Being a Writer Means - New York Times Bestselling Author, J. Sterling

Being a Writer Means

That we don't really take vacations. There are no weekends, no holidays, no days off... There is working overtime, working nights, long hours...

Because our brain is ALWAYS thinking of the next story to write, or what we're writing now, or what we could write better.

There is no off switch on a creative mind.

Hell, even when we're sleeping we're usually dreaming about our stories or our characters.

It's funny because we work so hard on our stories and it takes us months to write them, edit them, send them off to the editor, make the changes, format them, go through last minute additions, etc... and you would think that once we released our book that we'd sit back, breathe a sigh of relief and ENJOY the moment.

But you know what most of us do?

Do you?

We fucking haul ass back to our computer and start working on the NEXT book.

Because we can't sit still.

Because we don't turn off.

Because we don't know how to relax and enjoy the moment.

And because if we don't start writing that next book, we feel like we're falling behind. Our books don't write themselves. Lord knows it would be much easier if they did. But they don't.

I'm not sure about everyone else, but I remember releasing my first book a little over a year ago and thinking, "I just need to get ANOTHER book out there. I need to have two!" And then I released my second book and thought, "I just need to have another. I need to have a library of books for people to choose from!" 

It's never enough.

I definitely don't write fast enough.

Some days I feel like I don't write good enough (that's for damn sure). 

So basically, being a writer means that you're a crazy person. LOL  A crazy person who doesn't know how to stop, slow down, breathe, relax, enjoy, chill the f out, etc. 

I constantly WANT to be writing. I love the process of creating- even when it's stressful, painful, sleep depriving and anything but relaxing. When i'm not writing I feel like i'm not progressing. I feel like i'm being lazy. Like I spent the whole day at work, not working.

So yeah. That's what being a writer means to ME.  I really hope i'm not the only one.  lol

3 comments:

  1. Amen, sister. This needs to be turned into a poster that we can all hang in our caves. Well said. My friends husband said, "You're going to write aNOTHER book?!!?" as if it was a one and done deal. I was like "I don't know if I ever want to stop."

    ~randall ;)

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  2. Anonymous1:38 PM

    I can't tell you how much I love this! It's so, so true!!!!

    -Crissi

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  3. Okay, so I'm not a writer....but as a creative person-I completely, 100% guaranteed agree and GET this!! It's like an addiction when you're in creative mode....I drive my husband crazy at night when I'm in the middle of a web site or design....I keep waking up thinking, OH CRAP, I know how I can fix that...or what if I changed the look of it THIS way? lol

    Want a poster?? I'll design you one because...I....can't.....stop!!!! :)

    Lysa

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