The Writing Life
Charlotte Rains Dixon  

You Are Allowed…To Be a Writer

You are allowed to get so engrossed in your writing you forget to cook dinner (but set an alarm so you don't forget and leave children stranded in odd places).

You are allowed to follow the peaks and valleys of the creative process.

You are allowed to passionately practice your writing every day.

And, you are allowed to take a day off from it when the need arises.

You are allowed to not talk about your WIP if you don't want to.

But, you are also allowed to make time with other writers for inspiring shop talk.

You are allowed to publish your work any ole way you want.

You are allowed to be the final arbiter and judge of your work.

You are allowed to despair over your lack of progress.

You are allowed to take joy in completion.

You are allowed to cry over rejection.

You are allowed to love your work better than anyone else.

You are allowed to seek help with your writing when you need it.

You are allowed to revel in every single aspect of the writing life, the good and the bad.

You are allowed..to be a writer.

(With thanks to Jen Lee for the inspiration.)

0 thoughts on “You Are Allowed…To Be a Writer

  1. Don Williams

    Cool post, but when it comes to ‘You are allowed to cry over rejection.’ I don’t cry….. I SWEAR TO HIGH HEAVEN!

    Oh, I also especial like the point, ‘You are allowed to seek help with your writing when you need it.;

  2. J.D.

    So many of the world’s institutions cut you no slack. Isn’t the business of writing like that? More vicious than mountain goat courting–you just butt heads until only one is left standing, and some capricious agent or publisher (who has been off sniffing flowers) decides who that one is. Some of the points above free us from that. YOU may write passionately everyday. YOU are the final judge. YOU may love your work more than anyone else. Art finds people, changes them, the creators and consumers.

  3. Leigh Lauck

    Thank you, Charlotte, for these inspiring words! I really needed them today. I think I’ll print this out and tape it to my computer…

  4. Carole Jane Treggett

    Like Leigh, I really needed to read this today, Charlotte (waves supportively to Leigh and everyone else here). I’m also going to print this post out and tack it on my bulletin board, just to the left of my monitor so I can glance at it often and easily. Thank you so much!

  5. Charlotte Dixon

    Yeah, I swear and weep and wail and stomp around–all that good stuff! My theory is to get all the bad feeling about it out so you can send it on to the next person!

  6. Charlotte Dixon

    Oh man, I love that last line: “Art finds people, changes them, the creators and the consumers.” Beautiful–and so true!

  7. Charlotte Dixon

    Aw, thank you. Glad they inspired you.

  8. Charlotte Dixon

    Thank you for letting me know that it inspired you. Onward to our word counts for the day!

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