To be a writer and the 'where's mine' syndrom

What does writing mean for me? Well in high school writing was a way for me to express myself to the world but in secret. I had to write every day for a creative writing class and I wrote about a girl I liked in high school in the hope that the teacher would read it and it would get back to the girl. It seems funny to think about it now, but that is what inspired me to write. Now I wish that I was a writer but I do little more then that. I make excuses in my head, I am too tired, I worked hard today, I spent a lot of time cleaning the house, but these are little more then excuses. I have time to write but I spend it doing other things. Just like when people are short on money they think ‘well, if I cut 8 dollars here and save .50 by using this coupon then keep doing that I will save a lot of money.’ It does not work that way, yes trimming extra expenses are good when times are lean but you got to look at the habit first. The same goes for writing, if I want to be a writer then I need to be one. I have told a few people that I am a writer but I feel embarrassed about it or awkward when I say so, then I follow it up with but I have not published or been paid to be a writer. I need to just own the fact that I am a writer and I will work hard at becoming one. Is it hard to become a writer? No and yes. First off no, anyone can write something and be called a writer. Secondly it is hard because not everyone can write something that someone else wants to read. I seem to be able to write fairly freely when I sit and focus on it but I often get distracted. It is no ones fault but my own. I could have as easily started writing and posting things in a blog a long time ago. Instead I decided to watch an old episode of Family Guy (which is a great show by the way). So, as I have told myself in the past, I need to start writing. But I tend to get into a habit of writing what ever it is I am thinking about. I don’t take the time to write a story or a novel like I should but as long as I write then I am working at becoming a writer.

A truly skilled mechanic did not start out that way, instead they started out on a old car in there parents or grandparents garage and when from there. They put a lot of time and effort into becoming a mechanic and so they have a skill that they can use to make a living. I suffer from the same attitude that is pervasive throughout my generation. It is an attitude in which they look at someone who has what they want and instead of working months or years to get that, they want it now. They want to start at the top and they want someone to hand it to them. I call this the ‘where’s mine’ syndrome. No, it is not a real syndrome, instead it is a mind set either instilled in us by our parents or by our schools. I suffer from this when I look at being a writer. I want the perks before I do the work. I want to wake up when I want, drink a cup of coffee, pet and snuggle my dogs, kiss my wife and then start the day at my computer writing. This dream can become a reality IF I work at it. Maybe it wont happen in a week or a month or a year but if I keep working at that goal I will achieve it. How do I know I will achieve it? I know because people have done it before and in this great country anything can be done. I mean if someone can glue googly eye to a rock and sell it to people then is it really the far fetched that I become a stay at home writer. I think not.

PS. Keep an eye out for my new product the pet spoon! Coming to a retailer near you.