How Do You Feel About Your Own Writing?

Ooh. Tough question this week. Well, not really. I knew the answer immediately. Here is what I shared with my writing group:

Every day is a struggle to put pen to paper because no matter how many compliments I get, I think it’s garbage. (And this is not a fishing expedition. That’s seriously how I feel.) The thing is, it doesn’t matter how I feel – I have a story, and it has to come out. 

That’s the long and short of it. I struggle every single day to do a lot of things. Like almost everything else I struggle with, I continue to put pen to paper. I may never sell a single copy of my writing. Hell, I may never even attempt to. That hasn’t been my goal. I write because I must. And, because I enjoy it.

I know, I know. There are people who say you have to be talented to be a writer, that not everyone can do it. I call bullshit. Anyone can write. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t even have to be good. If you have the story in you, let it out.

If everyone around you puts you down or tells you to stop, come share it with me. I might be honest and tell you it sucks. I’ll tell you why it sucks, too. If I can, I’ll help you improve it like many have helped me. I mean, let me tell you – the things I wrote 20 years are ridiculous. If I weren’t a sentimental pack rat, I would throw them away. But when I started writing again last year… I’ve surrounded myself with people who not only care about me, but who are honest about my writing, and have helped me improve it.