Welcome to the Wattpad Block Party - Summer Edition III!
Round SIX of this popular event is coming your way the entire month of August 2017 and it's going to be epic! The invites have started to roll out and everyone from your all time favorite Wa...
Life with a chronic illness, whether mental or physical, can be difficult, particularly when you are trying to pursue your dream of being a full-time author. It's certainly set me back on multiple occasions, and this year in particular has been hard.
But as I've been crawling back up out of that abyss, I've realized that there are a few things that I wish I had known before I started on this path. I hope that they'll help you.
Know That This Isn't the End of You
The first and most important thing, particularly immediately after diagnosis or after symptoms worsen, is to know that this isn't the end of you or of all your dreams. Please note I didn't say all your dreams can still come true.
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The brutal reality is that for some of us, not all dreams can come true. I've had to watch several of mine shrivel into dry carcasses and blow away in the wind. And it hurts. Every time.
But that doesn't mean all of your dreams will die or that this is the end of you. You still have value, and you still matter. The stories you have to tell still matter, and they need to be told. So long as you keep trying, this is not the end.
Write As Regularly As You Can
It is not necessary to write every day to be a good writer, but it is easier to become a good writer if you write every day. So if you can write every day, then I encourage you to do so.
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But if you can't, then don't beat yourself up about it. Everyone has good days and bad days. For some people, bad days mean nonwriting days. For some, bad days mean slower writing days.
In this regard, neither is wrong. You are not a failure in either case.
Now, I will add this. If you make your writing more of a discipline, you may find that it is easier to do when struggling with your symptoms or bad days. With the exception of a bad migraine day, I can still often get between 1000 and 3000 words even on a rough health day because I have made such a habit ofit. The writing is not always good. But for me writing helps me to cope.
Additionally, as you make writing something of a discipline, it can help to pull you into that "zone" where you are focused on the story rather than your pain.
