Writing, per some noobs out there who have no idea what they’re talking about, is oh so easy!

Like I said… noobs. Even the best of us out there will tell you how difficult it really is. In fact, the best of the bests will tell you how hard it is to write something moderately decent — something a reader will want to read from top to bottom.

Bloggers, myself included, often do not come to this line of work understanding all that it takes to create content week after week after week, then months and years. When I first started, it took me by surprise how long it took me to write on a topic I thought I knew so well about.

You see, the writing part itself wasn’t difficult. I had written before, of course. Research papers, project reports, etc. But never did I worry so much about whether or not my professors would care to read what I had to write. Professors get paid to read students’ work after all. Thinking back now, I kinda feel sorry for my professors.

But things are different now. My readers do not owe me a thing. In order to hold their attention, I now need to be a good writer. Someone who can hold my readers’ attention by my skill alone. And the quality of my content, relevance, usefulness, etc.

Basically, how I treat the act of writing has made a complete 180-degrees from back when I was in college, writing to pass my classes.

I’m better now. And a lot of it has to do with intentionally learning about writing. Some of the resources that I’m about to list here (especially the books) have helped shape my writing. And the work isn’t even done yet! My writing is still lacking, but if you were to go back and read some of my first blog posts, you’ll be able to spot the difference.

Anyhow, I figured today I’ll share some of the resources and tools with you that have helped me become a better writer. If you’re a new writer, some of these should help. Definitely consider reading the books at least. The rest, well, they’re mostly for vanity. You can skip them if you want to.