This week, Christina Katz discusses commitment and how it actually frees writers to make choices that will further their careers.
I know that I have struggled in the past to be committed to this career choice. And I spent a lot of my uncommitted time feeling guilty because I wasn’t writing. Turns out that guilt is not the best motivator for me. I just retreat farther and farther from the thing making me guilty, which means I ended up not writing at all for four months. And I didn’t allow myself to do anything fun, because I was supposed to be writing, not having fun. So I didn’t even get to enjoy it.
But I’m back on the wagon now.
I re-committed to my fiction writing by taking a short story class earlier this year. That class ended with a short story that is in consideration by seven literary journals. (Yes, I believe in simultaneous submission, and I sought out journals that were respected, printed my genre, and allowed simultaneous submissions. As soon as it is accepted by one, I will alert the others so they do not waste their time reviewing it further. That’s just common courtesy.)
The course I took is now available as a self-study course. I recommend it, but I also advise you to make sure you keep up with the writing habits Geoff and Steve teach. The class will only help you if you open it, use it, and stay on track–you know, commit.
I re-committed to my non-fiction writing by signing up for Katz’s Pitching Practice class, which I am halfway through. Three weeks in, and I already feel more confident writing query letters, and I think I have come up with some solid ideas I can sell. Pitching Practice doesn’t come up as often as Katz’s other classes, so when you see it, sign up.
What does commitment mean to you as a writer? What have you done to commit to writing as a career and a lifestyle?
