"What do you do?"
"Me? Oh, I'm a mom. I get to stay at home with my kids, which I love. And, uh ... I write."
I almost apologize for that addition to my job title. Mom and, er, mumble, writer, mumble, mumble. But in finding my feet over the past two years while blogging, I have discovered that I am indeed a writer and a storyteller and that people enjoy the tales I tell. (Insert surprised and astonished face here.)
While blogging has been the kiddie pool in which I have splashed and played, I have begun to feel that maybe it is time to be more intentional about writing and to actually jump into the deep end with a commitment to a larger project. (Insert wide eyes and trembling chin here.)
Life is busy and I'm not quite certain how it will all come together, but I do know that I will never take the leap if I don't make the commitment to be intentional about my writing. And so, I have decided to set aside the month of October and participate in a 31 Day Challenge to write a novella. (Insert quaking and nail biting here.)
I wrote the opening scene a few months ago and the story has continued to marinate and ruminate in my head. Little bits of dialogue or snippets of scenery descriptions tip-toeing throughout my day and heart-felt insights into my characters catching me by surprise. It's time to watch the story come together and see it through to the end.
I'm off to write right now. (Insert tentative smile and hopeful thumbs-up here.)
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Linking up with The Red Dress Club. This week's prompt: 300 words to share writing goals.
All you have to do is: show up & let go. The words will pour forth!
ReplyDeleteReally :)
I can't wait to read your words.
You can do it!!! I have the same trepidation in calling myself a photographer. I feel like I need to reach some mythical benchmark that I haven't even set for myself. Yeesh.
ReplyDeleteWonderful! Best of luck! :)
ReplyDeleteI know that feeling of saying it, like it's an apology or in quotation marks. Good luck with your 31 day project. You can do it!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the 31 day project. I'm looking forward to NaNoWriMo this year. I'm hoping to finish off a novel that was started a long time ago.
ReplyDeleteI'm just as bad in terms of telling people I'm a writer. In fact, I saw an old friend the other day and when she asked me what I had been up to, I didn't even mention writing.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the 31 day challenge. You can do it! =D
I'm starting to take the job description seriously, and I want to shout out to others that if you're doing it, that's what you are. Good luck with your novella project!
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm so conflicted about calling myself a writer. I sometimes wonder if I picked writing simply because you can't just call yourself a neurosurgeon or an astrophysicist. You actually have to have the credentials. Being a writer is kind of a state of mind and nobody can actually call you out on it. Kind of like waving a wand, "Poof! I'm a writer!" Good luck with the novella. I was just thinking today that NaNoWriMo might be just the kick in the pants I need to finish the first draft of my novel. Oh, I feel kind of nauseous having written that!
ReplyDeleteLove the image of blogging as a kiddie pool and you splashing and playing and having a great time... Best of luck with the Challenge!
ReplyDeleteYeah - that "writer" title is a tough one. At what point do you "earn" that title? I say when you make the attempt at writing work for people other than yourself, you can call yourself a writer and not be worried about admitting it. Good luck with that project. I know you can complete it!
ReplyDeleteI agree with wisper...and I will add that when your writing touches someone, entertains them, speaks to them, etc. that is when you can call yourself a writer. I don't call my self a writer though. If they say, What have you been up to?" "I reply writing." Then, the conversation goes to either no interest or curiosity. Most ppl would say you are a "writer" when you are published or when that is literally your passion: the thing that you can lose your self in or when you feel God's pleasure. But, to me Morgan(you are) is a writer!
ReplyDeleteI am a writer by the definition, but I have a lot to work on.