I'm a Writer

If you have followed me for a while, you know that a few months ago I decided to publish a book. I have no idea how to go about doing that, but I imagine that 'real' writers don't know how their first time either. I thought about a time in the future when I would become a real writer and somehow all the answers would come to me. I suddenly realized that I am a real writer, I just haven't been published. I don't know what I was waiting for; maybe a big white flash in the sky and a booming voice that says, "You, Andrea, are a writer. Go forth and publish!" I was half right. There needed to be a booming voice, but it needed to come from inside my own head.

So, late last year I decided to self publish a book of short stories. Not that I had the book written or anything. I joined a fundraising website for creative projects. They give you one month to take pledges and if you reach your goal amount, you get the money. If not, you get nothing. I figured putting a time limit on it would force me to get busy writing and editing older material that I wanted to include. I wrote like mad that month and spent a lot of time going through my old computer where most of my writing is locked away. I accomplished a lot. But I didn't reach my fundraising goal. Since it was mid December when the fundraiser ended, I decided to put the book on hold until after the holidays. In January I started a new job, then came the announcement that we are expecting. Its been a busy year so far and its only February.

Yesterday, the writing bug bit me. I was picking my son up from school and I couldn't wait to get home. My little typing fingers were on fire. I thought to myself, even though I'm very busy right now, what's one more thing? I can write a little every day, and soon I will have enough material for my book. I'm already half way there. I will stay half way there if I don't make the time to finish. And if I believe that I'm a writer, then I won't feel bad that I spend time writing. No one gets upset with an executive for executing (or whatever they do) all day. So people (read I) shouldn't get upset if I write all day. That's what writers do.