Kate Harvie is the Author of the upcoming Believe It and Behave It: How to restart, Reset, and Reframe your Life. She is also an editor, and brand strategist.
She was born in New York City and grew up in Cleveland. After grad school, she decided to live where she was born. She defines herself as a combination of denim and satin, Cleveland and Manhattan.
A trained singer, Kate always has been and always will be immersed in and dedicated to music. She loves to drive, cook, read, and be a voice for those who don’t quite know what to say or how to make their point.
Her story is inspiring and one to share as life does not always turn out the way we hope or expect (sometimes for the best and sometimes to test us).
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Everybody writes, whether they compose on paper or Evernote a grocery list, letter, birthday card, contract, email content, or check.
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Not everyone is a writer.
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I’m not going to drop Webster’s Dictionary knowledge on you because people who choose to be writers are a specific and special population. If you are one, you know it. And if you want to be one, you know that too.
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I wrote this post for the people who want to be writers. If you are in the nascent stages of becoming one, you will find tactical and emotional elements here. If you have been a writer for any period of time and are feeling low or that you need to refresh and renew, there is material for you here.
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Because I am drawn to prime numbers and am a believer in the power of three (Power of 3?), there are three components here. While I’ve provided them in the order that makes sense to me, please read them however it makes sense and feels right to you. Away we go.
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1. Why are you doing this? What is your Purpose? (capitalized on purpose, no pun intended) What is your Impetus?
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We all have stories to tell. These stories exist for many reasons and do a lot of things. They can make people laugh, they teach, they inspire, they inform, they shine light, they provide escapism from whatever is happening in people’s lives.
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Those are the actions of a book, an article, a blog post, etc. They are the results of the writer’s time, energy, focus, and reason. That, to me at least, begs the question, why did someone write what I am about to read? And that is the question we need to ask ourselves before we take the necessary steps to become a writer.
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Do you know your why? It’s not as tough a question as it initially appears to be. That is because you are the only person who needs to feel good about your answers.
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Your first audience, if you get me, is you.
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Example: me.
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I am the survivor of a traumatic brain injury. Long story short, I am blessed, lucky, and grateful to be alive. When I was in “official” recovery, and in the time that followed, I messed things up right, left, and center in every aspect of my life.
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Had I known a fraction of what I eventually witnessed and learned I could have prevented any number of disasters (I’m being a little dramatic here because the word “failure” is both a useful term and a trigger and I don’t want to put that word in play here) with family, friends, work, and my own being, feeling, and doing.
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I realized a while ago (I was hurt in 2009) that there was an opportunity for a book that addressed what I call post-trauma traumas.
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I decided that I had an opportunity to impart what I had learned to people who survived some kind of trauma. It didn’t just have to be brain injury. It could be anything that wrecked someone.
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So my purpose for being the writer of this book is powered primarily by what I feel is the secret sauce in startups, healthy relationships, and pretty much living in happiness.
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My reason for doing here is empathy.
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I am also a writer for small and established businesses’ website content, press releases, talking points, marketing jargon, branded material, and in-house strategies.
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I stepped into being a writer of things other than client materials in 2003 while I lived in St. Louis. I encountered many spectacular small business owners (and I worked for one who is now a close friend), purpose-driven and locally owned establishments, and straight up better than famous places. None of these had the budgets to (or initial interest in) hire a publicist or marketer.
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In the days before social media and ebooks, I did my part to tell the stories of these people and places because the communities would benefit from knowing where to buy custom upholstered furniture, designed and sold by someone who lived in their area code. Crate and Barrel could take care of itself.
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My purpose here was doing what came naturally to me (talking clearly and loudly), felt good, and delivered value to people.
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Circling back to you, why is being a writer important to you? There are no wrong answers here. What your parents, your favorite teacher/professor, your boss, your closest friend, your partner would say here is not the answer you need.
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What drives you can, and will, define you.
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2. Who do you need and want to be via your written work? What is your Identity?
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One thing of which there is no shortage these days is web presence. If you want to find a fourth grade classmate of yours, if you need to connect with an industry thought leader, you can locate people. You can also find any number of writers.
