On my way to work this morning I was listening to talk
radio, as I normally do. I often switch back and forth between a couple of
stations when commercials come on. Well, today as I was switching, I came
across and interview with author Anne Rice. Now I'm not a particularly big fan
of Ms. Rice, but due to some people close to me I know some of her work. She
actually wasn't even talking about her latest work at this point, she was just
talking about writing in general. She was taking calls and this one individual
was telling her he was an aspiring writer and asked her if she had any advice
for him or people like himself. To me, her answer was the best part of my ride
into work. As she was speaking I was wishing I was recording her words. The
advice she gave this guy was nothing new, but the conviction in her voice is
what got my attention. Now before I try to impart her words of wisdom, let me
say that I have heard plenty of celebrities say about the same thing, but with
the halfhearted sound of a scripted response. Ms. Rice has been at her
craft for about 40 years and very well could have given this response as I am
sure she has done hundreds of times before this call. The thing is, she gave it
with an earnest voice. As if she was just getting to the top herself for the
first time she said what every person with a dream has always needed to hear at
some point or another. To paraphrase her words, she basically said that if you are going to be a writer then you should write. Don't worry about what other people think, or say, just write. I say that is a universal message for any dream you may have. No matter what the rest of the world may say, follow your dreams. I know that I haven't written in this blog for a long time, but this is one of the things I particularly enjoy. It is one of the things I should be doing on a regular basis, but I don't. I have been thinking about many of the topics that have come and gone to write about, but haven't. The reason is, because I have thought about what people would think about what I was saying. Well, that's no way to be, and so I guess one day soon, I'll be pissing folks off.
