What’s Luck Got to Do With It?

When you begin studying the lives of the great writers, one of the most surprising things you’ll learn is how well aware most of them were regarding their limitations and the role that luck played in their success.

For example, Ernest Hemingway once said, “I have tried simply to write the best I can; sometimes I have good luck and write better than I can.” We don’t think of Ernest Hemingway as a writer who needed any sort of luck. We think of him as immensely gifted and one of the 20th century’s most important writers.

But the truth is that luck plays a role in every writer’s career… including yours. That’s why you can forge ahead with confidence. Sure, we all need to work on our skills and craft. There’s a place for that. However, getting around the right people is also a critical part of your success. And sometimes, we just get a stroke of luck and happen to write something that jives with the public’s consciousness at just the right time.

The best part, though, is that you have a large measure of control over how much “luck” comes your way. Spend time around the right people, work on your craft, be persistent, and don’t take yourself too seriously. Then you’ll just happen to get lucky a lot more often.

Daily Question: What are the habits or practices that help you become more “lucky” in your writing success?