A trip down Memory Lane

I MISSED ANOTHER POST LAST WEEK!

Hi, everyone. :) Sorry about last week, but it completely slipped my mind. And I don't have anything too profound this week either. I thought that I'd just take a quick look at my writing journey. It will be incredibly brief but include some things I've learned (ok, this is how this post started, but it took a more...profound turn at the end in my opinion. keep reading to see what I came up with).

Let's start at the beginning, shall we? Second grade is when I really remember getting into writing. In English class, we had to write several short stories. I absolutely loved it! Then when I moved to New York and my mom was my teacher, I remember her letting me substitute short stories for a few book reports. The first "book" I ever wrote was another short story, though longer than the ones for school, about a little bug named Billy Buggle. It was a children's book, completely ridiculous, but also a big accomplishment. Unfortunately, I had it saved only on my mom's computer, and when her computer crashed, I lost not only that story, but a play I had been working on as well. But I moved on. I then began saving my stories in my email as drafts so I would never lose them. Then a few years later when I got my own Chromebook, I saved my stories on Google Docs. Though I have written a few short stories throughout the years, I didn't complete a full-length novel though until January of 2019. That's right, this year. And I was so proud to have reached that goal! I've spent this year editing and rewriting my finished book. I took a break and a step back for a few months, then went back to editing and rewriting. And, as you know, I'm now in the stages of publishing. It's been a long, tiresome journey, and I am very ready to send this book off into the world and be done with it, but I'm thankful for everything I've learned throughout this process.

I've grown a lot as a writer since finishing "Here's to the Underdogs!" As I read back through my book, I realize that, structurally, it could be much better. But, that's knowledge I'll have to put towards my next book. I can't wait to continue my writing journey next year. And I hope you all will be a part of it. :)

Well, that was a little trip down memory lane! I hope you enjoyed it. There's even a lesson in it: don't give up on your dreams. That's what writing was for me for a long time: a dream. Sure, I had other aspirations; I wanted to be a teacher at one point, then a paleontologist. But the thing that has always stuck with me is my writing. I didn't think of turning it into a career when I was eight-years-old and writing short stories in second grade, but I do believe it's what I'm called to do. It will still take some time to get things rolling, and maybe writing won't be a sustainable career for another twenty years or ever! But I'm not going to give up. I'm going to pursue writing for as long as I live.

(This is the "profound" bit)

Earlier this week, I took some time to figure out three things: what my goals are, what I'm doing (to work towards them, and in general), and what I could do better. Writing was my second goal behind strengthening my relationship with God. I took the time to evaluate what I am currently doing in life to decide whether I'm putting as much energy towards my writing goal as I can, and I ultimately decided that I needed to take control and cut some things out because they were hindering that goal. I think this is a healthy exercise for all of us. If you're not happy with where you are in life, take time to figure out why. What do you want? What are you doing to achieve your goals? What are you doing that is hindering you and could be cut out? And what can you do better? As the week closes out, I encourage you to take some time to think about these questions.

As always, be productive and have a good week!