Friday, July 18, 2014

Struggle.

As a writer, I struggle.

And not in a good way.


I struggle with just writing. I have all sorts of other things to do. I used to have work. Now I have the enterprise of marketing myself as a business and organizational writer. I have to find creative ways to sell myself. I have to study marketing and technology to be able to get the freelance jobs and then I have the freelance jobs to do and the follow-up work. I have groups to organize and non-profits to build. When am I supposed to write a novel?

(See my next post that answers that question!)

But I've struggled with more complex and emotional issues, too:

  • I've struggled with identifying myself as a writer, though I've identified as such since I was seven.
  • I've struggled with people's (family's) perception of what I'm supposed to have accomplished as a writer as any specific time in my life.
  • I've struggled with “competition” and academic programs that tried to make the students compete, without preparing them for it.
  • I've struggled with the business and politics of publishing.
  • And, of course, I've struggled with my characters and where they are going.


Being a writer is taking on a life of struggle.

What do you struggle with as a writer?

Leave a comment and let me know. I bet there are lots of others with similar struggles—maybe we can work them out together.


5 comments:

  1. saw your google ad, read your blog, love it, bookmarked it.
    Yes. I need to write. I also need to go to work, water the bonsai, remember I need to do washing, ironing, letter writing, email responses as well. You're so so right. Yet we work on, don't we?
    Keep this up, Robin, like it a lot. Like, a serious amount. I don't say that often!

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    1. Thank you, Antonia, for reading and commenting... I'm happy to hear that it rings a bell. Are you Dorothy Davies? Or is that your budgie?

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  2. I am Dorothy Davies, I use Antonia Woodville as one online name and Google selects that each time for my comments, don't be asking why, who can fathom the workings of Google?

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    1. Are you going to continue with the Skullface blog?

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    2. as soon as the book is available as an e-book, I plan on doing just that and promoting it with all my 100 writers, too.
      Thanks for asking.

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