The biggest emotional challenge for me as a writer is guilt. This emotion completely derails my forward momentum. It’s as if I’m sneaking time to write in between day job, laundry, and cooking for a husband and our two boys. Add to that the guilt of leaving my characters inContinue Reading
Being a writer isn’t about fame and fortune, at least not for most of us. And it’s not easy. Probably the hardest part for me is the lack of validation in any timely fashion. Nobody Pats a Writer on the Back When I worked in an office, I got regularContinue Reading
I think the biggest emotional challenge to writers and artists alike is the thought, “Is my work good enough?” I have met many people in the creative industry who worry about this and it can be paralyzing to the creation of future work. I don’t think I’ve met anyone whoContinue Reading
I first started writing, I had troubles dealing with rejection. One critical word was enough to have me tossing my stories and sending me into long bouts of depression. It took time to develop a thick skin and to turn critiques into something that motivated me, encouraged me to becomeContinue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge of being a writer that I have faced thus far is the post-partum publication blues. During the weeks directly after releasing my work into the world, I’m a basket case and feel extremely vulnerable, suffering the extreme highs and lows of birthing a novel. This isContinue Reading
I’ve always thought of myself as a writer. I’ve always been an introvert, and spend a lot of time “in my head.” Writing gives me an outlet, a way to escape, and a way to give a voice to those characters chattering away in my head. The biggest emotional challengeContinue Reading
Writing challenges us on so many levels. Do I have the skills to write a book? Can I stay with it to completion when the going gets rough? Is there enough time in my life to even attempt to write a book? And that’s just for starters. Many writers sayContinue Reading
I began writing in the ‘70s, and my first book, The Witchstone, was picked up by a traditional publisher the same year my oldest son was born. Parenthood kept me busy until ‘84, when I wrote The Ring of the Dark Elves, a retelling of the Norse legend of SigurdContinue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge: trying to keep the dream alive when all signs point to NO. Even once you’re published/have an agent/have an audience, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to keep going/keep publishing/create a viable career. You’re only ever as good as your next book. Financially the odds areContinue Reading
The biggest challenge [of being a writer] has been exposure and marketing. I spend most of my time writing, and rarely have enough time to actually promote my books. I’ve never been cursed with writer’s block or distraction issues, but I struggle with the business end of the venture. ThinkContinue Reading
by Linda L. Osmundson As a writer, I bloomed late in life. One of my sons said I was coming into my own when my husband Bob’s health knocked us both for a loop and my writing went on hold. His dementia diagnosis—not Alzheimer’s, but another dementia known as ProgressiveContinue Reading
I started writing when I was a child to create different “adventurous, exciting worlds” for myself. However, I could never have earned enough to make a living from fiction, so for decades I found work writing for newspapers, magazines, TV, and as an attorney—in jobs which I loved, and whereContinue Reading