By J. J. Hanna, a professional writing student at Taylor University
When you hang around writers long enough, it can be easy to wonder why anyone should hire you and not the person sitting next to you. They have the same skills, the same interests, and the same knowledge and resources. Especially in a setting like a college class full of writers, it can be extremely difficult to feel like your words are needed.
So why you? What makes you unique? What makes you perfect to write this article? This is a question you’ll be asked often. But how do you answer it?
Good news: your whole life has led to this answer.
Why you? Because your resources are different than those of the person next to you. Your interests, though similar, are different than those of the person next to you. You have grasped the skills differently than the writer next to you, and this is what makes you uniquely capable of writing each article you write.
Let me explain this in terms of my own life. First, a few facts about me to set this up: I practice Karate at a local dojo, I rode horses growing up but never owned my own, read almost all of the Nancy Drew novels in elementary school, and have been blogging since 2015.
Now, say the writer sitting next to me read Percy Jackson, does yoga, grew up bowling every week, and their parents own a bookstore.
To write an article about horses, would you want to hire me or the writer next to me? To write an article about bowling, would you want to hire me or the writer next to me?
See how that works? Everything in your life thus far works together to give you a unique ability to write things the other writers can’t. The same goes for editing. If I read suspense novels, I will be better suited to edit suspense than romance, which I hardly ever read. But I have friends who read historical fiction, or Sci-fi, or fantasy, and that prepares them to edit those much more effectively than I could.
This isn’t to say I couldn’t do these jobs, but it is to say I may not be the best person for the job.
Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. You begin to succeed when you stop trying to improve your weaknesses and start playing to your strengths. Use your strengths to heighten your uniqueness.
People should hire you. No one else can write on the topic the way you can. Don’t be afraid to use that.
J. J. Hanna is a Professional Writing major at Taylor University. To hire her for editing or beta reading services, check out her rates on the Services tab. In her spare time, she makes YouTube videos and Comics, and practices Karate in a local dojo. Visit her blog at www.authorjjhanna.com for more insights on the writing world.
PWR Blog 