You know the story. Harry’s eleven years old when he gets his letter. A few days later, there’s a large man with an umbrella turning his cousin into a pig and saying, “Yer a wizard, Harry.”
That’s sort of like becoming a writer.
When you’re eleven—or ten, or six—you tell your first story. You write it down and show it to a parent, teacher, or friend. And they like it. Something fires up in your brain, and you know you’re going to be doing this for a long, long time.
Writing makes you feel whole and free in a way that nothing else does. It’s not an easy journey, mind you. There are plenty of hurdles. Sometimes the writing itself can feel nearly impossible. Sometimes friends and family won’t understand why you dedicate so much time and energy to a “hobby.” And sometimes the rejection letters will feel like evil creatures tormenting you.
Thankfully, writers stick together. You’ll have a slew of friends to help you along the way. Whether you know them in real life or online, your writer friends will comfort you when things aren’t going your way, and they’ll celebrate with you during your successes.
Writing isn’t for everybody. There are plenty of muggles who wish they could write, but the truth is that they never received a letter. They don’t feel the passion and the addiction that drives a writer onward. There’s something unique in writers that pushes us day after day to keep putting words to paper and telling our stories.
Every now and then, we get the greatest reward there is: A story takes flight and becomes something of its own. The characters become independent of us, and we watch them begin to live of their own accord. When that happens, we step back and realize we did something amazing.
We spend a lot of years writing, editing, and submitting. We push ourselves, fight those who would stop us, and support each other no matter what. There are plenty of tears and laughter in writers, and we wouldn’t trade a moment of our time after receiving that fateful letter. One day, all the hard work will pay off. We’ll reach those goals we’ve been striving for and know we made it happen. But although our lives change, some things remain consistent. We may graduate Hogwarts, but we will always be wizards.
I want more stuff like this in my inbox.
An occasional email for writers, by writers, about writing.No Fields Found.
Victoria Griffin
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