Stop Buying the Writer Identity: You Do Not Need More Stuff to Write

[A quick 5-minute read for writers who want to spend less on the identity of being a writer—and more time actually writing.]

I have notice that there is a particular kind of writer who is always preparing to write.

They have the newest iPad, the Apple Pencil, the Astropad Rock Paper Pencil screen protector, the reMarkable, the Logitech MX Keys Mini keyboard, the Moleskin Classic notebook, the productivity software, the cloud-storage subscription, and the beautifully organized bookshelf.

Everything says:

I am a writer.

Except perhaps the one thing that matters most:

the writing.

I increasingly wonder whether we have confused the material culture of writing with writing itself.

Because an enormous industry now exists to sell us not simply tools for writing, but the identity of being a writer.

What Does a Writer Look Like?

Close your eyes and imagine a writer.

What appears?

Perhaps an old wooden desk. A wall of books. A steaming cup of coffee. A leather notebook. A fountain pen. Maybe a typewriter.

Perhaps a solitary intellectual sitting in a study surrounded by thousands of books.

The academic version might involve a professor surrounded by floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.

The contemporary version has changed.

Now perhaps the writer sits at a perfectly uncluttered desk with a MacBook, iPad, Apple Pencil, noise-canceling headphones, minimalist keyboard, and beautiful digital notebook beside the computer.

Maybe a plant is positioned perfectly in the corner.

Everything is beige, white, gray, or brushed aluminum.

And somewhere in the description are words like:

focus. deep work. distraction-free. intentional. minimalism. productivity.

Those words sound like descriptions of mental states.

Increasingly, they are also marketing language.

When “Deep Work” Becomes Something You Can Buy

“Deep work” did not begin as the name of a tablet feature.

Cal Newport popularized the concept in his book Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World. He defines deep work as focusing without distraction on cognitively demanding tasks.

That is a useful idea.

Writers absolutely need concentration.

But notice what happens when a behavioral practice becomes attached to a consumer product.

Instead of:

Develop the discipline to focus.

The message can gradually become:

Purchase something that will help you focus.

That is a profoundly different proposition.

reMarkable, for example, explicitly markets its devices around “deep work” and “distraction-free” thinking.

One of the people featured in its marketing is Dr. Jonah Berger, a professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, bestselling author, and—interestingly—an expert on consumer behavior and influence.

reMarkable describes Berger as someone who uses the device to turn complex research into accessible ideas. Its campaign places his testimonial underneath the heading:

“Distraction-free deep work.”

He explains that reMarkable gives him a distraction-free space in which to do that work.

Watch the reMarkable professor example on YouTube

I find this fascinating.

Not because I believe Professor Berger should not use a reMarkable.

Not because the device is bad.

Not because professors cannot endorse products.

The deeper issue is what is being communicated symbolically.

A Wharton professor. A bestselling author. An expert. A beautiful writing device. Deep work. Research. Creativity. Productivity.

These associations accumulate.

And the prospective buyer can easily begin making an unconscious connection:

Serious thinkers use serious thinking tools.

Maybe.

But serious thinkers also use yellow legal pads.

Prestige Can Become Part of the Advertisement

This is something academics should understand particularly well.

Status matters. Institutional names matter. Credentials matter. Titles matter.

When an Ivy League professor appears with a product, the professor does not enter the advertisement as merely another anonymous customer.

The professor brings symbolic capital.

The university affiliation brings symbolic capital.

The books bring symbolic capital.

The expertise brings symbolic capital.

And some of that authority transfers to the object.

The device stops being simply an electronic notebook. It becomes something associated with scholarship, thoughtfulness, expertise, and intellectual seriousness.

That is powerful marketing.

I am not interested in criticizing an individual professor for participating in it.

I am interested in teaching writers to see it.

Because once you recognize how aspiration is being sold to you, you can make a more deliberate decision about whether you actually need what is being advertised.

