Is It Worth It? Can I Work It?

Reflection from 2021: 10 years have now passed since I’ve written this post. I can feel my own youthful energy coming off of this post. Now, life has changed for me a bit. First, I don’t think I could have approached writing with the same fierce determination as my degree. My degree had a definitive end in sight. I’ve now realized that writing isn’t much of a race as it is a marathon. It’s an art form taking shape and new forms as time goes on. Not to mention, writing takes patience and it can’t be hurried. My life has been changed by my relationship with God, which will always come first. Reading this post, makes me smile, though especially knowing it would take nearly 10 years before I had a short story get published. Another funny thing is I don’t even like that song anymore. It’s amazing how things change, huh?

Okay, that may not be the connotation that Missy Elliot intended, but a recent blog post by J Scott Savage’s blog Find Your Magic got me thinking about the “work” aspect of writing and publishing.  In his blog post, he talked about the idea of deserving success and what it really means to achieve your dreams. He talked about being willing to work, to overcome the failures, and the rejections, and to have patience. This is when you achieve your dreams; “deserving” has nothing to do with it, he concludes.

Reading this post, really struck a chord with me. Something I have been thinking a lot about lately.  You see, I’ve recently graduated from college, and if my mom were standing behind me while I typed, she would probably say, “Colee, you’ve just graduated from college with a 3.91 GPA, Summa Cum Laude. Not only that you are looking for work and being out of work is one of the most stressful periods of time in anyone’s life. Do you ever give yourself a break?”

My simple answer is no. I am the type of person who believes that if it isn’t I am working on than it won’t happen.

Let me tell you this, when I was in college it was work.

The thing that was “work” though wasn’t what you would expect. It wasn’t the classes. It was the maneuvering I did to fit in my work schedule with my classes, the advisors I saw to bend the rules for me to fit in a class, the financial aid I had to practically beg for, the public transportation (and its people) that I had to deal with, and so much more. All of that seemed to serve as a hurdle I had to overcome in order to achieve my dream.

And, despite all of the barriers, I achieved my dream of getting my college degree. I walked across the stage and waved to my family sitting in the stands cheering me on. 

And you know what?

I was willing to work for it. I gave up all of myself to pursue my degree. I gave up my time. My energy. My distractions. My devotion. I promised to complete my goal.  And to stay with it. And to do give it my all.

It was everything to me to achieve my dream.

And I did it.

And yes, it was work. And it was worth it.

Now I face the same type of dedication with writing. The same time is required of me. The same devotion. The same promise. Can I do it?  Is it worth it? Can I “work it”?

You see, I have wanted to publish for as long as I could remember. I remember at the age of 10 I was getting books from the library about how to write. I remember wanting to be able to find my own book in the library catalog and see my books on the library waiting list. It was everything to me then, and it still is today. So, I think the answer to those questions is yes.

My inspiration to write today comes from the dedication and the promise I make to myself to become a published writer.  I am writing today because I know the road to success isn’t easy, no matter how hard you work. Or think you deserve it. Unfortunately, it may not happen for you very timely. Yet, it’s important to keep that promise. I made that promise to myself in pursuing my degree. I make it today about writing. And I never let people down, most importantly myself.  So, readers and writers, make that promise today. Whether it’s about your writing dream or something else.

Just ask yourself, “Do you feel lucky, punk? Well do ya?”

Okay, no, not what I was going to say. Sorry, I couldn’t help it.  But seriously, ask yourself, “Is it worth it? Can you work it?”

Yeah? Alright, well remember what Missy Elliot says, “Ain’t no shame [people] do your thang, just make sure you ahead of the game.”

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