The 5 Things Needed To Win The World Cup...And Succeed At Writing

I know a lot of people are watching the soccer field battles going on around the globe right now. Everyone has their favorite team and I'm sure plenty of friendly wagers are being placed on who will ultimately win the World Cup.

There are also a number of people pleasantly surprised to see the USA team defeat Ghana and now are gearing up to cheer them on against Portugal.  Being the writer I am and not a huge follower of ANY sport, I found myself analyzing the games from an entirely different viewpoint and discovered there are a number of reasons a particular team came out on top each time.

1. SKILL

These teams are not amateurs but seasoned professional athletes. They spent a lot of time honing their skills and any victories earned have come from hard work at perfecting their craft. Writers prepare for the challenge of winning at the publication game by studying and fine tuning the art of storytelling until their skills as a writer are razor sharp.

2. SPORTSMANSHIP

Most of the time you will see athletes act in a respectful and courteous manner, even when they lose.  They can still feel a disappointing loss while congratulating others on a well earned win. Writers who whine about a negative response from a publisher or agent sometimes forget the walls have ears and others are watching...and many will be looking for a professional response at all times.

3. TEAMWORK

World Cups are never won by ONE person. It takes a group of individuals depending on each other to help and support one another all the way to the top of their game. Writers can depend on peer groups, critique groups, agents, editors, and publishers as well as friends and family to help them along the road to publication. And when the time is right, those same writers should lend a helping hand to those following in their footsteps.

4. PERSEVERANCE

I wonder how many times the players on the USA team have missed a goal during practice? How many times they have made a misstep and fallen? Did they just lie there, drowning in their tears of frustration or did they get up and try again until they succeeded? There will ALWAYS be writer's block, rejection letters, poor sales, etc. It is what we writers DO when that happens which determines our success at our chosen career.  Whether we become a door mat or get back on our feet separates the winners from the losers at this writing game.

5. LUCK 

Despite all the other areas a world class team may excel in, there will still always be a level of pure luck in claiming that World Cup trophy. All the stars need to be in alignment and somebody needs to be holding that lucky rabbit's foot because when all is said and done, soccer is still just a game and there are no guarantees in sports. Just look at the USA team. Odds were very much against them that they would beat Ghana and look what happened. Writers can't control being lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time but they CAN increase their chances of winning the writing jackpot if they perfect the other areas...