I Am A Thinker and Writer, Not an Influencer

That distinction matters to me.

I am not interested in becoming an influencer whose primary function is convincing you to consume. Influencers help companies sell products.

I am The Book Doctor. The Book Doctor helps writers produce writing.

I want to help people write books and make their writing dreams come true, no matter what those dreams are.

I am not attempting to sell you the idea that you can be a writer, because if you are following the work of The Book Doctor, you already are a writer.

If I recommend a pen, notebook, computer, book, or piece of technology, I want it to solve a genuine problem.

I recommend and share stories and experiences I have had with the hope that they can help you during your writing journey.

Yes, I use affiliate links.

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you decide a product genuinely solves a problem for you, using one of these links can support The Book Doctor at no additional cost to you. My inclusion of a link does not mean you need the product. #CommissionsEarned

And yes, if you have already decided to purchase something, using one of those links can support The Book Doctor at no additional cost to you.

But I want to maintain the freedom to tell you something very unusual for someone using affiliate marketing:

Don't buy the hype that a product or item makes you a better writer.

At least not automatically.

To be perfectly honest, all you need to write is your head, your heart, and a writing utensil.

What you already own may be perfectly adequate.

Just start writing.

I Am Writing This Blog Post on a “Refurbished” MacBook Air

That is not a confession.

It is almost a point of pride.

I am writing this blog post on a refurbished MacBook Air with an M5 chip. It cost me around $1,500. I ordered it online from Apple and used my TopCashback appto receive a portion back as a discount.

The laptop works fine.

The keyboard works fine.

The screen works fine.

The processor works fine.

I can open a document fine.

I can type fine.

That means I can write books on it just F-I-N-E.

What additional feature am I supposed to purchase that will provide the missing ingredient?

Is it Microsoft Word?

No, Scrivener is better, right? Because Mac and Apple users need to use Scrivener?

Nope.

There isn't one I need.

Because the missing ingredient is usually not hardware, software, or a writing gadget.

It is behavior.

It is the aspiring writer's behavior.

You have to sit down.

You have to think.

You have to tolerate uncertainty.

You have to first produce bad sentences.

You have to revise them.

Again.

Again.

And again.

Then you have to return tomorrow.

And the next day.

And the next day.

And the next day.

No Apple product can do that for you.

No PC product can do that for you.

Only you can.

The Writer as a Consumer Archetype

There is another cultural image of writers that bothers me.

The bookshelf.

Not just a bookshelf.

The massive bookshelf.

Thousands of books.

Books stacked on the floor.

Books beside the bed.

Books in every room.

We often treat possession of books as evidence of intellectual seriousness.

And I understand why.

I love books. In many ways, I am a bibliomaniac.

I have written more than two dozen books in my career.

But purchasing a book and reading a book are two entirely different behaviors.

The Japanese word tsundoku captures this wonderfully.

Tsundoku refers to acquiring books and allowing them to pile up unread.

There is something charming about the word.

There is also something economically revealing about it.

Because sometimes we are not buying books because we need the information immediately.

We are buying an identity.

The books become evidence:

I am a reader.

I am intellectual.

I am curious.

I am a writer.

But an unread $30.00 book collecting dust on a bookshelf and an underutilized $700.00 writing tablet share an interesting characteristic:

Neither one has improved your writing simply because you possess it.

You Don't Have to Own Every Book You Read

This is another place where I want writers to resist consumer culture.

You can use libraries.

That sentence feels almost radical in the age of one-click purchasing.

Public library cards are generally free for people living within a library's service area.

And if you are a student, staff member, or faculty member at a college or university, you may have access to an extraordinary collection of materials through your institution's lending library without buying each item individually.

Books. E-books. Academic journals. Newspapers. Databases. Magazines. Films. Archival materials.

And then there is one of academia's great underused treasures:

interlibrary loan.

If your university does not own something, your librarians may be able to obtain it from another institution.

