Hard 'n' Easy

I wrote the following during one of Charleston Library's monthly fiction writing workshop. The organizers have done a mighty fine job of keeping the group running for over a year now. You can find out more about their efforts here: http://ping.fm/k3kqR

WHY WRITING IS DIFFICULT

Writing’s difficult because I don’t see it as a proper job. I don’t get paid enough. I always feel like I should be doing something that pays better. I have a family to support and bills to cover, yet I’m paid less than pulp writers back in the ‘30s. (The Charleston City Paper pays as little as 3 cents a word; that pay is better than the Post & Courier’s rate for me).

Maybe I should grow up, be a man and go work in a cubicle – but who am I kidding? I’ve been fired from jobs like that for writing while I should be officing, my pad tucked on my lap, my pen furtively scribbling whenever I thought no one was looking.

Writing’s also hard because I try not to repeat myself. When you put pen to paper every day, it’ inevitable that the same thoughts and phrases will crop up. That attempt to find a new way to express ideas is a constant struggle. Sometimes I succeed. Sometimes I just run out of notions. Big ideas are no problem for me – it’s the minutiae that get me.

WHY WRITING IS EASY

Writing’s easy because the ideas are there. Some are more original; than others but there are always stories to tell.

The words are there, too – I love words and I’m compelled to read them and use them. I have a desire to share those words with others, even though feedback from my readers is relatively rare (write me please!).

It’s not like stand-up comedy – you don’t get an instant laugh for a funny sentence. Readers don’t finish a novel and applaud. Unlike any other kind of work, writing has a level of self satisfaction (when you get it right) that is unmatched. Let’s hear it for all those smug self-satisfied writers out there!

What, no applause?