Being a writer (albeit unpublished)

Here's my first post. High five! Okay, now that that's out of the way, time to move on to more important matters. I'm a writer. I know you probably already know that, considering the title of my post and that you're reading this blog. But it's important nonetheless. It took me a long time to admit that. Longer than it did to write my first two books, actually. I didn't start telling people I was a writer until the past year, and I've been writing with the hopes of getting published since I was a teenager . So why was it so difficult to tell anyone what I did and wanted to eventually do? I don't know, but I'm going to venture a guess.

I think for some people there's a stigma attached to calling yourself a writer. Expectations that must be met. And those expectations aren't just having written some kind of story or poem etc. but having said story or poem etc. published. Now, I don't prescribe to this particular school of thought, but I fell victim to its supporters. Fellow writers/artists know of whom I speak. Those people, sometimes fellow writers/artists (whom I will refer to as turnpens hence forth), who when you tell them shyly "oh, I write," automatically want to know if you've gotten anything published. Then, when they learn you haven't (in my case it's only a few poems when I was younger) they began the "it is an incredibly difficult career to pursue and you probably won't make it so you should do something that you will actually make money and succeed at" speech. I can't tell you how many times I've heard this speech, in all its ugly faces. And I hate it. Partially because I'm stubborn and as soon as someone tells me I can't do something I want to prove them wrong, and partially because I don't know where other people get off telling me I'm not going to succeed when they know nothing about my abilities. Also, I hate being talked down to. I know getting published isn't easy. I know most of what I've written in the past is crap that doesn't deserve to see the light of day. I've done my homework. I know what I'm getting myself into, and you know what? I still want to play, so give me the ball.

Well, it took me a while. Several stiff drinks and peep talks in the bathroom mirror, but now I can say it with pride. I'm a writer. I'm not published yet, but someday I will be. And someday you'll buy my books and like them, because I'm pretty good. And I'll keep getting better and write and publish more books. And if, for some reason that doesn't happen, I'm still a writer. Nothing you can say will change that. I'm going to shout it from the rooftops. Or not. Actually, I think I'm just going to work on my WIP, or maybe I'll send a query. And I urge all of you writers out there to do the same. Viva la revolucion! But with a pen, of course.