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Wednesday, June 7, 2017

What If You Quit?

The question the Insecure Writing Group has for the first Wednesday of June is:

Did you ever say “I quit”? If so, what happened to make you come back to writing?

Did I ever quit writing?  Yes for about fifteen minutes.  Long enough to grab a cup of coffee and come to my senses.  Truly, I can't quit writing, that's who I am. 

It's tough especially when the rejections come or the sales aren't there.  But I don't know who I'd be if I didn't write.  On my writing journey I've discovered so many authors who have held out a hand and helped me.  That's the crazy thing of this business, all the support we give one another.  In a business made of hopes and dreams, support is a fantastic thing and with all of it around you - how could you quit?


Along for the ride at the grocery store - what if?

Scrubbing a bathroom - what if?
A story begins with what if and then it's a lot of perspiration to find out how it all ends.  I know life gets in the way; kids and parents, jobs, all it.   I've found that you can make those day to day obstacles work for you in the inspiration department.  There's ideas even in a store.  The other day I was following a parent on her grocery expedition and while she shopped I thought what if this, or that or the other thing happened - what a story that would make.  That same what if comes up when I'm in the middle of cleaning a bathroom or two.  Of course that's when I use the dullness of the task to fill in the blanks as  there isn't much inspiration in the back half of a toilet.

What if?
Actually, this time, while I was spraying and scrubbing I was thinking of that book on serial killers and how all that information is going to come in really handy for a future book.  What it will be about - well serial killers for sure.

More importantly, there's the readers.  Whether you have one reader, a hundred or thousands - it only takes one.  There's nothing better than knowing that someone read your story and liked it, maybe even forgot how tough real life can be - at least for a time.

Quit writing?   

In the words of one of my favourite authors, Stephen King:

"Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work."

I don't know how true that quote is but I do know that if you quit, you'll never succeed as a writer.

So I write - stopping only to ask the occasional "what if?"

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Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com






4 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Welcome to the IWSG!
Even if it is just one reader, our writing matters to someone.

Cathy Keaton said...

Great quote by Stephen King. Talent doesn't matter if hard work isn't bringing it out and refining it, but even a talentless person can learn a trade. You have to work hard no matter what, and quitting won't get anyone anywhere!

Heather M. Gardner said...

Great post. We have to keep moving forward!

Thank you,
Heather M. Gardner
Co-Host/Admin IWSG

Ryshia Kennie said...

Alex
Thanks. Glad to be here.

Cathy
Stephen King always has something pithy or motivational or both to say. But those words really resonate.

Heather
Hi Heather - thx - we do!