“You should write a book!”

Ever since I could remember, I’ve been a fan of the written word. I used to write songs and rhymes when I was as young as six or seven years old. After I grew up and discovered the beautiful art of literature, books have been a constant part of my life and my deep admiration for those who could do wonders with the written word grew more and more.

Having said all this, and as this blog proves, my desire to write a book has always been there. When asked what I want to do in life, what I hope to do in X amount of years, writing a book or having written a book is always a part of my answer. However, it’s never been my intention to make a living as an author. I always picture myself working at a magazine or some form of media, writing about specific content, and then on my own time write and publish a book or two. (That’s still the plan.)

Why am I writing this then? Because it turns out writing a book is hard. I realized this very early on. (I’ve tried many times after all.) And because I know how hard writing a book (or anything) can be, it makes me appreciate those who do it even more. The thing is not everyone realizes this. Most people think that writing a book is something anyone can do, and who knows, maybe it is, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t take time. Or that it can be accomplished as soon as they want it or expect it to happen.

A lot of my friends and family are very supportive of my dreams to write a book, but a lot of the times they don’t realize their support can come off as pressure. So far, I’ve written fanfiction, flash fiction, articles, and poems, all things I’m proud of and that have helped my writing process. But for some people this is not enough so they go with the typical: “You should write a book!” While I can take the compliment behind the sentence, meaning that they approve of my writing and think I’m talented enough to write a book, it can rub me off the wrong way sometimes. (This all depends on the tone, the context and the person saying it, of course.)

What I’m trying to get at is that writing is hard. It takes practice, talent, creativity, commitment, passion, knowledge, and understanding of the written word (among many other things). People study to be able to become an author. So when someone who hasn’t even taken a creative writing class has to take longer to manage it, it’s good to be sensitive of the struggles that person might be going through.

I understand that this might be my anxiety, frustration and/or insecurities talking, but it feels good to organize my thoughts. And who knows, maybe there’s someone out there reading this that shares my feelings on this subject, yes? No? Let me know.