Monthly Archives: November 2017

Photo credit: Kaitlyn Baker, Unsplash.com

I’m finally admitting it; I am a writer! How do I know that? Well, besides typing these words onto a screen, I  do and experience things like this–

1.  I take a notebook and pen with me everywhere I go. When ideas come, I need to write them down fast, lest I forget!
2.  I write down ideas (like ones appearing in this blog post) on break times at work.
3.  I make up stories about strangers I see–where they are going, what they are like, where they work at, who they know,etc. I don’t really know any of that, so I make it up!
4. I read a lot.
5. I can’t not write. If I don’t write for awhile, I get irritable and anxious. Something important is out of sync  when I don’t take the time to write.
6. I invest in writing. I buy books about writing and purchase online courses that fit my time and money budget.  I spend money and time that could be used elsewhere in an effort to get better at this activity. Lord willing, I plan to do more of the same.
7. I encourage other writers. I collect encouraging, motivating quotes and pass them along. One day a writer friend and I talked about wanting to write and yet letting life get in the way of that passion. Soon after, I spotted a colorful cup that read, “Don’t quit your daydream”–a play on the words writers often hear: “Don’t quit your day job”. I bought the cup and mailed it to my friend, who uses it everyday. Writing is a solitary passion;  writers can easily fall prey to those wolves of discouragement, disillusionment, and despair, so we need to encourage one another.
8. I find joy and fulfillment in it. Writing is work. No, I’m not digging a ditch by hand, but pinning down exactly the right word, trying to put the words in the right order, and fighting the self-doubt that comes along is mental wrestling.  Yet mixed in with all that is a joy that sings and fulfillment that relaxes. Yes, writing is work; I may never get paid much for it, but it’s the best job I’ve ever had.

©P. Booher