What? What?
What is it that serious writers do?
What is it serious writers do?
This is one of my biggest pet peeves: people assuming that if you don't do what they do then you must not be as serious as they are about writing.
Do you want to know what serious writers do?
They write. They plan. They outline. They throw outlines out the window. They smash windows. They work a day job. They loath themselves. They are parents. They work from home. They ache. They scream with pride when they finish a chapter.
Or a scene.
Or a page.
They tell stories. They stare at blank documents on their computer screens and sigh. They miss days of writing. They make mistakes.
Go into any group where the writers talk about themselves and not necessarily about the writing process, and you'll see: there is no such thing as a writer who is not serious about writing.
As soon as a person sits down and starts to write that book or short story (which often happens before that person takes on the title of “writer”) a writer is born.
That's all there is to it.
I've never been a serious writer – it's too much fun
Hello! I have never thought about being a 'serious' writer. I write because the stories come into my head and the only way to stop them waking you up in the middle of the night is to write them down. Millie paced through my head for 3 months before I could finish Poetic Justice and start writing her story. Esme bothered me for weeks until I finished Moorland Murders and started her story. At the moment I am writing Ch5, loving every minute of it and, if I have a few minutes break, Esme pops into my head with the next few sentences. BUT I LOVE DOING IT!!
I write because no one listens when I speak. I often joke about writing because if I did anything else with the ideas in my head, I'd go to prison. But it's basically the same thing.
Okay. LOL I love your response 🙂 You win.
As well you should! Whether or not you've ever sat down and tried to define yourself as a "serious writer", I think it's pretty clear that you are. No one can walk up to you, should you take a break or be unable to write for a while, and try to tell you "if you were a serious writer, then you would [do it my way]."
Honestly, I make the same jokes 🙂 So you're not alone! I'm sorry it feels like no one listens to you, though. That's terribly lonely. But I am glad you've got another outlet 🙂
On a more "serious" note if writing felt serious and a drag I wouldn't do it. That doesn't mean I don't work hard at my writing but… it's so much easier to do when it isn't serious, or a craft, or bleeding from my pores, or starving to be an artist etc I could never have been Vincent Van Gogh.