July 12, 2010

Look at the positives!

We writers love to complain. Read any writer's blog or website (and yes, I'm as guilty of this as the next person) and you're certain to find at least a few posts bemoaning the trials and hardships of writerhood.
I won't say that the life and career of a writer isn't tough at times. We writers are vulnerable to many problems and disorders that 'normal people' simply don't have to deal with - Writer's Block and Creativity Overload being two of the most common. However, I am convinced that the leading cause of stress and misery in the life of a writer is a case of Martyred Starving Artist Syndrome.
Yes! Writer's Block is miserable. Yes! it is overwhelming when ideas are pouring into your head literally faster than you can write them down. Yes! it is frustrating when the poem you spent hours agonizing over gets rejected ... and rejected ... and rejected. Yes! it is miserable when you spend hours fighting with a story scene trying to get it right and you're still not pleased with the result.
But there are positive aspects of writing too - positives that far outweigh the negatives! And yet do we hear about those even half as much as we hear about the negatives? Hmm?
So we here at The Lair are going to change that. I'm not going to deny or ignore the negative and difficult aspects, but I'm not going to give them center stage either. The Writer's Lair is a place for writers to come to encourage and be encouraged - not to bewail their pitiful misfortunes.
This is a big job - there are a lot of Christian writers out there who could use some godly encouragement - and I don't want to be doing it all on my own. The next few posts are going to be focusing on the glorious positive aspects of writing that we writers often tend to overlook, and you all are welcome (and heartily encouraged) to leave your feedback in comments. Also, feel free to drop me a line sharing your own message of encouragement to other writers, or your idea for an encouraging post, using the contact info on the lower right side of the screen.
I'll end this post with asking you all: What is the one thing that you love the most about being a writer? Can't wait to hear your answers!

2 comments:

  1. Exciting. Amen. I totally agree with you. Writers are a rare, fun group

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  2. Yes, you're right. I complain to my brother quite often, because he makes models and things for video games, and he's made quite a bit of money that way; so I tell him that apparently modelling and coding are more lucrative than writing. But, I would never exchange writing for anything, even if I did make more money that way. I'd rather do what I love, and do it just for the love of it, than do something I didn't like just to make money. And yet, that doesn't mean we can't have a side job, but, anyways, I'm rambling. Good post :)
    Laura

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