I first shared my writing in a somewhat-public sphere as a college sophomore. I had been hired onto the school newspaper as an editor of the Opinion section (my qualifications being that I was willing to do the job, I’m pretty sure), and so I had to produce one editorial every week, in addition to curating 3-4 other pieces of opinion writing. Since then, I would conservatively estimate I’ve had at least 200 pieces of personal writing published online and in print — and that’s not even counting the reporting I did during newspaper internships in 2014 and 2015.

In addition to the publication of my nonfiction writing, I’ve had a fiction story published in an online newsletter and have shared other fiction in countless workshops both as part of my education (BA and MFA in writing) and with critique partners across the world.

All this to say, I’m pretty practiced at sharing my writing. It’s the kind of thing that I do almost without thinking, borderline without anxiety, because I’m just so dang used to it by now. But I know that’s not the case for all writers, and it’s especially not the case when you’re just getting started sharing your writing. If you’re a writer looking to share your words, I’m hopeful that the following tips will help you as you confront the daunting yet oh-so-exciting prospect of being read by others. Because truly, I write for myself but I also write because I love sharing!

1. Quantity over quality

I know, we’re so used to it being the opposite! But I was thinking a few days ago about the sheer volume of writing I’ve pushed into the world, and how…a lot of it is just plain bad. Some of the editorials I wrote in 2012 absolutely do not reflect my values or writing style today; some of the pieces I’ve published have been written in a rush to meet a deadline and, honestly, weren’t my best work.

And that’s when I had the epiphany that the best way to get over a fear of sharing is to just share a whole lot. Now, don’t mistake me: I’m not saying you shouldn’t care about the quality of your work or put out work you know isn’t up to your standards. I’m just saying that sometimes it’s okay if the work you share isn’t perfect — in fact, it never will be perfect. And that can be so freeing!

2. Write for the lovers, not the haters

This piece of advice is honestly hard for me to swallow myself, but I think it’s crucial. Especially in the world of 2024’s internet, it’s easy to get caught up in knots worrying about what the least charitable readers will think. Heck, I’m doing it with this piece, wondering if people are going to think the intro was braggadocious, that I’m giving bad advice, that I don’t have the chops to actually be giving any advice..

And that’s where I have to stop and remind myself that if I wrote for the haters, I’d never write anything at all. Listen. Nothing we ever write is going to be perfect or perfectly palatable across the board. It sucks, but it’s true. But there are going to be people who love what we write. There just are! No experience is perfectly unique to any individual, and no taste is perfectly unique either. If something works for you, there’s at least one other human for whom it’ll work, likely many! So write for them. Share your writing with them in mind — they’ll thank you for it!

3. Remember that you deserve to take up space

Okay, this is not exclusive to writing. But as Co-Star just reminded me, “everyone deserves to be listened to and loved.” I don’t know how to put it better than that.

When the doubt creeps in, when the impostor syndrome rages — remember that you have a voice. You have stories. You have insights and good things to offer the world. So take up space, submit your story or publish your blog post or write that Instagram caption. And know that you’re worth listening to.

4. As Nike said: just do it

Yeah, I’m stealing their motto. Sue me! (For legal purposes this is a joke, I do not have Nike lawsuit money!) This is not so much “advice” as it is “something I yell at myself” but hey, whatever works! When it comes down to it, sometimes you’ve just gotta hit “submit” or “publish” and put your work out there. You’ll never know how it’s going to be received until you do.