At many universities this service is provided to students, faculty, and staff without a separate charge.

Think about that.

Instead of spending $40.00 on a scholarly book you need for three paragraphs of a manuscript, you may be able to borrow it.

Read it.

Take notes.

Cite it.

Return it.

Investment:

$0 additional purchase.

That is an extraordinary writing tool.

The Library Card May Be the Ultimate Anti-Influencer Writing Tool

Perhaps the most underrated productivity device for writers is not electronic at all.

It is your library card.

It does not require an annual product launch.

There is no Pro or Enterprise model.

No AppleCare.

No premium stylus.

No storage upgrade.

No unboxing video.

No influencer campaign.

No perfectly staged Instagram desk.

Yet it can give you access to thousands—or through library networks, potentially millions—of books and other resources.

The public library embodies almost the opposite economic philosophy of the modern subscription economy.

Instead of:

Everyone must individually purchase everything they use.

The library says:

We can collectively maintain resources and share access to them.

That is a radically different understanding of knowledge.

And perhaps a healthier one.

Buying Books and Using AI Is Not the Same as Reading

This is why I want to distinguish between loving books and consuming books.

You do not demonstrate respect for books by purchasing the largest possible number of them.

You respect books by engaging ideas.

Read deeply.

That doesn't mean using AI to summarize books for you.

Underline them.

Question them.

Discuss them.

Share them.

Take notes on them.

Disagree with them.

Synthesize them.

Again, that does not mean using AI to do the heavy and heady work.

Cite them.

Write something new and extend the ideas contained in them.

Then return them to the library so someone else can do the same.

The knowledge stays with you until you share it with friends, neighbors, colleagues, students, and the general public.

You don't have to possess the book forever.

The Same Principle Applies to Technology

This brings me back to the reMarkable.

Or the iPad.

Or the Kindle Scribe.

Or the beautiful keyboard.

Or whatever productivity product becomes popular next year.

Ask yourself one question:

What can this product enable me to do that I genuinely cannot do with what I already own?

That question destroys a tremendous amount of marketing.

Not:

Will it make writing more enjoyable?

Not:

Does it look beautiful?

Not:

Do famous writers use it?

Not:

Does an Ivy League professor, like Jonah Berger, recommend it?

Not:

Is everyone on YouTube or LinkedIn talking about it?

Not:

Does it promise “deep work”?

Ask:

What actual problem am I solving?

If you have a clear answer, purchase it if the economics make sense.

If you do not have an answer, wait.

“Distraction-Free” Is Not Something You Have to Purchase

This may be the most important point.

Distraction-free writing existed before reMarkable.

It existed before Apple.

It existed before laptops.

It existed before electricity.

Go to the library.

Leave your phone in your bag.

Take a notebook.

Bring a pencil.

Sit down.

Write.

Congratulations.

You have created a distraction-free writing environment.

Cost?

Possibly nothing.

“Deep work” is ultimately a behavior.

Not a device.

You cannot purchase concentration.

You can purchase environments that make concentration easier.

That distinction matters.

The “Pay-to-Play” Writing Life

This is part of the larger economy I want to resist.

Cloud storage.

Website hosting.

Email upgrades.

Writing applications.

Productivity software.

Digital notebooks.

AI subscriptions.

Online courses.

Premium communities.

Book purchases.

Equipment upgrades.

Everything individually seems reasonable.

$5.00.

$10.00.

$20.00.

$30.00.

$700.00.

$1,000.00.

But eventually, the modern writer can accumulate an enormous collection of expenses merely to maintain the infrastructure surrounding writing.

The great irony is that many writers don't earn much money from their writing. I have shared videos on The Book Doctor's YouTube channel about this reality.

So imagine this cycle:

Earn royalties.

Spend royalties on writing products.

Pay subscriptions for writing products.

Purchase books about writing.

Purchase technology for writing.

Purchase courses about writing.

