That idea for a book you have. That marketing tactic that worked for you. That hour of your time for a reader who is dying to meet you. 

Too often we're locked into our fear of giving away too much, by thinking that it somehow limits us. That it takes away from us. That is hurts us.

And yes, some of the giving away can hurt you. When you give away blindly and recklessly to anyone who asks about anything, knowing you shouldn't yet going against your gut.

This is not the giving away I'm talking about.

I'm talking about the sharing of ideas, of knowledge.

By sharing you'll foster community. A small group of people who will all benefit from what you've learned. And they will in turn share with you and with others. 

It's a hard truth, and it's very tempting to try and hide behind someone's back. Blame someone else for your shortcomings as a writer (note: you're the one who thinks they're shortcomings). Blame the industry as a whole. Whine about lack of time, lack of money. Complain that no one buys your books, or not enough people do. Seek out someone out there who seems like they know what they're doing, and then, if luck has it that they respond, blindly throw yourself into doing everything they tell you to do. Think you've found your guru. Your guide. Your answer to all your troubles. 

(Dare I presume some of you reading this at one point or another thought the same about me? Like I know what I'm doing? The truth is: I DO NOT. I learn as I go, just like you.)

The truth is, once again, no one out there knows what they're doing. They're all very good (some better than others) at pretending. Keeping their shit together. Appear pro. 

And the other truth is, NO ONE WILL DO IT FOR YOU. 

A writing space is as important as writing time.

When you have a special place where you write (I have a very deep, very dark, very scary cave, for example), you tend to write there just because you're used to doing it there.

You know those days. Nothing you do seems to move your story forward. It just all seems wrong, and you're in a foul mood. 

You don't know how to fix your story, and you're getting more and more depressed about.

What to do? Sleep on it. Tomorrow will be better.

I'm a foreigner, and I had to learn English grammar together with the English language. I still stumble, mostly on articles. And I still study it, to get better.

Grammar is part of your writer's toolbox.