This quote sums up exactly how I feel about writing. I feel vulnerable every time I publish a post. It’s much easier now than when I started but I still have to take a deep breath before I click the “Publish” button.

It is a strange concept that I’m not quite used to yet. There are people reading my posts who I don’t speak to on a regular basis. They know what’s going on with me but I have no idea what’s going on with them. In fact, there are people reading my posts who I don’t even know!

As I have been enjoying writing, I decided to take a course (something I haven’t done in about 15 years!) I found a Travel Writing Course online. Travel. Writing. I think I might like this.

My last writing course was Grade 4 Creative Writing so I had no idea what to expect. My first assignment was due last week. I am hard on myself and I don’t take criticism very well (I’m working on it). So before I submitted the assignment I told myself that this course was just for fun. I know nothing about writing really, so I should expect constructive feedback. The mark doesn’t matter. This is what I told myself in preparation for a really bad mark and the instructor laughing at me.

I was very pleasantly surprised when I got my mark for the first assignment. 83! There were a lot of comments, which I am very appreciative for. I’m growing, I now want to know how to do better rather than being defensive. Big win!

I did a planning session with my coach a couple of years ago. I remember saying out loud, which in itself scared me, that I wanted to write. I had no idea what that meant. What was I going to write, where was I going to write? I had never really thought about it, but those words came out of my mouth “I want to write”. It was on the whiteboard and he circled it. He said – I like this. I didn’t take any action on this from the planning session. But a couple of years later, here we are. Now, not only am I on blog post #25 but I am also learning the ins and outs of travel writing. (And with one of the highest marks I’ve ever received…I wasn’t a very good student!)

I haven’t received a call from Travel + Leisure yet, but I am only on the first assignment!

What have you been wanting to do? What crazy idea do you have that you’ve been sitting on? Go out and do it!

My nephew was asked recently what he thought about the idea of going to camp for 9 days this summer. His response “Well, I might not like it. But I might like it so why not try?” Pretty smart for an 8 year old.

You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you have something to say ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald