Gotta Write

I went and saw Brideshead Revisited last night, and although the ticket guy actually rolled his eyes when I told him what movie I wanted the ticket for it was still a pleasant experience.

One line from the movie really stuck out to me.  Charles tells all his classmates that he wants to be an artist, and in return one snooty guy says, “Well you’re either an artist or you aren’t an artist.  Which is it?”  Charles thinks it over for a moment and says, “I’m an artist.”  He hadn’t sold a single painting at this point and had no reputation whatsoever, but at that very moment he decided to take control of his destiny and become an artist.

It’s the same thing with writing.  Either you’re a writer or you aren’t.  It doesn’t matter if you’ve never made a dime from your writing or if you have any formal education with writing.  If you write well and you enjoy it, you’re a writer.

I once read that there are two things beginning writers can do to get a real morale boost and jump-start their careers:

1.  Consider yourself a writer, and when asked what you do respond, “I’m a writer.”

2.  Get a nice set of business cards that list you as a writer and confidently hand them out to people.

Now getting your hands on some business cards isn’t all that difficult, especially when you can get a set of business cards for free from places like BizCard, but actually working up the nerve to call yourself a writer? That can be a little harder.

So are you a writer, or aren’t you?

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