hire entertainers: Why I became a writer

Friday, February 10, 2012

Why I became a writer | Limebird Writers

Well first and foremost I write because I love writing. I?m lucky with my job as a social research director as I get to write in a range of different styles ? proposals, Government reports for publication, social commentary articles in the industry press, marketing materials etc. And of course my greatest love of all outside of work is to unleash my imagination and weave words into exciting fictional adventures.

With a hint of bashfulness I?ll also state that I write because I?m good at it. Actually, scrap the bashfulness ? I?m a good writer, fact. To me writing feels as instinctive as talking; sometimes even more so.

So let?s summarise; I write because I love it and because I?m good it. Bearing in mind that the vast majority of people reading this post are also writers, I very much doubt I?m saying anything you wouldn?t say about yourselves. In fact for many of you I?ve visited your blogs and can speak on your behalf ? you also write because you love it and because you?re good at it!

But it was a recent post by fellow limebirder Raven on her personal blog about her dreams that got me thinking more specifically about what prompted my dream to be a published writer; to not just write, but to write and publish books. For me it was when I was an insecure teenager with hormones demonising my life and the world telling me I should feel misunderstood. I?ve been blessed to have a huge, brilliant family and had a stable, happy upbringing. Yes, we had financial worries, but my parents took care to keep them from us. I went to a good school and I was academically strong. I had an active enough social life, and maybe I was on the outskirts of the ?cooler kids? at school, but I did okay. I was blessed enough to have nothing to rebel against and no real hardships to overcome.

So what did my hormone-addled brain do? Of course it decided I was far too ordinary ? that was my hardship in life. I wanted to be a rock star, or an actress, but I was far too average for such pursuits. How was I going to make my mark on the world?

With my writing of course! Lots of people are good at writing, but not everyone has the passion, discipline or ability to channel that into writing full length novels. And if there?s something I have in droves it?s determination.

Brit pop summer 1995 was my first year hitting the indie clubs off Tottenham Court road as a seventeen year-old. No drugs or alcohol for me ? who needs stimulants when music is this good? Instead I popped a few Pro Plus caffeine pills to keep me awake (yes I see the contradiction with my previous statement!) and danced through to closing time, returning home on the night bus so wide awake that I?d stay up writing until morning. By the end of the summer I?d not only discovered the indie classics that will stay with me for life, but I?d built up quite a good portfolio of writing. When I saw a creative writing competition advertised at school I decided to enter it. I told myself, ?If I win this competition it means I will become a published writer one day.?

I was stunned when I actually won.

A girl in my year, very popular, an exceptional dancer and actress who?d been the lead in the school play was nice enough to seek me out and give me her congratulations (to her credit, this was with no hint of bitterness), ?Wow, you must be really good. I entered this competition too but didn?t win.? She didn?t share any of my classes so she didn?t know I was academically strong, in fact I?m not sure we?d ever spoken to each other before. ?But it was clear that in her mind I?d changed from just being a girl in her year called Sally into a girl in her year called Sally, who?s good at writing.

I?m old enough now to have accepted my nose is never going to magically shrink, nor will my 5?4 pear shape suddenly stretch into model-like proportions. More importantly, I?m old enough to accept that these things wouldn?t make my life perfect anyway. Of course I still have my insecurities, but I?m not the hormone-befuddled teenager I once was and over time my writing dream has morphed away from being an insecure teenager?s need to make her mark on the world into a desire to make a living doing something I love. I?ve had to be realistic and accept that few published writers are able to earn a good living out of writing so I?ve worked hard to build a career in social research that is still something I love and find fulfilling. The writing dream persists though and I?m sure always will.

So being completely honest here I think my writing dream grew from an insecure teenager?s need to take something that gave her confidence and seek external validation about who she was and what her role was in this world from it.

I?d love to know: what made you become a writer?