Welcome to The First Day of the Rest of My Life

My entire life people have been telling me I should be a writer. Every year I ask my students to consider the question: Who am I? When I think about this same question, my response always involves "I am a writer" somewhere in the equation. If I am having a good day, it ends up closer to the top. If not, somewhere nearer the bottom. I "joke" consistently that all passionate English teachers are secretly harboring the desire to be writers. I talk about my novels-in-process. I use my personal writing as examples and mentor texts for my students as do many of my previous professors.

I know in the pit of my soul and with the entirety of my being - I am a writer.

I write short stories and flash fiction and academic articles and literary analysis and really, really long unit plans. I write poetry for my kids and all sorts of essays and half-finished novels.

And so far. . .

I am, as yet, unpublished. I have temporarily given up on submissions due to rejections (they have a tendency to make one question the worth of one's work). I do not spend the time or energy I know I should writing.

I recently completed a class on writing children's books, a genre completely foreign to me, and it has given me a new insight on what I need to do - JUST WRITE ALREADY!

With that thought squarely in mind, I have decided to start this blog. It is for me more than anyone else. A way to hold myself accountable for my tendency toward procrastination. 

I finally understand that rejection is just part of the process. The majority of my work can not be neatly pigeon-holed into a specific genre or niche - perhaps it would be easier if that were the case. But what I do know is this, my writing is true to who I am. It tells the story I want to tell in the way that I want to tell it. With perseverance, I will find a home and an audience for my work. I will finish the novels I have been playing around with for soooooooo long.

My pledge to myself is this: I will use this platform to document my writing journey. I will make time to write. I will begin to submit again. I will WRITE with the understanding that everything will not be great all the time, that I will have good days and bad, that not every person who reads what I write will "get it" (some people will even think it is worthless trash), and that this terrible/awful/wonderful journey will be a long one.

So, if you have stumbled upon this blog and wish to tag along or comment or even commiserate, welcome. Welcome to the first day of the rest of my life.