Working, Aspiring, or Hobbyist? #IWSG #writing

 

The first Wednesday of every month is officially 

Insecure Writer's Support Group day.

The Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It's a safe have for insecure writers of all kinds!

IWSG Asks: When you think of the term working writer, what does that look like to you? What do you think it is supposed to look like? Do you see yourself as a working writer or aspiring or hobbyist, and if the latter two, what does that look like?

 

This only my opinion as I'm sure others see these terms differently. And that's okay. We're all allowed to have our own views! :)

I suppose I see the term working writer as just that. A writer that's working. Someone who is getting paid for their writing. A writer who's working every day or maybe several days a week. One who has a publishing schedule and is actively working to move his/her writing career forward.

An aspiring writer is someone who is actively striving to be a working writer. An aspiring writer isn't published. Not yet. He/she is on their way. They're still writing every day or as much as possible, but they're not getting paid for their writing.

A hobbyist is someone who is only writing for fun. A writer who writes because its part of their soul, or something to do to pass the time. Hobby = Just for Fun. A hobbyist could be getting paid or not. To me, a hobbyist isn't publishing for the money, if they're publishing, they're doing it for the beauty of sharing their creativity.

These are all different terms and I'm sure people have different opinions in interpreting them. To me, it doesn't really matter. A writer is a writer. Published, unpublished, making money or not making money. It doesn't matter. The reason we're each writing is up to the individual.

For myself, I can see I started my career as a hobbyist. Writing was fun and a way to play when I was a kid and teenager. Publishing wasn't even on my radar at that time. When I grew older and began to become more interested in writing, I switched from hobbyist to an aspiring writer. I realized then that I did want to become published and earn money for my words.

And now... years and years and years later... I am a working writer.

The next level I believe is the retired writer. The writer who has written for long years and has now decided to retire from writing. They're done making their money or playing as a hobby. It's time for them to put their pen down.

"I'm done," they say. "I'm retired."

You know, like Stephen King!

And then a week or two, maybe even a month goes by, and they pick up their pen again.

"Just kidding!"

Yeah, I don't believe writers ever retire! It's in our hearts and soul to keep writing. I don't think we can ever give that up! Nor would we really want to. :)

Be safe! Stay healthy! And keep writing!

~ Tricia 

Be sure to visit the other writers in the 

Insecure Writer's Support Group!

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Can I Give Up Writing? #IWSG #novelist #aspiringwriter

#IWSG Asks: What was your very first piece of writing as an aspiring writer? Where is it now? Collecting dust or has it been published?

I wrote my first completed novel when I was 15 years-old. It was summer vacation. One morning, I woke up from a particularly vivid dream. As per usual, I grabbed a notebook and scribbled down the details of my dream. Throughout the day, the dream kept growing in my imagination. Later, I sat at the desk with my dad's Tandy computer, opened a file and began typing the monster that would become my gateway into the writing world.

I finished that sucker in a week!

An entire week that I barely ate nor slept. I was hooked on this incredible high that I never felt before, this addiction to get the images in my head onto printed paper. There was a movie in my brain filled with quirky characters, lush settings and a complicated plot along with amazing twists. 

Of course, at the time, I barely knew what the word plot meant. I knew nothing...absolutely nothing...about the writing craft. I was an avid reader, however, and I let the storytelling part of my brain guide me. This book was written with gut instinct, nothing more.

Suffice it to say, I keep this novel buried deep in the catacombs of my hard-drive. 

Every so often, I come across the file during some obscure search and I open it to gaze lovingly at the adventurous fantasy that I wrote during my writing infancy.

The story was a 80,000 word novel about a young woman who went camping with her friends one summer. During their hike through the woods, they were sucked into a portal leading them to an alternate dimension. In that world of kings and queens, healers and sorcerers, warriors and heroes, this group of friends was plunged into a war against an evil mage and his mistress. Although the villains had gained control of the kingdom, there was a group of warriors who continued to fight to free their captured land and bring the rightful rulers back to the throne. The young woman played a key role in a prophecy that was foretold about the days of reuniting the kingdom and bringing peace to the land.   

I have ventured to re-write it only once. Maybe I will again some day. For now, it remains the unseen novel that awoke the desire in my soul to create with the written word.

This particular question from #IWSG comes at an opportune moment for me. At times (like this year!), life gets tough, money is scarce and I think that in order to feed my family I need to give up writing and get a real job. After all, as many people know there is no guarantee of financial success for writers. Very few make it to where they can quit their day job.  And I have bills to pay just like any other person. My family relies on me to take care of them. Tough times like those happening recently make me wonder about my life's choices. Maybe I should quit writing and go back into retail management. Maybe I should go to college or trade school to get a degree for something with a guaranteed paycheck.

After all, do I really have what it takes to make it to financial success with my writing?

During these times of doubt and despair, I try to remember one thing...

How many other people finished an 80,000 word novel in a week when they were 15?
 
I've learned so much about writing since then. Twenty years worth of knowledge from attending workshops and conferences, reading books about the writing craft, asking authors for advice, reading published novels and dissecting them one chapter at a time to see how the author worked at piecing it together, and researching, researching, researching...

Countless hours of my life I've devoted to something that for many years I just considered a hobby. Now, that I've finally breached that invisible wall, becoming a published author

Photo courtesy of Ash Krafton

myself, I believe it would be such as waste to let it all go when life gets tough.

This too shall pass. Life goes on. And I'll keep writing. 

Because, truly, my soul craves it. I love writing. I need it. Honestly, after all these years, I really don't know how to live without writing in my life.

If I have to get a day job, I'll still write. If I never publish another book ever again, I'll still write.

And that is why, I'll never give up. 

Thank you, #IWSG, for reminding me how I began this writing journey.  

Be sure to check out other writers in the Insecure Writers' Support Group!