It is a message by Donna on my message board here, that prompts the subject of this article. Donna writes a column in Suite 101 about 'personal accountability' and I refer to this column often as I'm a great believer in the subject. We all have free will and must take responsibility for our actions and our choices. Yes, there are some things that happen for which we have no control, but the vast majority are our own choices and decisions. What does this have to do with writing and getting published? A lot.
Do you know any writers who talk about writing incessantly, yet seem to produce little? I do. Actually, I feel I've become one. Argh! This upsets me. So, in the spirit of New Year's resolutions, with the inspiration of Donna and her articles, I'm going to have one last 'discussion' about writing before I actually get down to business. And this here is my last discussion.
This moment actually started a few weeks ago when my boyfriend (also a writer) and I had the immense good fortune to spend a long evening with a horror author I greatly admire. So when this writer says to me: "You need to not talk about your writing with others or show your writing to others. Just write and do it every day. You can find an hour each day at least five times a week, right?" I answered yes, mentally scanning my days. No, I really couldn't. What was I to do? Here it was, the ultimate question. How badly do I want to be a writer? Truth is, very badly. So something had to give.
That week, I retired as host to a writers group I'd run for at least 5 years. Okay, that freed up a couple hours a week. What else? Man, I hate losing things from my life, but really, I've got to find time to write or I have NO RIGHT to call myself a writer.
A few things have happened in a close enough span of time to emphasize what I've known all along and have just been ignoring. Remember the Nike ad? Well, that's it. "Do It!". Or was it "Just Do It!"? Either way, you see my point.
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