Content Marketer Deb on Writing, Impostor Syndrome, and #Noonies Nomination

Hey Hackers!

I’m Debashri M Dutta and I’m the Founder of my personal blog ‘dmdutta.com’. I am glad to announce that I have been nominated for the 2022 Noonies Award.

A huge thanks to the HackerNoon community and staff for considering me worthy of this opportunity. I’ve been nominated in the following categories and if you like my writing, please do check out these award pages and vote for me:

1. HackerNoon Contributor of the Year- FACEBOOK: https://www.noonies.tech/2022/internet-heroes/2022-hackernoon-contributor-of-the-year-facebook

   
   

As a content and tech writer, I believe that the most exciting technology of the present is AI for marketing reasons because it is transforming how individuals and small businesses reach out to auidences. Learn more about my thoughts and opinions on content marketing and tech and my journey in the tech industry via the interview below.

1. Tell us about your journey. What do you do and what do you love about it?

I’m a content writer. I work as full-time writer for an amazing company called Awesome Motive. And I’m also building a blog and resource for content marketing and writing. It’s for businesses and individuals who want to get in-depth information about how to use content to grow their passion projects.

The reason I love being a content writer/marketer is that it’s a job that creates lasting and recurring outcomes.

For example, when I create a helpful post today - I may not see traffic right away. But if I have done a good job, months and years from now, my writing will continue to:

• Grow my personal brand
• Increase my website’s and client website’s authority online
• Create traffic and engagement
• Help people find the answers they need

And best of all, anyone can do it! It’s not easy to be a great content writer but if you’re willing to put in the work and effort, you can build your reputation and the business of your dreams.

2. Tell us more about your work. What do you write?

I create thought leadership, marketing, business, tech, and personal development content. Usually in the form of blog posts and articles. But I am venturing into workshops, online courses, and video content.

The topics I write about seem diverse but I have been consuming books and magazines from the age of 8. And I am constantly doing online courses, listening to audiobooks, and picking up new skills.

As a result, I can not only write about different topics, but can also bring together different areas of information in an interesting way.

My focus is on creating in-depth articles that sound friendly. You should feel like I’m talking to you directly when you read my posts. So, I focus on long-form content (posts that are over 1500 words) and always use a user-first approach in my writing.

You can check out some of my writing on HackerNoon itself or my blog.

3. How did you start writing? What made you choose HackerNoon for publishing your work?

Although I was a big book nerd at the age of 8 and dreamed of publishing my Nobel-prize winning book early in life - I never really wrote until the age of 30.

I would scribble in notebooks, start and take down blogs, begin dozens of stories and quit. But I never really stuck to anything.

And of course, life happened too. I became a single mom and it took several years for me to feel like my son and I were ready for me to pursue a career for real.

But things really took off when I turned 31. It hit me that I had crossed the big ‘30’ milestone and hadn’t achieved a major goal of mine - to become a writer.

I had to be real with myself. I had lived 30 years on this planet and had never maintained a blog, completed a story, or published a real book. And it was my fault entirely.

The truth was that I was crippled with anxiety and felt like an imposter. But I was also fed up with not doing what I wanted. So I started small. These steps made me the writer I am today:

• Reached out to business people on Facebook groups and offered to write for free
• Worked with a female entrepreneur for free to create copy for her website
• Started working for content agencies - getting pennies per word
• Built my skills in digital marketing, content writing, SEO, and social media
• Subscribed to paid newsletters to find remote content writing jobs (this was before the big C-19)
• Convinced a content head from an amazing company to give me a chance even though I didn’t have the experience they wanted
• Worked as a prolific content writer for years
• Built my own blog in 2021-22 and current have posts rising up Google’s search results

I started writing for HackerNoon relatively recently.

What struck is how community-minded the platform is. Real people tell real stories and share their life experiences along with rich technical information. Where else does this happen?

I also appreciate how quickly the editors publish my work and have encouraged my peers to join HackerNoon to share their experiences.

4. What excites you in tech? Tell us about your favorite technology and why you are passionate about it.

As a single mom and individual blogger, I am most excited about how tech can help people start businesses. And this is without access to funds or decades of experience in technology.

Today, there are AI tools for email marketing, content creation, SEO, and more. And anyone with a reasonable budget and the willingness to learn can leverage them to start something amazing.

I’m passionate about tech in marketing because I believe that marketing is about connections. Businesses have something to offer and people have needs these products and services can help with.

But it’s marketing that creates a bridge between the need and the solution. By using the right communication channels, words, brand strategies, and so on, it’s possible to connect people with businesses to make their lives better.

5. What were some of the challenges you faced being a tech writer and how did you overcome them?

Devastating imposter syndrome.

