Goals.  Everyone has them to some extent, but how many do we really reach?  I know I have a few for my writing and I’m trying to meet those goals everyday…or almost everyday.  A full novel?  Started.  A short story collection?  The pieces are being assembled now.  Novella?  Done that, but I’m working on another two right now.  You guys and gals out there reading this?  The fact I’ve been able to show you my work (and I hope you enjoyed it) is very humbling.  A few years ago, I started out with the goal of getting something, anything published and I met that goal many times over.

Is the writing the hardest part?  No sir, it is the juggling.

I’m not a very coordinated guy and it doesn’t matter how many times I’ve thrown those brightly colored balls in the air, I always seem to drop them.  For some reason, if given the choice to walk or chew gum, I couldn’t take both.  Life is like that as a writer.  You really want to have your cake and eat it too.  While it would be nice to make enough from writing to live off of, it is not the norm in genre writing.  If you get into this field to become filthy rich, you made a most unwise decision.

Did I choose it to be rich?  No, I started doing this to tell the stories churning deep within the dark recesses of my mind.  Have I made a lot of money?  No.  Have you made any money?  A little bit here and there, like Dollar Menu money.  Not full Value Meal cash, but a couple of dollar burgers to celebrate cash.

This is where this is going, if I can’t make a ton of green doing it, then why do it?  I love it.  What will I do for that love?  I work full-time, I write when I get home, and still try to be a visible member of our household.  That my friends can be a lot of balls getting tossed in the air all at once.  Do some hit the ground?  Of course they do, but I pick them right back up and put them in the air again.

If it is hard to juggle and the money isn’t there, why bother?  Well, I’ll be gentle about it.  Writing is a building process.  Stephen King didn’t start right of the gate with Carrie, he sold short stories to men’s magazines and any other place that would take them.  These are the building blocks that we build our foundation on.  When I get my foundation built, I want it to be solid enough where I can work part-time and be able to make up the difference with my words.

Am I a juggler?  Yes, and while I wouldn’t mind having fewer balls to keep track off, I’d be happy writing even if I had to remain as the juggler.

Goodnight…