I was thrilled to make it past Round One of a contest. Yay! As I was waiting to hear if I’d made it to the next round, someone asked me, “If you are never published, would you write anyway?” The question haunted me, especially when the Round Two list didn’t have my name. Boo!

Why do I keep writing? I cringe when someone asks me, “Have you finished that book?” It broke my heart when a close relative revealed my hourly wage for writing my book is in the negatives.

The writing life is a struggle, isn’t it?

“Life sometimes gets in the way of writing.” – Jean Auel, author of The Clan of the Cave Bear

Jean N. Auel began writing what she thought would be a short story at age forty. But after researching the idea, she told her husband she’d planned to write six novels instead. His response? “You haven’t even finished one yet.” Her third (of the six) was the first hardcover novel ever with a first printing of over a million copies.

“What is writing but an expression of my own life?” – Zane Grey, western novelist

Zane Grey started his professional career as a dentist in Ohio. It wasn’t until he went to Arizona on a hunting trip that he fell in love with the west. Grey wrote at least one book a year (sometimes four). His novels created the Old West genre that we all know and love.

“I’ve been writing my entire life, and I’ll always write.” – J.K. Rowling, bestselling .author of .. well, you know who she is.

Rowling moved back to Scotland after she lost everything at age 32. There, on welfare, she developed an idea into a book. It was rejected several times and finally sold for about $4,000. It became the first Harry Potter book.

I’ve made it a habit to pray before each writing session because I know I cannot write without Him. Eric Liddell, missionary and Olympic athlete said, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.” I feel the same way about my writing. Even though whatever I write will have to be rewritten, I still feel His pleasure when I write.

What about you? Would you write anyway?

~*~

Angie lives in a small town in South Carolina. She’d love for you to join her at her website and Seriously Write.