By Leslie Lindsay

Even good writers need a break.  Bad ones, too.  Writing it hard work.  You may beg to differ, especially if you are not a writer.  “How hard can it be to sit and think and type?” you may wonder.  Oh, but it is.  Let me explain:

To be a writer, one has to be creative.  Then, one has to channel that creativity into something meaningful.  Read: organized.

So, to be a writer, one has to be organized and creative?  Well, yes.  At least to some degree.  (And don’t those two qualifiers sound a bit like an oxymoron?).  Exactly.

A writer also has to have time.  Time to ponder.  Time to process.  Time to live life.  Time to be out in the “real world,” (because good writing is based upon experience, and not just assumption).  A writer needs time to read.  Because good writing is often the product of good reading (and points one and two above).  But most of all, a writer must have time to write.

A writer must also have thick skin.  It’s hard to hear, “sorry, but your novel pretty much stinks and we can’t won’t publish it.”  Because, chances are you poured your heart and soul into that manuscript.  It’s a by-product of you.  How could anyone not want you?!

To be a writer, one must be persistent.  That means being persistent in your writing.  Do it every day.  Yes, that may sound intense…but hey, you eat at least once a day, right?  You go to the bathroom at least once a day, too.  So, why not write once a day, as well?  But not only that, you must continue being politely persistent with your proposed publisher, agent, whomever….they are busy.  They likely have many books and projects they are working on and thinking about.  You, not so-much (I know the truth hurts; see point above).  Remind them of your fantastic writing talents every so often.  Do it diplomatically, of course.

And now back to this “break” idea.  You do need a break so you can go out in the world and remember all there is to be thankful about.  You need to listen, observe–because that is the stuff books are made of.

Write on, Wednesday!

Leslie Lindsay, R.N., B.S.N. is a former child/adolescent psych nurse at the Mayo Clinic who feels her experience in “the real world” of nursing has helped prepare for her job as a mother to a daughter with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS).  Her book, Speaking of Apraxia:  A Parent’s Guide to Childhood Apraxia of Speech will be released next week by Woodbine House (www.woodbinehouse.com) and is also being offered through Amazon.  She continues to write in the women’s fiction genre.