Writing vs. Being a Writer
Writing is fun. It's cathartic and exciting to explore the stories in my head and see what all those voices are talking about. It's a tumbling, nerve-wracking journey down the rabbit hole that lets other people see just what level of crazy I have to deal with on a daily basis. But most of all, it's just fun.
Being a writer, on the other hand, is hard. It's business. It's queries and submissions and carefully considering the commercial viability of what I'm doing. It's a tumbling, nerve-wracking journey down the rabbit hole of all my insecurities, neuroses, and fears. Most of all, it's just hard.
Making the transition from writing to being a writer is frightening. What if my stories aren't nearly as engaging as I think they are? What if I'm not nearly as good a writer as my friends and family tell me? Worst of all, what if no one cares about what I have to say?
I'm in the process of moving from just writing to being a writer. It's frustrating but exciting. The decision hasn't come lightly; in fact, it's been 6 or 7 years in the making. It's been careful financial planning and research, following writers and going to writers' conferences, doing everything I can to learn the business and improve my craft.
But like sky diving, being a writer is not an intellectual exercise. You can only read so much about what it feels like to reach terminal velocity before you reach that point where you have to step out of the plane and into the wild, blue yonder. No matter how scary it is.
I try not to let the thoughts that come with being a writer interfere with the writing. When I do, the writing well dries up and the stories stop coming. No one will care about Cindi White or Mason Justiss or Sweetbrush, Tennessee, me says to myself. I'm not known so no agent will rep my work and no publisher will ever take a flyer on me.
So I have to keep these two things separate. I have to write. Then I have to take off my magical writing beanie and put on my sensible being a writer fedora.
Writing is fun. Being a writer is hard.
But dying without trying is even harder.
So I have to find a way to do both.
Even if stepping out of the plane is scary.
Being a writer, on the other hand, is hard. It's business. It's queries and submissions and carefully considering the commercial viability of what I'm doing. It's a tumbling, nerve-wracking journey down the rabbit hole of all my insecurities, neuroses, and fears. Most of all, it's just hard.
Making the transition from writing to being a writer is frightening. What if my stories aren't nearly as engaging as I think they are? What if I'm not nearly as good a writer as my friends and family tell me? Worst of all, what if no one cares about what I have to say?
I'm in the process of moving from just writing to being a writer. It's frustrating but exciting. The decision hasn't come lightly; in fact, it's been 6 or 7 years in the making. It's been careful financial planning and research, following writers and going to writers' conferences, doing everything I can to learn the business and improve my craft.
But like sky diving, being a writer is not an intellectual exercise. You can only read so much about what it feels like to reach terminal velocity before you reach that point where you have to step out of the plane and into the wild, blue yonder. No matter how scary it is.
I try not to let the thoughts that come with being a writer interfere with the writing. When I do, the writing well dries up and the stories stop coming. No one will care about Cindi White or Mason Justiss or Sweetbrush, Tennessee, me says to myself. I'm not known so no agent will rep my work and no publisher will ever take a flyer on me.
So I have to keep these two things separate. I have to write. Then I have to take off my magical writing beanie and put on my sensible being a writer fedora.
Writing is fun. Being a writer is hard.
But dying without trying is even harder.
So I have to find a way to do both.
Even if stepping out of the plane is scary.
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