So What Do You Do For A Living? Um... I write.

Do you ever have those moments when you wish you could disappear?  I have them all the time.  One of those moments for me is always when I'm being introduced to somebody new.  The reason for this is that I know there are one of two things that are going to happen.  One, the person introducing me will say, 'this is Mireille.  She's the author' or two, they won't throw that in and the person I'm meeting will eventually ask what it is I do for a living.  'So, Mireille, what do you do?'.  'I'm a stay at home mom… and I write'. 'Oh? What do you write?'.  'I write stories'.  'Like, for magazines?'.  'No, I write novels'.  'Oh! You're an author!'. And I cringe.  'I guess so.  I think I'm more of a writer.'  Then comes the questions about my publisher and how it all happened and, well, if you're one of my writer friends, you know the process. 

Now don't get me wrong… I don't mind telling people about how I became published or what my books are about.  I mean, that's how word gets around, right? My main issue is that even though book three of my trilogy is now in the process of going to print, I just don't think of myself as an author.  I also don't think of myself as a dog groomer even though I have a lovely certificate and four years of doing it behind me. 

Since joining Twitter, I've become close to many writer/author/bloggers.  If you ask them what they do, the response is mixed.  Some of them are quick to say they are authors.  Whether they are indie or traditional, it makes no difference.  The response is mixed.  It makes me wonder…. I, myself, am traditonally published.  Some of my friends are self publishers.  (Here, I have to add that just because someone is self pusblished does not make them any less of an author/writer.) 

When I tell people that I am a published author, their first question is, 'you self published?'.  They seem disinterested and standoffish.  As soon as I tell them that I have a publisher, they seem more interested.  Why is that?  Why do people assume that self published authors are any less talented than a traditionally published one.  I was lucky and found a publisher who thought I was good enough to sign a contract with.  Here's a bit of information you might not have known… JK Rowling submitted her first Harry Potter manuscript to twelve different publishing houses, all of which turned her down… Does anyone out there have the guts to tell me she isn't a fantastic writer?  (forget the movies even though they were great, just think of the books)  Just because a publishing agent does not pick you up, does not mean you are not a brilliant writer.

I think this is where my reluctance comes from when people ask me what I do for a living.   I write.  I am an author, but not because I have a publisher.  When I talk to people, I don't want to filed under that published, self published standard.  I write because I love to write; I love to get lost in my own little world and I know that no matter how they release their books, every other writer out there feels the same way.  That's why we do it.  That's why you, and I, love to read. 

I've read plenty of books that were published traditionally that I couldn't finish for various reasons.  I've read countless books by self published authors that have left me wanting more.

So what do I do for a living?  I write.  That's it.  I make up worlds and create characters and let the stories write themselves.  Am I an author? I suppose.  But really and honestly, I'd rather just be a writer.  :)

Stay safe,

:)  Mireille