When do you become a writer?
Post by Gillian Harrison
“When you keep planting plants, you become a gardener.” Olivia, small child
When do you become a writer? When you receive your first paycheck? When you publish a novel? When you win a writing competition?
I’ve spent the last fortnight writing. Not a novel or short story. Not poetry or feature articles. I’ve been locked away writing early childhood observations and end of year assessments. These observations come with the end of every school year and they highlight the successes and gaps in our program. Writing observations and research papers is an important part of my role as an early childhood teacher and I enjoy it.
But afterwards, when the last child’s observation is safely tucked inside its folder, and I try to write something else, like a blog post or a creative piece or even a shopping list, I realise my writing light has dulled. It’s burnt out. Used up. Every word is lost to educational phrases. Becoming. Being. Belonging. These three words characterise the vision for learning in early childhood and I think the vision is rather beautiful. But after so long spent writing around these themes I find myself struggling to write about anything else.
A fierce wind is blowing in Perth today and I am thankful for it. It matches the blustery battle in my mind. Today I watch the words twist and twirl away from me. I sit down to write a blog post but each word comes out protruding and awkward. Like big ears on a tiny head, I can only hope to grow into them.
I do strange things when I feel this way. I subconsciously turn to grilled cheese sandwiches and extra sugar in my tea, as if indulging my body will fool the words into submission.
But today I do not feel like a writer. I hold a bachelors degree in writing but I have never dreamed of calling myself a writer. When I think of being a writer I think of creative writing. Writing early childhood observations and educational research papers fills my bank balance while creative writing fills my head, heart and soul. Not having the words or energy for creative writing makes my heart ache.
I love the quote above. A small child somewhere, some day said these words and The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia features it in the first few pages. I believe it’s a quote that I can learn from.
If I keep writing words then I’ll become a writer.
Stream of consciousness writing helps. And so, armed with sweet tea and carbs with cheese I abandon all writing plans and expectations and I write. The first words that come.
Do you get paid to write? How do you balance your paid writing work with more creative pursuits? When did you become a writer?
Related articles
- Should I take a creative writing course? (narrativeodyssey.com)
- Think Creatively then Write Creatively (mirrorsonthewall.org)
- What is Creative Writing (beforeabeyondz.wordpress.com)
26 Responses to “When do you become a writer?”
I remember thinking this a few months ago when someone introduced me as a writer. That had never happened before and until that moment I hadn’t really thought of myself as one.
If you write, you’re a writer. Money or no money but I guess its just a label – I like to be a few things, makes life more interesting. Lovely quote Gill x
Labels are funny things. I try to not think in terms of them but in many ways they help define so many blurry lines. Being more than just one thing certainly makes life more interesting. Imagining only being a writer or only being a gardener?? Interesting…
I like to think I’m forever becoming a better writer, through writing.
I look at my neighbours garden, which is only 4 years old. I remember what it looked like at the beginning, and I see the verdant growth this spring, the trees that are now tall enough for their sons to climb over and see the neighbourhood beyond and it gives me faith that my writing will grow too, if I nurture it.
Although getting the occasional writing cheque does help the old confidence too!
Lovely post Gill.
Thanks Karen. I found this post ridiculously hard to start but in the end I really enjoyed writing it. I like your garden analogy, writing needs nurturing too. But yeah, let’s not underestimate the pay cheque!
I am a writer for sure – I write every day at the moment, which I am sure is a good thing
. Can I get better? Yes, certainly. Am I good at it? Yes. Is this what I will be doing in some form or another for the rest of my life? Definitely. I don’t know anything more than that.
. Stream of consciousness writing is wonderful isn’t it. No expectations.
It does remind me of the first time someone referred to me as a ‘lady’. That someone was a small child, and I was a 16 year old; but I still remember it today. Someone thinks I am grown up! I guess being referred to as a writer is a bit like that! Hey, Gill, you’ve probably just got the end of year exhaustion blues. Go and do some yoga or something
I like your resolve, Sara. I am a big fan of stream of consciousness writing, it always manages to pull me through.
I love that quote Gill. It’s gorgeous. And I love that you have applied it to writing. I get paid to write, and the subjects are in aged care, transport, food services…all sorts of things. But keeping my evenings purely for creativity has meant that other writing doesn’t encroach. If anything, they help each other. My day job is words words words, and I have learnt to write quickly and efficiently. My night writing seems to flow off the back of it, and come easily. I have never written so much in my life. And it is finally with confidence that I call myself a writer – though I still have so much to learn.
It is a gorgeous quote. I love the way children simplify some things. If you want to do it, well then do it. If you want to be a mermaid, grab yourself a tail (mermaids are the dress up of choice this week at my work).
