Sunday 23 August 2015

THE GOOD THINGS ABOUT BEING A WRITER by Gill Stewart



I am a writer. Sometimes I love being a writer, it’s wonderful. And sometimes … it’s not so great. There’s a lot of struggle involved, masses of self-doubt and the most awful sense of failure when you receive that rejection or bad review. So I started thinking, why do I do it? The answer is because I love it (yes, I know, already said that) and because the good things outweigh the bad.
With friends before the RNA Gala Dinner - on of the perks of being a writer

Just to remind all you writers out there of this, I thought I’d list them here:

  • The best, the very best, is the losing yourself in words. It doesn’t happen every time you sit down to write but when it does it’s an amazing feeling. You are in the story. Your fingers can’t type fast enough. Those characters and that place are REAL.
  • It gives you the excuse to be nosy, sorry, curious about other people
  •  It gives you the excuse to research all sorts of weird topics
  • It gives you the excuse – or even the impetus – to visit some amazing places
  • You make friends. Good friends. People you would never have met otherwise. Most of these will be other writers, but they may also be bloggers, reviewers, readers. The internet is an especial help here as you can make those connections so much more easily these days.
  • You discover there are so many groups out there who want to help writers. They’re fun to belong to as well as being extremely useful. Currently I’m a member of Dumfries Writers (although I’ll be leaving them, sob, when we move north), the Romantic Novelists’ Association, Writers Scotland, Scottish Association of Writers, Society of Authors, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and Friends and Writers. Some are informal groups, some professional bodies. All very helpful (I’d encourage any writer out there who thinks they’re not a ‘joining person’ to start joining – I did and have never regretted it!)
  • And if all that wasn’t enough, there are all those brilliant books that get recommended, and discussions about books, that you will never be able to have with non-writing friends in quite the same way. You know, all that technical stuff about pov swops and pace and narrative arcs. Yes, that can be fun too.

The obvious final plus for this list is being published. And that is great, no doubt about it. But possibly even better is when you get a positive comment or good review from a reader. Now that really does make writing the best career to have.

13 comments:

  1. Good post. I agree about how writing opens up your world re meeting people you otherwise might not have met, both face-to-face and virtual. I also find that if/when I have worries or am not feeling 100% all pains and negative thoughts disappear when I'm writing - a bit like meditation perhaps?

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    1. Love that Linda. Writing as a meditation! It works.

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  2. Interesting post, Gill. I think writers write because they can't not write.

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    1. I agree. Even when we have times of drought, we come back to it.

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  3. Completely agree with your interesting points, Gill - I can't believe the vast number of people I've met online and at the RNA Conference. All creativity enriches the mind and life.

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    1. Thanks for popping by Rosemary. And glad you agree!

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  4. Ah, Gill - you're so right. Sometimes we all need to be reminded about why we even bother. Thanks for this post!

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    1. Thanks Jennifer. It was amazing, once I started listing the good things, how manyt here were.

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  5. You've lifted my spirits! Thank you. And fear not, you will meet other writers wherever you land up.

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    1. Thanks Jenny. It lifted my spirits as I wrote it!

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  6. Fabulous summary, Gill. All writers go through the cycle. I write because I love and enjoy writing. It brings me so much fulfillment. And when a reader leaves a great review or sends me a private message about my writing, I'm tempted to do a cartwheel. Lol.

    I have met lovely writers and bloggers too. Linda is one of them. And I belong to Romance Writers of West Africa.

    Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Lovely to hear from you Stella. And to know there is a Romance Writers of West Africa. My husband was brought up in Ghana until age 12 and has a huge affection for that part of the world.

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    2. I visited Ghana a few years ago too. It is a beautiful country. Romance Writers of West Africa is a strong group and I'm glad to be part of them.

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