It’s fun to study other writer’s styles and read their thoughts about writing.  Loula Grace Erdman, describing her life as a writer, helps me accept my own idiosyncrasies.  She reinforces my decision to back away from the Christian writer’s conference.

I know I can write short stories that will sell.  It’s just that what I want to say won’t fit inside a short story.  It can’t be “felt” with the proper passion if I have to mimic a non-fiction narrative style that resembles a Walter Cronkite newscast.  Life is poetry.  I don’t want my life to end up as a newspaper account next to an advertisement for denture cream.

I know I could write a story about the Cox cable porn programming.  But it’s more satisfying to feed the information to Tamara Dietrich at The Tribune.  While she busies herself as a reporter for the newspaper, I can write my own book chapters.  In fact, I enjoy anticipating how she will weave together the various details of the Cox story and wondering whether I will come off as a nosy busybody or a valiant Johnny-on-the-spot citizen.

Each writer has her own place in the history of the world, and the lure of publishing is a trap to pull us away from our own place.  I read writers explain how much they want to be published.  It is the proverbial greeting with your handshake at a writer’s conference, “Hi, nice to meet you, Lola.  Have you been published?”  This is the only area where I feel a stranger in the world of words.  I don’t want to publish.  I want to communicate.  I want to share.  I have something to say.  And publishing has nothing to do with that.

So far, the writing experts I read say there are too many writers focused on publishing.  I say there are too few writers focused on the message.  When I run out of message, then I’m finished with writing…no matter how well I can craft a sentence.

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THE WRITER’S LIFE
TABLE OF CONTENTS

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