It doesn’t matter if you get paid or not, if you write professionally or not. I think I became a writer when I sat down and wrote. I love the gardener quote as well. It’s so true.
It took me way too long to start writing because i lacked the confidence for it. When I realised that the only way to get good at it was to keep doing it, I finally got started
The “keep on swimming” quote kept popping into my head while writing this post. Writing is really something you just need to keep doing. But it’s funny how we seem to think it is a craft that relies solely on talent. I tend to think of my writing journey as an apprenticeship of sorts.
Great post Gill. I’ve been writing professionally for more years than I care to remember, but I did not call myself a writer for a lot of those. I was a journalist. Different. I began writing non-fiction books, and called myself an author. I began writing fiction, and called it a hobby. I began writing a blog, and called myself a blogger. It’s only in the past few years that I’ve begun to call myself a writer. Probably because I ran out of other labels for myself. I don’t think it matters what you call it, as long as you do it.
I chose to study writing because I loved creative writing but I always told people I planned to be a journalist. It seemed more credible. I loved (and still do!) poetry, both reading and writing it, but to call myself a poet?? It seemed incredibly pretentious. As I grow older I am coming to understand that you can call yourself whatever you want. But yes, as long as you do it.
[...] When do you become a writer? (therhythmmethod.wordpress.com) [...]
Originally I rediscovered my love for writing in an attempt to make money, when I was without a job for a time. I never made much, but found something way more valuable. I’m back to working a part time job and am blessed to still have time to pursue my other creative outlets like writing and crochet. I don’t think there should be any magic moment someone considers themselves a writer. Maybe it’s what’s in your heart. I’m a writer even if I never earn a living from it or publish a book.
[...] When do you become a writer? (therhythmmethod.wordpress.com) [...]
This is a great post Gill. ‘Writer’ seems to be the most prolific of the ‘job titles no one feels like they can give themselves’. I aspire to be a writer, which is challenging because I have no idea how I’ll know when I arrive at that point. Every week people pay me to write, but that doesn’t seem to have done the trick. My next step is to have fiction published, but there will be another inevitable step and another and another. If I top the NY Times bestseller list, THEN am I a writer? If I win a Man Booker, THEN am I a writer? If Oprah puts my book in her magazine, THEN am I writer?
I like to think that the dissatisfaction and lack of complacency that writers tend toward actually spur them on to the next thing and the next thing. As long as I don’t feel like I’ve arrived, I’m compelled to do what it takes to try to arrive in the future.
Beautiful post Gill – I always timidly say I’m a writer as it truly feels a bit fraudulent, but then if we do, we must be. We write, so we are writers, regardless of cuttings or blog stats, or what actually ends up on the screen. I use to worry that I had all this “stuff” in my head and heart that I wasn’t getting out, it was just stagnating inside me, but now regardless of job titles, it’s coming out and I feel that I am a craftsman, crafting words and sentences from thoughts. And that’s more fulfilling than any title on any business card.
[...] When do you become a writer? (therhythmmethod.wordpress.com) [...]
I have been thinking about this post for a while. I have found it hard to even comment, being as my head too is filled with being, belonging and becoming.
I don’t know when you become a writer, or, perhaps I do, perhaps I just don’t know when I have the right to call myself one.
I agree with you, the stream of consciousness works well for me too, as long as there has been tea brewed and biscuits consumed first.
I hope one day I can call myself a writer and actually believe it. I still have my training wheels on, I strive to be better but I have such a long way to go. I don’t know that there will ever be a destination point but I think that’s a good thing.
[...] When do you become a writer? [...]
This certainly applies to art as well. When do you become an artist? I feel like I can name the string of months that I became one, but I still don’t quite call myself one. I’m also my hardest critic, though.
Oh I do the extra sugar in tea thing..indulging the body to fool it into submission – this so perfectly describes it! Quite funny really. As for writing… it’s definitely “in the doing”… just like the gardening quote… a writer keeps writing. Streams of consciousness, from the heart… and rarely for money. I find that if someone tells me a ‘brief’ or tells me what to write or if there’s a strict deadline, then I crumble. And not having the energy to write creatively (as you cited) also make my heart ache. I wonder how creative writers do write for money and deadlines. And as for calling oneself a writer, I think it ends up being a semantic exercise. Essentially if you love expressing yourself through words, then surely the title of ‘writer’ is yours. But if we need to winnow the good writers from the bad, then I’m not sure what the benchmark should be. In my humble opinion, I think ‘good’ writers will always keep trying to be better… they’ll just keep writing.
I know you don’t need my approval, but I’d love to tell you, Gill: YOU are a beautiful writer!
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[...] When do you become a writer? (therhythmmethod.wordpress.com) [...]
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