From Cheryl's Writing Crate
School vacation week is upon us once more! I've never really agreed with the February school break because it comes so quickly after my kid's 2-week holiday vacation, and with all the snow days we've had this winter, they've barely had any real traction to their school schedule since 2014 arrived.
However, since the state of RI hasn't taken my suggestion of combining the February and April school vacations to one week in March instead, it is indeed a week my kids have been home therefore challenging me (in a good way!) to spend more time with them, and less time on my writing.
You'd think I'd have this down by now, seeing that my oldest of 8 is now 20, but no matter how many school and summer vacations come my way, I still haven't quite gotten my writing and kid groove to mesh in harmony.
Yesterday we spent the day at The Providence Place Mall where we had lunch, shopped and then spent countless hours at a game place called Dave & Busters. While we were having lunch one of my son's asked me if I had any writing deadlines during vacation week. Astonished but thrilled that he took the time to ask, I opened the door for some Q & A about a writer's life. The conversation only lasted about 5 minutes, but I took that as a good sign that they are starting to understand the different components of a writer's life as compared to some of their friends' parents that work a 9 - 5 job and can then come home and turn off their work world and tune into their family zone.
Since I do work a 9 - 5 job, but also work just as many hours (if not more) as a writer, I thought I'd share one of my favorite posts 12 Signs That You are a Writer at Heart (and 3 signs you are not) posted on Hongkiat.com You can read the full article by clicking on this link, but today I'm going to share my favorite five!
A Childhood Passion
Did you enjoy writing when you were young? If you enjoyed writing when you were a child, it could be a sign that you were meant to write. Children know what they like and tend to know what they will do with their life even if they cannot express it.
Take the child who is always concerned with the well being of others becoming a doctor or nurse, or the child who loved to sing being active in the church choir all her life. There are numerous examples.
Reading Is (Forever) A Hobby
Do you absolutely love to read? Writers read. It is just a fact of life for us. That is not to say that everyone who reads can write, but the writer is drawn to books like ants to a picnic. If you love to write and were always an avid reader, well… need I say more?
No Glory? No Problem
Have you ever considered living like a pauper, and still want to write? Have you ever considered the prospect that if you committed yourself to writing full time, you might live in poverty and yet, you still want to write? If the writing is more appealing to you than living poorly is unappealing, you have the bug. Do you have the talent?
"Tell Us A Story"
Do children prefer you tell them a story of your own making rather than from a book? Kids can spot a writer a mile away. The very first time you tell a story, you may as well hang a storyteller sign that only children can read, around your neck.
What’s That Word?
When you come across a word you do not recognize, Do You NEED To find Its meaning? Writers are wordsmiths. We love to come across words we do not understand and more often than not, we can fathom the meaning by simply reading it in a sentence or formulating the point of the paragraph.
Still, we have to know for sure. We had several dictionaries and a thesaurus or two lying around the house. Does this sound like you?
How did you know that you were born to write?
