“You should write a book”

I love to read.  I read almost anything, from newspapers to magazines, novels to biographies, cereal boxes to blogs.  I read fast and I read a lot.

I have always thought about writing.  I have started this blog as a way to release some of my need to write.  I have kept a journal off and on. Currently I have one that I plan to give to my grandchildren, with family stories and daily happenings.  I have written a few essays, never more than a few pages.  I write for my work.  This is specific to my profession, but this writing often involves telling other people’s stories to make a point.

My sister Kathleen often told me “You should write a book”. It has been in the back of my mind for some time now.  Last fall, I looked into writing classes at a very well-respected place.  It didn’t work out for my work schedule ( apparently aspiring writers don’t have day jobs). 

Those words from my sister have come back to me several times over the past week.  I have many stories in my life.  My uncle’s life was the stuff of a good novel.  My Irish Catholic grandfather and my English Methodist grandmother were quite the characters-there must be at least a short story there. The people that I work with have life stories which would be suspect if written as non fiction.  I have had some basic ideas for children’s stories from my children’s and grandchildren’s lives.  Last week, though, I tried to write something for my sister’s memorial service, and the words just wouldn’t come together.  It is the first time that has happened.   I had it written in my head, but it just didn’t make it to the paper.  Maybe at some point, I will be able to finish that. 

The past few days, I have been seriously considering the prospect of writing more formally.  There must be a class that I can work into a busy schedule.  That is my goal for the weekend.  I will take the very first steps to write.  Whether or not it will end up as a book,  I don’t know, but it is a step toward something.     I think that will count as following  my sister’s advice.

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