Faith, stubbornness, determination, will

Anne: more on writing. I realize there is a thread that runs through all of my shared reflections on being a writer. I speak of individual faith, stubbornness, determination, will. That's because for me it has been a lonely process, and a journey of turning my back on people who told me over and over again that I would never fulfill my dreams. It has been a lonely and a rebellious path.

I was also keenly aware of my own "weirdness" from the start — that my novels broke rules, that I demanded attention for vampires waxing philosophical in the moonlight, and I demanded the same respect for protagonists in historical settings as other authors demanded for characters in their contemporary fiction. I busted genres. I refused to accept rules. 

But I respect that writers today live in a different world. Organizations of gay writers, women writers, science fiction writers, mystery writers, or thriller writers exist in which authors find community and support. I respect that writers today find it productive to offer samplings of their work online, and these writers seem fully prepared for the random responses they receive. It is a great time to be a writer. And I marvel at the variety and the ingenuity of the writers of today.

I am still a loner and always will be; but I have no complaints. I offer my experience because it is all I can offer, really. But it is not a model of what a writer's life has to be. In this profession, we write the rules and we break the rules as we choose. It is up to us to make ourselves into the writers of our dreams.