I don’t think there’s an easy way to overcome the feeling like you shouldn’t claim to be tech writer, especially when you are starting out.

What helps is:

1. Experience

2. Trial and Error

3. Using ‘freewriting’

   
   

If you’re just starting out as a tech writer or a content writer, I suggest that you keep your head down and just write. It may take you 6 months to feel like you’re getting good at it. And it could take you 1 year to feel like you have a solid understanding of tech and content writing practices.

I know that I felt like a top-notch writer when I hit 2 years of writing. I’m currently at a stage where I am ready to teach, take on higher-level responsibilities, and strategize instead of writing all the time.

Also, just get comfortable with making mistakes. Get things wrong and get a mentor or expert to correct you. I have people reach out to me help all the time. And it gives me great pleasure to see them improve in a very short time with the right tips and feedback.

And finally, practice ‘freewriting’. This is a technique where you set a timer for 5-25 minutes and start writing away. You don’t edit, pause, correct grammar, delete, drink water, or even think. All you do is write anything that pops up in your mind on to your screen.

When the timer goes off, stop. And then edit your work.

Half the hurdle of writing lies in getting your first draft up. When you have something on a page or screen, it becomes easier to refine it.

6. What are you learning/reading currently? Any recommendations for our readers?

I am a big believer in reading and learning from multiple sources and areas of knowledge. Don’t turn your nose down on knitting, ancient history, philosophy or any subject. There are wells of information that can transform your life if you’re willing to give them a shot.

I’m reading: No Self No Problem by Chris Niebauer, Ph.D.

I’m currently enrolled in a blogging course: Blog Growth Engine by Adam Enfroy.

Also, a part of the Sale-a-Day program by Sarah and Justin.

In general, I’d recommend that you pursue a course that has a community where you can interact with your teachers and other students.

I also suggest learning about psychology and neuroscience. It doesn’t matter what field you’re in. If you’re a marketer, you need to know how to influence people. So, read about Robert Cialdini and other researchers who’ve helped businesses and writers learn how to engage people.

7. What is your biggest achievement so far?

I think one of my biggest accomplishments was getting a remote job with Awesome Motive. They treat people incredibly well and hire people from all over the world.

My other top accomplishments include getting traction on my personal blog. One of my posts ranks 1 for a specific keyword. Another one has clawed it’s way up from position 70 to 11 for a content writing keyword.

And finally, my highlight for this year is getting recognized by HackerNoon. This is wild!

8. If we gave you 10 million dollars to invest in something today, what would you invest in and why?

If I had funding for 10 million dollars, I’d invest in an educational resource that helps the under-privileged get the education that they can’t get from school.

I think that most people who are born in poverty or struggle still have access to education. They can scrape by and finish their high school.

What they lack that prevents them from a better life is education that comes from socializing in wealthier spheres.

I’d build an online and offline resource centre where people improve how their posture, pick up better manners, learn negotiation skills, how to read body language, conflict resolution, and more.

It’s tragic but small things like not speaking confidently or not making eye content that keeps great people from getting good jobs.

I’d also include mental health and resilience sources as part of the resource centre too.

9. What advice would you give to someone just starting in this field?

Just dive in. Really.

Get started and get writing.

There’s a joke in writing circles that varies from person to person but it goes like this:

Two people meet at a party. And one person asks the other ‘What do you do?’

The other person replies ‘I’m a writer'.’

The first person says ‘Me neither.’

The point is that writers write. If you’re talking about writing, thinking about writing, planning to write… you’re not a writer.

You’re a writer when you sit down and write. That’s all there is to it. You’ll get feedback and information when you start getting your work out there. But get writing first.

And just as importantly: read!

I don’t know anyone who is a good writer who doesn't read. And no, watching YouTube videos or scrolling through social media feeds isn't enough to get information.

You need to read books and magazine articles to be a good writer. You have to imprint what good writing looks like through your vision. So, don’t skip out on reading. It’ll show when you write.

10. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

The best advice I’ve heard is to let go of the outcomes.

If you want to write a piece for HackerNoon, create a blog, or get more traction on social media, do the work and let go of the results.

It is important to check if your writing is working from time to time. But don’t get hung up on how many people read your work or who commented or whether a major tech website published your blog post.

When it comes to tech writing or any kind of writing, it can take weeks to see results or even years. But the point of writing isn’t to see a direct outcome. That’s what copywriting is about. The point of tech and content writing is to provide people with information and to help.

You’ll build your personal and professional brand the more you write. And as long as you’re staring at the screen hoping that someone likes what you’ve shared, you’ll paralyze yourself.

Just keep going.