I found a book at McKays that is changing my life. Irenaeus said the glory of God is man fully alive. I’m fully alive when I write.

That makes me a writer. The book I found at McKays is titled You Are A Writer: so start ACTING like one by Jeff Goins. All I can say is wow. This book is changing me as I write. He underscores the importance of simply showing up to write. Sometimes the hardest thing for a writer to do is to write. You can’t wait for inspiration to strike because that’s like wanting to get out of bed in the morning. You sometimes have to force yourself.

If you want to write something that doesn’t exist yet you have to write it. It’s profoundly simple. Ecclesiastes says the writing of many books there is no end, and so Solomon observed the fact that the creative process is never-ending. Our world has room for what I am writing. So many times we stop before we’ve even begun. Jeff doesn’t sugar coat it either. There are good and bad writers. Editing and redoing what we write is the difference. Now I confess I do not edit these posts, and I’ve been blogging since 2008, so that’s a lot of bad writing, but time and time again I come to the blank screen to share my drivel. People like it because they wouldn’t click like at the end of the post if they didn’t.

I long for give and take in the comment areas of posts more than likes, but until I create a habit of editing these posts, making them more participatory and inviting replies then the likes will continue.

Good writing is hard work. I’m not afraid of hard work. I have a college degree, and I even have a graduate degree, so I’ve worked hard to craft words for a grade. I’ve also worked hard to get where I am now as a writer.

Thank you Jeff Goins for giving me permission to call myself a writer.

It feels amazing.