Perspective

Bissett Lake Park, Dartmouth, NS (2024) | Photo Credit: Kamran Moriah

10 years ago, I really wanted to get published. And I completely immersed myself in the aspiring-author world of Goodreads, NaNoWriMo and a handful of critique groups. Of the twenty-four novels I started writing between the years of 2009 and 2014, I completed eleven and eventually self-published seven. 

As stressful as writing a novel can be, I also recall the bliss I experienced as I imagined, created and shared my work with critique partners, potential agents and eventually the public. I wish I'd been able to do it forever. 

But I had responsibilities back then that couldn't be ignored, so eventually I had to put down my pen, abandon those fictional worlds and focus on reality. 

Now that I have the time to explore again, and as I bumble around a decade later trying to figure out where to start, I realize how much my perspective and motivations have changed. 

I write because I love it. Because I have the time to dedicate to it. And because there exists a dream not yet fulfilled. 

Back in 2012, when I wrote my first novel featuring a Black witch as a main character, I wish I'd had the perspective I do now. I wish I'd been able to focus more energy on developing my craft and less on making ends meet. Maybe then, I'd never have given up. 

Now that things have changed so drastically, I'm not sure I ever will. 

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