Writing

When I was younger I read books and felt inspired to write them. Then I wondered why other people who read didn't want to write too. I couldn't see how enjoying books wouldn't naturally lead you to wanting to write one. Now that I'm working on a book I realized why that might be.

It's hard.
It's fucking hard.
It's really really fucking hard.

So I suppose that's why not everybody writes books.

You can learn a lot from about writing from taking courses, joining writers' groups, reading, going to retreats, etc. But the best way to learn to write is probably just to write. You will encounter new challenges in every corner. Most of my writing time is spent overcoming these challenges, which is, I confess, more fun that the actual writing itself. If I were equally or more passionate about other vocations, I probably would have quit writing long ago and pursued them instead. But I'm not.