.jpg)
Margaret talks about jobs
Would you call writing a job?
Or more of a pleasure?
I think, for published authors, it’s both, because if we didn’t enjoy
writing we wouldn’t do it. Admittedly there are times when I want to throw away
everything I’ve written and start all over again, but fortunately they are few
and far between. I like making up characters, creating their story, helping
them work their way through their problems.
Imagine a life without writing, without letting your imagination run
riot. I guess the next best thing to writing is reading, but someone has to
write the books we read, and that someone has to enjoy what they do.
Being an avid reader helps, although there is nothing quite like
creating your own story. You let it build up in your mind first, you get to
know the characters you’re going to write about, you learn all their foibles
and interests as well as their back story. They’re your friends – all you’re
doing is writing their story as they tell it to you.
It sounds easy, doesn’t it? And sometimes the writing flows. But there
are other times when writer’s block sets in. When we’re not sure where that
twist is going, where that turn will end. We thrash it around in our mind – it
could be for days – until suddenly everything clicks back into place and the
story takes over again.
Oh, the joy of writing!
For me writing is more of a hobby...so I'd have to say pleasure for me.
ReplyDeleteAt this point, there's so way I could make a living at it, so I wouldn't consider it a job. maybe sometime in the future when I retire from 'real life', writing might become more of a job.
Thinking about it as a hobby or for pleasure lessens the stress of it as well. I don't feel tied to a deadline. When the mood strikes, I write. If it doesn't, I don't worry about it.
I can understand you treating it as more of a hobby, a very enjoyable one, I imagine. And writing when you're in the mood has to be the only way otherwise it's no pleasure.
DeleteI treat it as a job, meaning I work on it every day. But I get much more pleasure from it than any job I've ever had.
ReplyDeleteMe too. I don't even miss the people I used to work with. Why would I when I have my characters to keep me company?
DeleteWhen I was working full-time, writing was a form of escape for me from all the pressures in my life, and in a sense it still is, as it enables me to escape into the worlds I have created for my characters. I don't think of it as a job, even though at times it is hard work, but it's not really a 'hobby' either. For me, it's something I can't NOT do (if you'll excuse the double negative there!)
ReplyDeleteActually when I was working full time I was often alone in the office (it was a small company) and this is when I started to write. It kept me busy when there was nothing else to do but man the phone. But I agree with you, Paula, about being something you cannot not do. It must be in our blood.
DeleteI know it's in mine, and has been since I was 8 or 9. I remember writing stories instead of doing my homework when I was in my teens LOL!
DeleteThis truly makes me smile!
DeleteAny job that you love doing is not a chore. It may require work, but the pleasure and satisfaction overshadows the minor struggles.
ReplyDelete