Strange Day

I haven’t been writing anything new, so the writing challenge is on hold - sort of - until I finish with edits. I had a strange day and haven’t even started working on my book yet today. See, I had to take a spur of the moment train ride into Manhattan for meetings related to my “real” job, which ain’t writing.

I’m at a sort of cross-roads in my career. I spent a lot of time climbing the corporate ladder, got pretty high too, but I decided to chuck it all and try my hand at writing a few short years ago. The writing thing has been going reasonably well, but now I’m faced with a tough decision: Do I continue writing or do I accept a really great job offer at the top of my former profession?

The enticements are many. I didn’t quite realize until I went into the city today how much I missed the atmosphere and the politeness of that world. I haven’t worn any of my suits in a long time. It was nice to brush off the lapels and my commuting shoes (I have great shoes that not only look good, but can be walked in for considerable distances on city streets). It was nice to sit comfortably with colleagues who understood my background, my education, my experience, etc. It was nice to be taken seriously by powerful people (in their realm) and not feel like a newbie or a struggling author for a little while.

For a little while today, I was in my element - comfortable surroundings where what I said had weight. When I decided to chuck that career and start seeking publication for my writing, I gave that up. For the past few years I’ve been starting all over at the bottom - a newbie who has little credibility, no formal education in English or creative writing, and no big contract with a big publisher to lend me countenance. No, I’ve been a struggling writer with an up-and-coming publisher. I’ve been a new kid on the block, needing to prove myself everywhere I go and every time I speak.

That’s way different from what I was used to, but I was happy to deal with it if it meant I could do what I love… write. But that other world is really, really tempting.

So I have a lot of thinking to do. Today was a strange day - in some ways comforting to return to my old world, and in some ways disturbing to realize where I was and where I am now.

In unrelated news: The space shuttle docks with the ISS tomorrow, so don’t forget to tune into NASA TV if you want to see it. I’ll be watching, that’s for sure!