On Writing

I was surfing blogs and websites of some of my favorite authors recently. Sometimes they list their favorite authors.

Today I clicked on the name of an author I've heard of, but never read. He wrote something on his blog that was so perfect for me. I'll share that in a minute.

But first, this. Bruce tells me often that I should go back to newspaper publication when I return to the work force (whenever that may be. I'm still waiting for God's okay on that one.). My mother-in-law is a big encourager when it comes to my writing. Several of my friends who read this crazy litany of life I post here have said sweet words, too.

I'm praying about what I'll do when I go back to work, but I can't say that I'm sold on writing for pay anymore. I've tried to explain to Bruce that when I worked at newspapers previously, I was not a mom.

And that has changed nearly everything about who I am.

I'm not sure I have the gumption to handle simultaneously both the stress of writing publicly and the stress of motherhood. I'm a perfectionist when it comes to writing (not to be misinterpreted as being a perfect writer!); that trait in motherhood flew out the window within weeks of my first child's birth.

I beat myself up when I make mistakes in either endeavor, though. I'm not confident that I can handle a beating of that magnitude if I attempt to do both mothering and writing for publication at the same time. This just may be an either/or situation.

I do love to write. But I'm keeping the kids as long as the Lord allows.

The connection between writing and money is inconsequential to me. And it becomes less important with every passing day of motherhood.

Now, on to what I found on Alton Gansky's blog. He wrote a post about amateur writers and said the following:

"We do not become writers because we get paid for it. We are writers because we put words on a page. Every 'successful' writer was once an amateur. Dean Koontz taught school, as did Stephen King; Jack Cavanaugh was a pastor; Grisham practiced law. On my shelf are books written by airline pilots, ER doctors, insurance brokers (Tom Clancy), housewives, nurses, engineers, and just about every other profession.

Publication has always been my goal, but it's not the only goal. Writing has its own rewards and those rewards are unique to every wordsmith. Fiction writers know what it's like to live in a world of their own creation; nonfiction writers know what it means to communicate information that might otherwise languish in the backwaters of ignorance.

Amateur or professional a writer is one who writes. Period."

Yep, I love that.

Making money... I can do that as a cashier at Target. And get an employee discount, to boot!

But writing... that I do for me. Not necessarily for money.

Unless the Lord convinces me otherwise.