Some people believe writing online isn’t “real writing”. I never gave this notion much thought until reading a post at The Writing Journey titled Why Real Writers Don’t Write On the Internet. The opening line in this well-intentioned piece includes the following:

“I’m just going to say it. Real writers wouldn’t get caught dead blogging or writing web content. By real writers, I’m talking about print writers, folks.  I call them real because, well, that’s how many of them distinguish themselves from us Internet writers.”

Now the author goes on to say he’s writing with a bit of snark when addressing the habits of “real” writers, so we have to cut the author some slack–he’s not REALLY claiming that print writers wouldn’t be caught dead writing blogs or online material. Or at least I HOPE he isn’t, because the evidence is overwhelmingly against such an idea. Neil Gaiman, William Gibson, Poppy Z. Brite and hundreds of other print writers all know the power of blogs and online writing to boost their print material. William Gibson isn’t just a scribbler of great computer-geek-centric science fiction, he’s also a contributor to Wired and other respected publications. That include online content, too. But what DOES qualify someone as a “real” writer?

It certainly is NOT whether you write for print or online. I myself do both, as does Catherine Tully. My in-print credits include Indie Slate Magazine, Conscious Choice, American Fitness, Korean Quarterly, Backroads USA, Natural Solutions Magazine, a diverse collection of regional lifestyle magazines and many others. My Internet writing credits are even longer and include blogs (not just this one), e-commerce sites, multi-media music industry sites and Air Force News.

A “real” writer is simply someone who has dedicated themselves to the craft beyond a certain level of expertise. Anybody can set up shop on the web and call themselves a writer. But a “real” writer is a student of writing, someone who never stops learning.

In the first six months of a new writing career–whether it’s full or part time, paid or not–you will not feel like a “real” writer. And quite frankly, you aren’t one yet. Everyone is still in the noob stages in the first 180 days, and you haven’t hit the real test that seperates you from the herd.

What makes you a real writer is what you do in the aftermath of the NEXT six months in the wake of constant rejections, criticism of your work, and pressure to succeed. A good 50% of your competition in the first two years of a new writing career will get discouraged, stop working so hard and eventually quite the game. REAL writers simply keep on slogging away no matter how bad it gets. Even a hopeless no-talent can polish off the rough edges long enough to find SOME kind of steady paying work as a writer. The key is persistence and learning how the game is played.

Bottom line, it doesn’t matter whether you publish online or in print. REAL writers are the ones who are still at it when everyone else has gone home. Just like basketball players, soldiers, doctors and lawyers. If you quit or stop working as hard as you should, you’ve lost. Forget about worrying WHERE to be published, the fact that you GET published is what you should be striving for, along with learning the ropes as quickly as possible.