I just finished reading Chris Guillebeau’s free e-manifesto ’279 Days to Overnight Success’. It’s filled with common sense, which is something I can’t seem to process well – too bad for me.
Then I turned to pg. 27, which has a quote from famed Japanese writer Haruki Murakami. And a lightbulb not only went off in my head…it smashed itself like a punk beer bottle on my thick-ass skull.
my thick-ass skull.
Oh, hello…I like this definition of “A Writer’s Life”
Fo me, the wow-ee part of the pg. 27 quote:
I placed the highest priority on the sort of life that lets me focus on writing…I felt that the indispensible relationship I should build in my life was not with a specific person, but with an unspecified number of readers
– Haruki Murakami, “What I Talk About When I Talk About Running” (as quoted in Chris Guillebeau’s ’279 Days to Overnight Success’)Din
g ding ding!
…she cut off their tail with a carving knife…
I placed the highest priority on the sort of life that lets me focus on writing…
One of the strangest part of life is that we live so unconsciously. We don’t see the obvious. Life is a book we can’t read because we hold the pages too close to our eyeballs.
I’ve always had this arrogant belief that I’m more self-aware than the average person. Which, of course, is UTTER BULLSHIT! Most of the time, I’m as blind as those Three Mice. Squeak , squeak. And guess what happened to their tails?
(Note to self: there is a world of difference between self-aware vs. self-analytical.)
Until I read the above quote, I didn’t realize just how LOW I’ve prioritized writing. Looking around my work cubicle, the realization is sobering: my priority is earning a paycheck.
I’ve unconsciously bought into the idea of keeping a “real” job, and visiting my writing when I can. The job is the wife, the writing is the mistress. No wonder I’m struggling to write – my inner and outer worlds don’t mesh.
nd outer worlds don’t mesh.
But before I bash the Cubicle Nation..
Two years ago, I arrived back in America from an expatriate assignment in Tokyo. And I promised myself, “no more corporate work. I’m gonna be a writer.”
I’ve sort of held that promise – but I’ve sort of fudged it, too.
My current day job is a long-term temp position that pays hourly. Compared to my previous position in Tokyo, it’s 3 steps down in terms of pay and responsibility.
There is a certain freedom (I can take off whenever), but that freedom comes with a price (I don’t get paid. Ouch).
But I see it as a necessary transition.
Some people, like Steve Pavlina, say, “quit your job and follow your passion.” Ugh, no offense to his hardcore fans, but he’s so fucking annoying! Hello, his wife was working a day job while he was pursuing his passion.
What happens if you don’t have a spouse who will work a soul-crushing job for years while you get your pet project off the ground?
I don’t even have a boyfriend – who is going to ensure I have a roof over my head? My mom? You? The government?
nment?
A woman should be barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen
I felt that the indispensible relationship I should build in my life was not with a specific person, but with an unspecified number of readers
Maybe this is the curse of being a woman – all you see around you are other women, who sacrifice their lives for romantic partners, for L-O-V-E, for THE ONE.
I can’t be the only woman who loses herself in a man. Women, as a gender, are notorious for nesting way too soon, of ditching ‘hos for ‘bros.
How can one person possibly fulfill you? It’s impossible.
And if you’re a bottomless pit for affection and emotional validation (i.e. yours truly), then the “twooo wuv” theory is totally useless. I need and want that intense emotion 24/7.
Confession: some of my happiest moments were in my writing classes, when people gushed over my work. I felt…seen. My gender, my looks, my ability/inability to give the pussy faded to the background.
Just thinking about the full, peaceful feeling while being praised for my words – I am getting heart pangs. That’s what I want.
at I want.
What is the fundamental question?
What can I do to make writing the foundation of my life?
Maybe this blog is the first step. Keeping a writing schedule, as Chris Guillebeau suggests in his e-manifesto (have you downloaded it yet?)
Write blog posts 2-3 times a week.
Just shoot the shit.
Be as neurotic as need be.
And because this is non-fiction writing, I don’t give a shit how sloppy it is. I mean, I’m sure I’ll look back at these beginning posts in a year and think, “jesus, I sucked!”
But I’ll deal with the inner critic then.
Right now, I’ll just assume I’m spittin’ some hot ass fire.