page, under the headlines, or on the front page of a novel. You are a writer, and you want to be acknowledged as one. Or perhaps you just want to get paid for it.

Many writers have started out in small publishing companies, magazines and newspapers. Or they work wherever they can just to pay the bills. It’s hard to feel like a writer when you’re so busy working a blue-collar job. By the time you get home and sit down, there is no energy or motivation to start clacking away at the keys of your laptop. At this rate, you feel as though you’ll never be a writer. You should’ve listened to your parents and studied accounting.

If you're serious about writing, however, you won't give up. The key to being a writer? Never stop writing. If you write everyday, you’ll keep your creative juices flowing. Imagination and inspiration are your lifelines. Don’t forget to keep reading, too. If you’re serious about being a writer then you’ll do whatever it takes to be one. Even if it means pushing through those times of writer’s block, low income and constant rejection. Or taking an entry-level job doing something that you don’t necessarily want to do.

Writing isn’t for the faint-hearted. It’s a lifestyle. It’s a mindset. It’s a big commitment. What makes it most difficult is that every potential employer or publisher is looking for something different. How can you please them all? You can’t. All you can do is write something you know. Something you’re passionate about. When you write from the heart, you’re readers will connect with you. They’ll take away something from it, and hopefully it will leave a lasting impression on them.

So how do you make it? I think writers world wide are still trying to come up with a solution to that question. There really is no one right answer. It takes a lot of hard work and perseverance. Persistence. Patience. Pulling out your hair, perhaps. But if writing is what you want to do, you’ll find a way to do it. You’ll keep trying. You may have times of feeling completely defeated. In fact, it’s pretty much a guarantee. You may have rejections slips covering your walls or filling up your trash cans. But you’ll push through because you have to. You’ll do it because you’re a writer.