Whether you’re a professional who gets paid to write, an amateur just starting out, or an aspiring hobby writer who writes (for fun) on the side, we have good news for you! The Finesse Writers’ Club – which we launched earlier this year – is finally opening its doors again to welcome a new cohort of writers.

Here, our CEO Jo Caruana reveals the top five takeaways that our members shared from their experience in the Club over the past few months. The best part? Our writers come from various backgrounds and have different levels of writing experience, which has turned the Club into a diverse writing hub that’s a perfect fit for wordsmiths of all sorts!

Why a Writers’ Club?

I’ve been a writer for over 15 years and I honestly believe that writing is one of the best careers out there, hands down. But one thing that would have made my journey easier – especially in the early days of my career – is a space I could go to for feedback on my writing from other writers. Writing is a vast topic and you should never stop learning, so I know having a supportive community would have helped me improve and grow faster.

And that’s where the inspiration for the Finesse Writers’ Club was born. Now, the first few months with our fantastic founding members have been amazing, and we can’t wait to welcome another intake of new members in the coming weeks! If you think that might be you, here are some benefits you can expect to take away.

Bye bye impostor syndrome

We all get it. That sense of not being up to the task and wondering whether you’re really the right person for the job. Self-doubt is common among writers, and it’s no fun to feel that your writing isn’t good enough.

But guess what? Being part of the Writers’ Club has shown me and the other writers that we’re not alone. We all have days when we’re not getting things right, when we second-guess ourselves and question our writing abilities. Just knowing this is something everyone struggles with can lift some weight off your shoulders and offset the power of those niggling, self-critical thoughts. It has certainly helped us in the Club to know that we’re all in the same boat. Plus, we love  to cheer each other on along the way.

Grammar vs personal preference

As we’ve often discussed in the Club, knowing which writing elements are absolute and which are subjective can be a mighty headache. What’s for certain is that anything grammar-related is something you have to know inside out, because this is the kind of language that’s either right or wrong. Getting this wrong will make you and your work look unprofessional. It’ll quickly lose you points with clients or your editor.

As for the other stuff, there are a lot of subjective decisions in writing that come down to personal preference. If there’s more than one possible way of writing it and you’re not entirely sure which to go with, this is where your company’s or your client’s style guide comes in handy. Sometimes, however, it may be up to you to decide on how to write something, so it helps to think about the platform you’re writing for. Oh, and you could always ask your fellow Writers’ Club members for advice!

Cute and clever vs clear

When writing, keep the end goal of your piece in mind because it’ll be critical to its success. As writers, one of our jobs is to sell, whether that’s a product or a service. Remembering what we’re trying to sell should guide our writing style, as we can sell better when we write better.

For instance: do you want to entertain your readers with a light read or hold their interest with a fun article? In these cases, a cute or clever style would go down well. On the other hand, if you’re making a point that you want your readers to understand, your job is to get the message across as clearly as possible.

Using the wrong style will stop your reader from responding the way you want them to. So, once again, knowing the difference between when to choose one style over another is what will set you apart as a writer, and a community devoted to the art of writing can help you figure that out.

There is a place for every writer

The beauty of the Finesse Writers’ Club is that it brings together a whole range of writers who each enjoy very different styles of writing. Technical writers, academic writers, journalistic writers, blog post writers, creative writers and social media writers – there’s a place for them all in the Club! And what’s really inspiring is that, with such a melting pot of skills at hand, we all end up learning a great deal from each other.

Truth is: any writer would benefit from improving their skills across a range of writing styles to build a solid portfolio, as we all need to be able to write in different ways for different clients or outcomes. But it’s just as useful to hone in on the niche you wish to carve out for your writing so that you can truly master it. At the Writers’ Club, members can make the best of both worlds.

Writers need other writers

Finally, let’s admit it: writers are a very particular type of people! By nature, they are creatives who use words to do their thing. With a specific set of skills and minds that may work differently, it can be hard for writers to find their own people to open up with about their craft, the challenges they face and the tools that work for them.

That is why a space like the Writers’ Club could be your dream come true if you’re a writer – for the value that you gain and the value that you add by being a part of it. We love watching our members find their people, make new friends and learn from each other in ways they probably never thought possible. As the members can tell you, the Club is truly the place to be!

Want in on all the fun? We’d love to get to know you and help you along your writing journey. The Club is only open for a limited period, so drop us a line at [email protected] today!