Goodreads asked Ania Ray:

What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

Ania Ray 1. Observe everything around you. Life is fodder for all writing. Pay attention to what hurts you. Then, write it down. This practice will make your characters' issues and situations real.

2. Find a community to hold you accountable. Find people who get just as excited about your writing as you do. Find a person who thinks everything you write is the most amazing thing ever. Find a person who asks questions about the characters to get you to wonder. Find a person who can give you tough love when you need it, but you'll know it's from a place of good will. Be open to that feedback. Be okay with knowing that your writing can become stronger.

3. Debilitate your self-doubt. Only you know what your insecurities are. My most common road-blocks were "You're only an English teacher; you can't do this." "You'll let your community down. They'll buy your book and be disappointed in you." Ultimately, the mantra that saved me and my novel was "No one can write this story but you." That, and if I didn't write it, I felt like I would burst.

No one chooses to be a writer. You either do it, or you don't. I'm not sure you're an "aspiring" writer - you just are one.

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