So, I’m at lunch today with a very dear friend whom, I’ve recently discovered, is a writer. Now, we’ve been friends forever, and we only just found out we both have always wanted to be writers. Yeah, we were scratching our heads, too. We’re sitting there and I tell her I’m working on an upper middle grade post apocalyptic gaslight mystery. I take a sip of tea. Let the brilliance of it all sink in. Nope, she’s hopelessly lost, but that’s okay. It’s a work in progress. Then she tells me about one of the stories she is working on. I sit and listen. She casually mentions this aspect and that aspect of the story. Goose bumps start to appear on my forearms. Still I listen. She talks about this twist and that one. The goose bumps spread like wildfire. I am enthralled. Absolutely, unequivocally enthralled. So, I sit there all mesmerized and probably looking more than a little silly, and when she is finished, I tell her . . . no, I BEG her, to write that story. It’s one of those jewels, one of those diamonds in the rough that can literally make a career. I’m so fascinated by this story, I can’t stop thinking about it all day. It’s touching and haunting and beautifully high concept. LOL. It’s times like this that I love being a writer for reasons other than writing. I love brainstorming, connecting, supporting, networking, the camaraderie of writers and the enthusiasm of readers. All the “other” stuff that goes along with writing. If you are thinking about making writing your career, just know that creating that masterpiece is only about one-fourth of what you actually do on a day-to-day basis. There are revisions, page-proofs, blurbs, blogs, interviews, giveaways, conferences, chapter meetings, social networking and an endless supply of emails full of wants an demands. Mostly on your time. But it all goes hand in hand and it can be fun or it can make you miserable. The trick is to do what you can when you can. If you can’t get on Facebook or tweet your latest accomplishment, so be it. The book comes first. Remember that, and you’ll be fine. (Unfortunately, I don’t always remember either, but if I say that with enough authority, I’m sure people will believe I have my act together. Did you know there is a program out there that actually disables your Internet for your specified amount of time? Yeah, I use it often.)