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Wednesday, July 26, 2006When You Wish Upon a Star, You Come Up EmptyThis is a passionate rant to every wannabe writer out there. Can you handle raw honesty? Borderline brutality? A swift kick in your nether region? Then read on. So many people -- so many people -- want to write. That doesn't mean that there are countless talented writers out there; there aren't. (Many of them are, unfortunately, published anyway.) Like other "hidden" talents, though, writing is something that many folks tuck away or bury under the demands of work-a-day life, eventually to be banished forever to the Land Of Never Will Be. My advice to those of you with fingers itching for the quill: Just. Start. Writing. A couple of days ago, I stumbled across the blog of an American working mom. The last sentence of her personal profile read, "I wish I could become a children's book writer." Now, on the surface, that doesn't sound like such a bad thing to say. We've all got dreams, right? Right. Except, saying "I wish I could become a children's book writer" without ever picking up a pen isn't going to get you anywhere. If I say, "I wish I could be a ballerina" and never step foot on the dance floor, what will become of my dream? If I say, "I wish I could be a gourmet chef" and never saunter into the kitchen, what will become of my dream? You get my point. Writing is not something to wish for. It's not something to hope we'll do some day. It's something to do. This particular blogger also described herself as a mother and an employee at what she called, "not my dream job." Let's face facts here: Most, if not all, fledgling writers have regular day jobs. Writing isn't going to put food on the table and designer jeans on your wife. So working at "not your dream job" is no excuse for not writing. Writing is, after all, a craft. As such, it takes a lot of time to develop and mature. Once you finish your first novel, you're still a long (long, long) way from having a finished product that's ready to be peddled. There's a second draft and a third draft and a fourth draft and...as many as it takes to get it "right." Then there are hours and hours of researching literary agents and the publishing industry at large. There are books to read and more books to read; there are writers to network with and writers to swap work with. Once you've landed an agent who is head-over-heels about your work, it's still just the beginning. Shopping the book to potential publishers could take weeks, months...even years. And after all that -- you still might not "make" it. Now, that's not meant to depress anyone. (Okay, I'm a little depressed by it myself.) My point is: If you want to write a book, what are you waiting for? Oprah is not going to call you on the phone and say, "You are endlessly fascinating! Will you write a story about yourself so that I can have you on my show?" Random House is not going to send you a certified letter that reads, "We've heard you have a great idea for a story, and we'd like to offer you a publishing contract with a $50,000 advance." Nope. You're just going to have to sit down and start writing. Don't dream about it. Don't wish for it. Don't lament because you haven't written a novel. Get over it, and get busy. Write. Okay. Any questions? |
About Me
I am: Mother to five stunningly individualistic children... Writer of young adult fantasy... Passionate advocate for Women At Home... Madly in love with my husband... In need of Organic Gourmet Chocolate on a regular basis. I've got a Paypal account if you'd like to contribute to the cause....
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5of my readers are feeling chatty:
Excellent points...all of them... A bit of a kick in the but mixed with inspiration!
Very inspiring.
But a flip-side to this is how so many people think it's so easy to be a writer. If I had a nickle for every person who I had the followiing conversation with, I'd have a million nickels.
Random Person: "So, Jerry, what do you do for a living?"
Me: "I'm a writer."
RP: "Oh, really? Well, I write too!"
Me: "Cool, are you a staff writer or freelance? Where do you work?"
RP: "Uh, I'm a manager at Target."
Me: "I thought you said you were a writer like me."
RP: "Well, yeah, I write when I get a chance."
Arrrrggh! People - there is a HUGE difference between being a professional writer and the "oh, I write too" life.
What writers do is not easy. There's struggle and turmoil and rejection and weeks and months of macoroni and cheese every night of the week, and years of wearing the same 5 outfits to the office (if you're a staff writer). This is hard.
Physics, now that's easy. Go to the lab, smash some atoms, call it a day.
Jill, did I give you any incentive for this post after our conversation of people being fed to zoo animals?
Jerry -- Yes, you're right. That's a whole 'nuther ball of wax.
Writing is a basic skill that all educated people should have under their belts, but it does not make each one of them a "writer."
Dave will highly agree with you on this one!
Of course, that's not what I was addressing here. I was addressing the souls who long to write a book and just keep wishing. That won't get anyone anywhere fast. :)
Ken -- Sick zoo scenes aside, I had already read the quote from the blog I mentioned and had the idea to write this blog. Then I got your email, and I thought, you know, I need to write this NOW! So you weren't the original inspiration, but you did spur me on to write it right away.
So of course this totally applies to you. Do you need some ink for your quill? :)
Writers write, wanna be's dont
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