BoomerGirl Diary

And write and write and write. And when you wake up one day and tell yourself that you cannot possibly write another word-- tell yourself that you will only write for five minutes.

I gotta learn to take my own advice. I do not want to be a writer. I am a writer. I am a storyteller. I cannot escape it. Writer's block is no excuse.

I tried to escape it. I tried to be a lawyer. I hated it. I tried to be a librarian. Loved it, but it wasn't exactly right. Even tried to be a greeter at Sam's Club while I was busy finding myself. Ran screaming.

So I am writing now. Taking some classes, as well, but writing.

There are a few tools you need. You need a good computer. Make sure you back up your work-- disk, flash drive, e-mail it to a separate account that does not automatically download to your computer. Learn to use your word processor. Some of the features can make your life so much easier. Your spellchecker is your best friend.

Read. Read in your chosen genre. If you want to do articles for a specific magazine, get a subscription for that magazine and study it for a few months to learn who the audience is and what you can bring to them. Read articles on the web, so you can learn to do research. Read novels. Read biographies. Read plays. Read history. I read Pulitzer Prize winners. I think big.

You'll want a few reference books-- dictionary, thesaurus, others in your area of interest.

Go to the writing section of the local library. There are numerous "writer's guides" that you will want to peruse. Maybe you will like one of them enough to purchase it later.

Check out local and on-line writer's groups. No need to be paranoid, but beware... there are wolves among the sheep. Be cautious about sharing your work. If you really want feedback on your writing, take a writing class at your local community college.

But write. Keep writing. Then write some more. One only learns this by doing it. So write.