A few years ago, I was sitting with a friend looking at the results of a "personal values" quiz.
"It seems you are drawn to values reflecting independence, creativity, and freedom.
It suggests that you need a creative outlet and you share the values of an artist," my friend said.
I shook my head.
"I'm not an artist.
" Sound familiar? "But you're a writer," my friend said.
I shook my head again and pushed the test back at her.
"I'm more of a...
craftsperson.
I'm not an artist.
" She leaned forward and said the words that made all the difference in my life.
"Oh!" she said.
"You think artists are special people" Until then, I did not realize I carried around this misconception of artists or even that the word "artist" made me cringe.
Maybe the word has a different effect on you.
Perhaps it inflates you.
Maybe you only apply that word to someone who wears only black and starves in Paris.
I don't know.
What I do know is that you need to understand your own attitude so, when it turns up (and it will) you can recognize it for what it is, resistance.
If you are serious about writing your first draft or your first novel, you are about to take on something that requires massive personal commitment.
Be sure the ground you are standing on is stable.
Questions to Ask Yourself Do you think artists are special people? Do you believe everyone has the right to write? Are you, on some level, looking for external permission to write? Once you are ready, the tools are waiting!