Who are you?

Recently I was asked in an interview (http://dineenmiller.blogspot.com) about advice I would give to writers. I thought a lot about it and it seems the most important thing I found is knowing who you are as a writer. By this I mean to know where your focus is or should be. Without focus it is highly unlikely that you will have a prosperous career. It's like creating a brand, a direction for you to go in, so that your readers know what to expect from your work. Without it you will never give your readers what they expect on a continous basis. When you get a reader you want to keep him after all.

Think about your favorite author or director - you just know what to expect when you read one of her books. They may play around with unusual themes and subject matter but the basic core of who they are as a writer remains the same. This is why so many writers have multiple pen names - each name is it's own brand or focus.

To get a feel for your brand or focus try answering these questions:
What are your skills?
Which genre is the best for your writing style and interests?
What is important to you? (do you want to Educate? Entertain? Scare?)
How would you like your work to be remembered?
If you had to create a one liner about your work what would it be? (Heartfelt stories that make you cry? Smart, steamy romances?)

When you have focus you also know what projects not to get involved in as well as what projects to pursue. Let's face it, writers attrack ideas like magnets and not every idea should see the light of day.

Focus will help you stop spinning your wheels on stories that just don't fit you - you know those stories where you just can't seem to get passed act two!

Just a thought....