I am new to the world of blogging and self-publishing, but I am not new to writing. I wrote my first novel in third grade–something about aliens … but it was always my dream to become a successful author. I would tell my parents, “I will be an author some day.” I just never knew it would be possible on my own (self-publishing, that is.) I always thought I would write some break out hit at age fifteen and be on the Opera show. But hey- a girl has to dream, right?
And I wrote all of the time. Every day. Every night. But I was never quite satisfied with what became endless rewrites of a novel I spent seven years working on–only to be chucked.
So I gave up for a while. I told myself that some day I would have time to write again. Maybe after I finished college I could really focus on my writing.
Hmmm… Well, I became a teacher, and my life revolved around my students, which is not a bad thing, but it does not make for a great novelist.
And then I went to to graduate school and double-majored.
And then I got married, went back to teaching, and had a beautiful baby boy.
When I hit thirty, I feel like I blinked and my dream of being an author was slowly dwindling away from me. But writing has always been inside me. I have been lucky enough to travel to many places around the world, and every time I visited a new place, I felt the inspiration to write burning through me. And I would always attempt to at least jot my ideas down … but reality would come back to haunt me: NO TIME TO WRITE. NO TIME TO DREAM.
But the problem with giving up is that we only have one life to live, and it would be kind of sad to leave this world without every at least truly trying to achieve your dreams. So, I am lucky enough to have an incredible husband who supports me, and I am taking time off from teaching to write … Well, okay … most of my day is taking care of my toddler, which is amazing, but it leaves only naptime and nightime to write, but I will take it!
And in less than three months I completed my very first novel (yes, I wrote novels when I was young, but they always lacked an ending). I am in the process of working with editors, and the probability of earning back the money I will spend on getting my book polished and published is dismal, but at least I am going for it. I am going for the dream.
What is your dream? And is the risk worth the intrinsic reward?