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There is certainly value in researching and reviewing the material on websites and publications like Huffington Post, Medium, and Reddit. What you need to watch, though, is any move you make to say to yourself, “They write better than I do,” “This person is already doing my thing,” “Here’s a first to market coach who targets my sought audience,” and on and on like this.
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President Theodore Roosevelt once said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” He could not have been more correct.
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Be sure to review other people’s work with these goals and ways in mind: learn, be inspired, find the gaps, identify best practices, and see what doesn’t work.
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[tweet_box design=”box_07″ float=”none”]Remember that they are doing them, not you. Only you can do you.[/tweet_box]
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This leads us to the second of our three questions: who are you via what you write? The answer here can be literal – an attorney, a teacher, an actor, a comedian, a musician, an author – and it can be kinesthetically motivated – a guide, a supporter, a leader, a care giver, a motivator.
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This answer is also rooted in your purpose and your personality. By this I mean, what will serve you when you publish your writings? Where are you comfortable? Facebook live? Medium? A column on HuffPo? Private Twitter feed?
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You could feel moved to start a private Facebook group and publish something there as many times as you want because you want to generate a dialogue. That could allow you to what I call M&M – motivate and mediate – if those roles suit you.
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Communities have been built all over the web for musicians, startup founders, coaches, healers, energy workers, and writers. Before you choose one (or several) poke around and identify the tone, vibe, and feeling existing in and exuding from these. Not to sound like one of my favorite songs in the world (“Somewhere” by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim in West Side Story), and there’s a place for us. Know that there is a place for you. Give yourself whatever time you need to find that space.
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There are several terrific resources and advisers for writers. Take a look at Scrivener, Her Life, Her Legacy, The Write Life, Ryan Holiday, Steven Pressfield, Mark Manson, How to Write Better, Storyline, Tim Grahl, and Self-Publishing School.
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Use these sources, programs, classes, and insights at your pace. Connect with fellow writers-in-the-making and active writers. Seek the support of people who began as authors and now are authors and advisers.
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In brief, you can be the person you were built to be. Start to identify, privately to yourself and in the company of your close friends and colleagues, who you are as a writer and who you want to be as a writer. When you feel comfortable and confident, introduce yourself as a writer. Adjust your email signature and social profiles so the word “writer” is present.
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[tweet_dis]You set the tone, you raise the bar, and you run the show.[/tweet_dis]
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3. What will you do when people try to hush you? How can you sustain your Integrity?
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The First Amendment is a glorious thing. And it can allow for frustration points. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press, along with the right to peaceably assemble are critical to how we want to live.
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And people will go loud when they disagree with something you’ve written. They will post comments and reactions to your work that were done on the fly, without any thought behind them or respect attached to them.
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[tweet_box design=”box_07″ float=”none”]Please remember this: disagreement with your words is not a denial of you.[/tweet_box]
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You may feel tempted to delete these things. You may want to respond and tell the person what for. You may want to shut them down and show the audience that you are the one they showed up to read. You may want to contact the person offline and put them down.
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Before you do any of these things, read what appears, process it, take a minute, and then respond in the ways that feel right to you.
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Time helps to ensure our integrity.
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Nothing, no one can prevent you from being who you choose to be via the written word unless you let them. Your truth, honesty, and character are the underpinnings of any story you choose to write and share. When we permit people’s foolishness, aggression, and opinions to hurt us, we are denying our audience and ourselves access to our perfect condition.
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This is something Buddha said or it is just my favorite note on Yogi Tea’s product and it became one of my mantras eight years ago: act, don’t react.
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Your integrity, your virtue can always exist. Pause. Process. Proceed.
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Choosing to share your stories, opinions, and observations with the world is a joy and will become something of a responsibility as you step into your place amongst writers. I appreciate your presence and courage. And I cannot wait to read what you write and include you in my tribe of writer colleagues. We are all in this together.
Here are a few ways to connect with her and also take a look at her work:
Her website – http://kateharvie.com
Portfolio – http://kateharvie.com/writing/
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Interested in Guest Blogging? Contact me by email at contact@lmdurand.com or simply use the contact form from the website.