I know that writing is not easy. I know that the process of going from a writer, which I am, to a published authors is a challenging one. I know that there are many different paths that one might take to achieve that transition, some more sanctioned than others.
I imagine that this goes without saying among writers, or artists of any sort for that matter, but being a writer is not something that you do. It is who you are. If you are a writer, you know that you are a writer, and–really–you have to write. In fact, that may be one of the ways that you can tell that you are a writer. Can you go the rest of your life and never write another substantial thing? Then you are probably not a writer. Are you drawn to writing? Compelled by it? Must you write? Then you are probably a writer. Do you get a deep satisfaction from the very act itself, without needing to know that it will ever see the light of day? Then you are probably a writer; and that’s what I am.
To be honest, I probably only really came to grips with that idea about two years ago. Don’t get me wrong, I have always written, but for the last few years most of my writing has always been in conjunction with my other work–a necessary element, so to speak. It wasn’t until I did not have to write, yet still felt compelled to do so and–suddenly–recognized the gratification that I got from the process itself, that I came to understand that this was what I wanted to do with my life. But, to quote my brother, I digress.
If you are a writer, then you are a writer, whether or not your writing ever sees the proverbial “light of day.” I, for instance, will continue to write stories until my last days; and I would do that even if I were never published. That being said, for most writers, there will come a time when they will write a story that they believe in so much that they will want to share it with the world. That is what I have with my Shifters Novel Series and the first book Interlopers. (Check out an excerpt here: http://www.shiftersnovelseries.com/series.html) By the time that I finished the first novel, I knew that I had something special, and for the last year or so, my goal has been to find someway to bring this story into the world.
Each day there is a new challenge in this process. As many a published author will tell you, writing the book is only the beginning. There are many ways that the transition from a writer to a published author can be tricky and challenging. It’s not all ice cream and roller coasters. Well, maybe the roller coasters.
For writers, when did you know you were a writer?
