In Medias Res: To actually be a writer or not?

In the middle of this writer's work month:

The night was dark. My feels were stormy.

Due to my inner emotional climate, I found myself parked in the middle of an empty lot with only a street lamp and my writing note book to guide me.

Nothing was working out. Nothing made sense.  Therefore, nothing felt right, except…

“I was born to write.”

Those were the words I scribbled across recycled note paper.

In that moment, I accepted I was meant to express myself through written word. This was not a new idea. Actually, it was the very thing I was told by others throughout the years. I never received it, though.

I come from working class roots.

In that lifestyle hard, hands on, production birthed livable results.

Simply put, writing was not something you did to pay the bills. It was a hobby.

I needed to live.

The parking lot scene was 2010. In 2011, I began taking writing seriously. I enrolled in a few non-credit courses. I begin to submit my work for peer review. In 2013, I met a young lady who would eventually become a close friend and alpha reader. She started a group where we and another friend met monthly to push our writing goals forward. They focused on non-fiction . Me,  I was all about a romance turned women's fiction novel I had toted around since early 2011. I was eager to tell the story of career woman who had to make a difficult choice about her love life.

That was then.

Now, much has changed. The novel has not. It’s still unfinished. It is a beautiful WIP (work in progress) waiting to thrive.  Emphasis on word "wait-ing". The novel is barely hashed out with scattered scenes. Sometimes, I look back on the last four years questioning if I ever really got anything accomplished. Yes, I have submitted a short story here or there, but I have not taken the plunge into completing my long piece nor officially publishing any of my work.

At what point do I accept that this author thing may not be working out?

Consequently, I am reminded of a Tyra Banks interview where she explained how she had given herself a specific time to become successful in modeling. Upon entering the profession, she  committed to a year of trying with the stipulation of returning home for college if things had not panned out in that time frame. Luckily, due to hard work and talent, her story quickly turned success.

I am wondering if I should give my writing career the same structure. I had a goal to finish  this novel by the end of this year.

I will give myself until that time to produce a sufficient rough draft. Next year, I will publish.

If not, I’ll have to accept writing is not the career for me. I believe this is fair. If I have invested 5 years with no success, that’s telling.

If things do not work out as planned, I will return to giving the day time gig my full attention. I will seek out more promotions, snag an additional degree or two and capitalize off my experience in the field.

Writing, will return to hobby status.

Sounds simple, right?

Not really. None of this spells easy. However, it is time to make the tough decisions.

That is where I am at with my writing this month. To ACTUALLY be a writer or not? We shall see.

Thanks for listening!

Great day, friends. Enjoy.

 
-T. Vernay

In Medias Res: This week in Writing

Wednesday 2/18/2015

"Snowing all the way..."

Today, the decision to complete my novel by the end of this year was reborn. 

When this moment of resolution occurred, I was actually running late for my 9 to 5 a.k.a the daytime gig. As a production driven person this left me utterly annoyed. And just to be clear, I was looking for someone to blame. But there was no one. Except me and my car which I happened to notice, at the time, had not been cleared off since the previous day’s snow storm.

Snow gloves cleaning car

 Usually, it is not my task to clean it. So of course, my aggravation went from Zen to sin, in a matter of seconds. With ill emotions running high, I quickly retrieved that wiper-cleaner-sweeper thingamajig from the back of my caddy and got on with my unexpected grudge work. Around about the time that I had gone full steam ahead with swift swiping motions, I paused to go slow with it. Why not?  I had to call in late anyhow. So I took my time.

Atop my car was that soft, fluffy, powdery, good stuff that defined wintertime when I was a youngster. In slowing my pace, I was able to absorb it all. The site, the sound, the scenery: it was absolutely beautiful.  And actually, the more I brushed it, the more I developed a child-like freedom. So much so, that I put some snow on my face.  If the dramatic meter needs to get any higher, I will also add that I ate some of it too. Oddly, in that moment of sheer lunacy, I found myself understanding something I never had before.  Just as I had taken time to clean off my car, despite my schedule, I would also have to prioritize writing as a craft, regardless of my other obligations. No ifs, ands or, but I have to do this other thing first about it.

