new writers

**alaska lady** · July 29th, 2009

To paraphrase a comment from Mr. King" a writer can't not write!"I have been playing at writing almost all of my life. I am an avid reader, mostly fiction. Started reading at the age of four and can't stop,don't want to.A few years ago after the third on the job accident as a hospice RN, I had an idea for a story loosely based on my life and my life as I wanted it to be and the people in my life. I sat down at my computer and have never looked back. I have completed my first novel, started on the second and have an idea for a third.It's a romance suspense novel with a touch of the paranormal. But most importantly it's mine. Is it good,of course I think it is. Will it be published? Maybe. I hope so. If it isn't, well my family and friends can read it and I'll read it. But, I can't not write! So thank you Mr. King. I'm a writer now, I suppose deep inside I always was. Now when someone asks me what I do. I smile and tell them"I'm a writer"!

**suzieb** · July 29th, 2009

I was curious how many of us on this message board are writers. I too write. And like Alaska Lady says I can't not write. It's as simple as that and as frustrating and as beautiful. I've never felt the way I do then when I write. I feel like I might break into song now. Good thing you all can't hear me. But then I bang my head into a wall and scream and yell and cry because the words won't come the way I want them to. And finally they come and much rejoicing takes place. The process reminds me of a good sneeze. First, the little itch, it builds, you know you are going to sneeze, oh no, it won't come, you look for a light, looking, looking, there you found one. You stare at it and finally it builds and builds and HACHEW, it explodes out. Wee, that was fun. Let's do it again.

I ramble and rattle. Please forgive.
Thanks,
Suzie

**thymeoperator** · July 30th, 2009

i'm a writer - have been since i was 3. obviously back then it was just making up stories but when i was 6 i started trying to write them down and it grew from there. singing and writing, they're the only things i've ever really wanted to do with myself, but writing's always been the one i actually wanted to do as a career. i have so many half-finished novels - i.e. novels i've completed numerous times but keep rewriting / adding to / editing as i get older because i'm only 26, plus a few dozen short stories, and i'm publishing a collection of short stories and poetry about OCD next year, which will include 3 of my own stories and the rest is by other people i've roped in to contribute things, to help make a few dreams come true

**aptpupil** · July 31st, 2009

I would never actually answer "writer" to an enquiry about what I do, unless we were discussing hobbies or interests. Most people would interpret "what you do" as "how you make a living".

Yes, I've got a novel out there, and I'm working on a second one, but if I relied on my income from it, then my kids, my girlfriend and myself would be sleeping under a cardboard box in the street, sadly.

**thymeoperator** · August 3rd, 2009

no way - i prefer the way the russian language talks about jobs, it has one way to say what you do for a living and another to express what your actual vocation is, because it recognises they're not always the same. i work as a secretary but i wouldn't say that's who/what i am. i don't think money should have any bearing on what you consider yourself to be - i don't believe getting paid for your writing somehow makes your writing more worthwhile. it's certaintly great to be paid for something you love, but i don't think it defines you. i've been writing all my life, it's my passion. i'm not professional as yet, but i'd always define myself as a writer.

**scarywriter** · August 3rd, 2009

a friend and I were talking about this post. When you ask him what he does, he says, "I am a musician."
To keep bill collectors off his back, he has also worked as a carpenter, electrician, cook, even sweeping floors. But at the end of the day, he went home and played music. He honed that craft, studied, and worked at it. So was he a carpenter, chef or janitor? No, he was always a musician doing other things. If you are a writer, and you write, say you're a writer. Just be prepared when people ask to see your work.

**Mr Nobody** · August 4th, 2009

But Aptpupil makes a fair point: tell people you're a writer, and they assume that means full time and that you're rolling in it. It can be quite deflating when you tell them no, you don't have a Ferrari and no, you haven't got a big house that's all bought and paid for and yes, you do know what it's like to get up at 6 in the morning and do eight hours of tedious work, because that's what you do as well as write.
Tell anyone all that, and assuming they've not wandered off in disgust (it's amazing how quickly that initial 'Oh my God! A writer?!' thing wears off when buckets of dosh are not in evidence), and they'll go 'Ah, so writing's just a hobby, then? What you really do is *whatever*.' Usually, this is said in the sort of voice they might use with a dim and slightly wilful child.
I know, because I tell people I'm a writer. It's what I choose to do, while work is what I have to do. And is writing not work? Some say not. Some get poked in the eye. It's like a reflex.

**scarywriter** · August 5th, 2009

Mr Nobody,
not many "professional" writers have a big house, ferrarri and the buckets of dosh. And when I say I am a writer, which I am and get paid for doing it, a lot of people, especially those who think of writing as "not a real job" even when it is being done for money, often roll thier eyes and walk away in disgust, wondering when you will grow up.

**Joiey** · August 11th, 2009

Been doing it semi-pro for a while now.

Anyone ever here of NaNoWriMo? I try to do that every year. It stand for National Novel Writing Month and is a loose contest on challenging writers out there to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days (the month of November). A writer named Chris Baty started NaNoWriMo several years ago. It's a fun thing to do and just thought I'd throw this out there, for y'all. Registration for upcoming contest opens on Oct. 1 and goes through Oct. 31. No prizes. Only real prize is the only one that matters anyway: The feeling of pride and accomplishment that goes with completing the first draft of a novel in 30 days.
Please check out the website http://www.nanowrimo.org/ J

**Joiey** · August 11th, 2009

And boy, I've never heard a truer statement. . . I just do it because not to would be the death of me I think. On those occasions when I actually get a paycheck for what I write, that is a good day indeed. Icing on the cake to use one of those tired ol' cliche phrases. . . J