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One of
biggest stumbling blocks for a writer is "fear." Don't be afraid to send your work out. People will compliment you and criticize you. In all cases, take
feedback, positive or negative, graciously!
--- I write stuff, too. ---
When I was young, I wrote on
bathroom stalls in Catholic elementary school. I created some spectacular poetry! When Sister Butch, of
Order of
Most Vicious Blood, caught me, that was
end of my career, and nearly my life. Everybody can write, but not everybody can be a writer.
Being a writer is not just putting words on
paper. It involves research, organization, thought, creative wordplay, and
ability to sit still long enough to put it all together.
This short article is a reasonable example. It started out in my head as "Why write?" and evolved based on some thought. Writing is
evolution of ideas into something between fact and fiction. It's
evolution of presentation into something coherent to
largest audience. It's a fantasy that turns into a reality once you figure out what it is that you're trying to say!
--- And, what made you write? ---
It wasn't some miracle or premonition. Honestly. Someone made me madder than a hornet. To make a long story short, I designed and developed an idea for a product that would save a previous employer a lot money. I did all of
financial work, software engineering, implementation, and testing to prove
idea.
During my presentation,
senior engineers scoffed at
idea. So I took my notes, wrote a manuscript, and submitted it to various publishers. A month later, a publisher picked up
manuscript and we signed a contract to publish it. It all took off from there! That's it!
There are a million reasons to write, but I found later that you don't need a reason if you love it. It takes just one situation to get you started into
addictive world of writing! But, all you really have to do is ...
--- Just write! ---
I don't write on bathroom walls anymore because it's too hard for our housekeeper to keep up with
work. But, I do carry around a palmtop just in case I get an idea! For now ... just write everything you can as often as possible. Once you get
hang of it, writing becomes an addiction. Write because you can take an idea and tell it to
rest of
world. Write because your wife has another headache. Write because you can make money. Write so that
next time someone asks what you do, you can say, "I'm a writer!"

Edward B. Toupin is a freelance consultant, writer, and published author living in Las Vegas with his singer/actress wife. He currently handles technical writing tasks for various companies in New York, Chicago, and Denver as well as imagineers and markets feature-length screenplays.