As the sands of time continue to work their way through my life, I realize nothing gets accomplished without intention (not even something as fulfilling as playing in the snow). If I want this novel done in a timely manner, I will have to insist on making the necessary adjustments rendering writing a priority in my life. Therefore, I will make time, I will find time and I will finish my novel by the end of 2015. And, I will continue to be punctual at work. I am a woman, after all. I still have to balance my life AND pay my bills.

That is what’s going on this week in writing.

Thanks for listening.

~T. Vernay “Girl Gone Writer”

About this here blog...

*This page was originally posted on 2/25/2014 and updated on 2/22/2015 when the blog was revamped.

Hi there, again!

Below are a few points of necessity in regards to the operations of this *blog.

Purpose

I started Girl Gone Writer! to share my experiences as an aspiring novelist who works full time in a non-writing related field. Can I get stats on how many people successfully accomplish such a lofty goal??? I’ll also post a few TV series/ book reviews. See there, I give out goodies too. :)

Content

Most of the content on this blog will be about the dreamer tyro-to-published-author process, weekly inspirational posts and a few spotlight topics. 

Focus

I am seriously obsessed with good stories that feature major characters from marginalized groups especially women and people of color. Naturally, I will chat up work that features such point of views here on the blog. However, there may be some general posts from time to time. No guarantees. 

Disclaimer

I use words loosely. Let me clarify. I am (usually) not reckless with my wording but I have no problem generalizing ideas to capture diverse concepts i.e. I may place the word girl in a sentence referencing the universal feminine spirit but not in a moment where woman is needed as a measure of decency. I may call someone a friend, because I enjoy their work, yet I have never spoken to them. Okay the latter is a tad creepy, but I hope you all catch my drift aka let’s not take every word so seriously. This will be as fun of a blog as I can muster up.

Comments

As of today the comments section is open to all without moderation. I welcome responses from various schools of thoughts so long as they are written with the intent of edification not destruction. Ha, that was a funny little idealistic moment, was it not?  I have been on these net(s) way too long to expect even 60% civility. We’ll see how it goes.

Following and Updates

If you want updates on Girl Gone Writer! around the world wide web, I have my Twitter and Google +1 buttons added to the blog. I also think there may be a Pin option as well. Eventually, I plan to add a Facebook liker. Lastly, I am tvernay on Tumblr. There. That covers several social media connections. If you are sort of old fashioned like me, you can always subscribe to the blog feed and/or contact me via email at tvernaywrites@gmail.com with questions. Once again keep it kosher. Please and thanks. Otherwise, leave a comment for on-air discussion. Thank you!

Dues

As with most blogs, if you like something written here, it is okay to copy parts of it with reference to me and an active link back to Girl Gone Writer!. Please do not copy more than half the post.

I appreciate your consideration in advance.

That’s about it. Surely it was enough, no?

Now, to the fun stuff. :)

And we’s writin’!

~T.

Come on over to my Place...

Welcome and thanks for stopping by. Glad to have you!

Looks around frantically.

Omg? Oh my frickin' goodness!

I have finally started a *blog! (Please ignore my attempts at Xanga, Facebook Notes, Livejournal and another writer blog I kept for myself throughout the years.)

Hey, this official-ness has come 10 years after the average person’s decision to blog and approximately  21 years since the initial folks ventured out into internet meadow lands to share updates on their daily lives. Point is, I am gonna be counted in that number! Yes. Indeed.

As you have probably noticed, I can be quite silly but serious content is posted here monthly. So take your coat off and stay awhile. Me casa es su casa! :)

You may also want to check out the “About this here Blog” post before looking around. 

*This blog was originally posted on 2/24/2014 and updated on 2/22/2015 when the blog was revamped.

And we's writin'!

~T.