As many of you know, I’ve been writing for publication for over 35 years—actually it has been 37 years and counting. I did a lot of writing even before deciding to establish a writing career. I wrote stories for my three daughters when they were small, kept travel journals and was an avid letter writer, list-maker and poet. My dream, however, was to write articles for magazines and, in 1973, I began writing and submitting articles to a variety of magazines. I earned my living through article-writing for a number of years and I am also now the author of 31 books (number 32 is in the works).
I’ve found writing to be an interesting lifestyle. While I attempt to teach through my writing, I also learn. And I’d like to share some of the things I’ve learned over the years.
1: The process of writing is more for me than for others. Sure I write to be read—like most writers and authors, I believe I have something of value to share. But it is the joy I derive from the process of writing that keeps me writing.
2: Writing, while my profession, is often also my escape.
3: Writers have different writing schedules for a reason. We really do have a natural rhythm that dictates when we are at our best/worst. Although, sometimes, when we’re working to establish a writing career or we’re writing a book while living a full life, we have to write when we’re not at our best.
4: Writers want to be heard/read. While some of us are natural communicators others have other reasons for writing—they want to make a difference—create change in the world.
5: Not all writers were born under the sign of the communicator, Gemini. There are other motivators that cause people to write. For years, anytime my astrological sign (Gemini) came up or I had a reading (for fun), I was told, “You should write,” or “You will become a writer,” or “You were a writer in a past life.”
6: Most writers and authors are not good promoters. We just want to write, thank you!
7: Most writers don’t take well to criticism. It’s painful when someone criticizes our writing or our ideas. Often, it seems as though some people just don’t understand you and that’s hard to take when you feel as though you’ve bared your soul through your writing. Don’t you hate it when someone nitpicks one minute point or idea in your book? Some reviewers or critics seem to miss the whole point of your story or your nonfiction book and focus on something they personally take exception with. Authors, stay far, far away from people who like to criticize just for the pure pleasure of it. But don’t ignore valid critique. If you’re not sure which is valid and which isn’t, spend a few days getting familiar with an editor’s comments, for example. You may eventually realize they do enhance your work.
8: A beautiful day can pretty much ruin an otherwise promising writing schedule. Good thing we have laptops that we can take outdoors with us on those delicious early days of summer.
9: Cats are more conducive to the writing life than are dogs or small children. Cats are generally calm. They love having someone around all the time. And if that person is sitting down, all the better because that means there is a lap that needs warming.
10: Cat fur is not conducive to writing equipment. Just this weekend I learned a nifty way to clean cat hair from the keyboard. Periodically, I turn my keyboard over and tap it on the desk ever so lightly in order to loosen and remove dust, etc. that has settled between the keys. This weekend, when I wasn’t writing, I was reading. I came across this tip—use the sticky side of a Post-It to clean between the keys. I tried this and you should have seen the cat fur that I pulled out of my keyboard.
Special Prices for Patricia Fry’s Online Courses
We’re closing in on summer and it’s a good time to sign up for one of my on-demand, online course. Also, June is my birthday month. So I’ve decided to drop my course prices for the entire month of June. Sign up now through June 30, 2010 and get 20% off. That’s a $40 discount for the following courses:
• Self-Editing Course (NEW!)
• Memoir-Writing Course (NEW!)
• Book Promotion Workshop
• Book Proposal Workshop
It’s $32 off the Self-Publishing Workshop and $25 off the Article-Writing Course.
Learn more here: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm
Questions? PLFry620@yahoo.com