Then hope the next royalty check covers more of the infrastructure surrounding writing.

The reality is that the mathematics seldom works out that way.

I want out of that cycle.

Writer as “Consumer” vs. Writer as “Investor” or “Owner”

I increasingly think writers should distinguish between two identities.

The Writer as “Consumer”

The consumer asks:

What should I buy next?

Another book.

Another notebook.

Another app.

Another tablet.

Another computer.

Another subscription.

Another course.

Another productivity system.

The Writer as “Owner” or “Investor”

The owner or investor asks:

What can I create next?

A manuscript.

A book.

An article.

Intellectual property.

A royalty stream.

A course.

A business.

An investment account.

An archive.

A body of scholarship.

A legacy.

The consumer accumulates writing objects.

The owner accumulates assets.

That is the writer I want to become.

Why I Sometimes Choose the $100.00 Check

This philosophy explains something else about how I approach compensation.

Sometimes I am offered professional compensation in the form of book credits.

Perhaps several hundred dollars worth.

That sounds generous.

But sometimes I would rather receive a $25.00 check.

Or a $100.00 check.

Why?

Because the credit can do only one thing:

Buy more books.

Cash has optionality.

I can decide whether I actually need another book.

I can borrow the book from the library.

Then I can take the cash and invest it.

A publishing credit encourages consumption.

Cash gives me the opportunity to build capital.

I can put $100.00 into an investment in the stock market.

That investment—perhaps an ETF—may grow.

Then its growth may grow.

That is compounding.

My money is making me money.

Or, as I affectionately think about it:

My money is making babies.

And that is a good thing.

The decision to become an investor in books and writing—as opposed to merely a consumer of books and writing—becomes even more important when repeated hundreds of times over a career.

I Want to Keep My Royalties

Royalties are difficult to earn.

Authors know this.

You write for months.

Sometimes years.

The book sells.

The publisher takes its portion.

Retailers take theirs.

Agents may take theirs.

Taxes take another portion.

Eventually, a royalty payment arrives.

I don't want to immediately hand the remaining money back to another corporation because it convinced me that I need a new tool to continue being a writer.

I want to keep some of it.

Then I want that money working.

Writing creates intellectual capital.

Intellectual capital can create financial capital.

Financial capital can eventually create something writers desperately need:

freedom.

Freedom to choose projects.

Freedom to say no.

Freedom to take intellectual risks.

Freedom to spend more time writing.

That is far more interesting to me than having the newest tablet.

The Book Doctor's Prescription

For thirty days, try something different.

Before purchasing anything associated with writing, stop.

Ask:

Do I need this—or do I want to feel more like a writer?

If you want a book, search your public library first.

If you are affiliated with a college or university, search its library.

Try interlibrary loan.

If you want another notebook, finish one you already own.

If you want another device, write 5,000 words on the device you already own first.

If you want another productivity application, spend a week using the calendar and tools you already have.

If you feel tempted by a $500 purchase, imagine investing the $500 instead.

Then return to the page.

You Don't Need to Buy the Writer Identity

This is ultimately what I want The Book Doctor Community to understand.

You don't have to look like a writer.

You don't need the enormous private library.

You don't need the tweed jacket.

You don't need the coffee-shop aesthetic.

You don't need the fountain pen.

You don't need the newest MacBook.

You don't need the minimalist desk.

You don't need the reMarkable.

You don't need the Instagram photograph of yourself writing.

You don't need to perform authorship.

You need to write.

The writer is not the person who owns the most books.

The writer is not the person with the best technology.

The writer is not the person with the most beautiful office.

The writer is the person who returns to the page.

Again.

And again.

And again.

I am not here to influence you to consume more.

I am here to help you become an author.

Those are not the same thing.

Buy less.

Borrow more.

Own what matters.

Protect your privacy.

Keep your royalties.

Invest the difference.

Write more. Impact more.

— Dr. Nicholas D. Hartlep, The Book Doctor