When I was little, I wanted to be either a writer or an architect. But I thought what I should be was…
A garbageman.
You see, I was a very conscientious child. I knew that the nice people in a team or group would be the ones to pick up the jobs or tasks that no one else wanted to do. This is what my family did; it’s how I was raised.
But I didn’t want to be a garbageman. My logic was that no-one else would want to do it, but someone had to, so it might as well be me. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized there are plenty of people out there who do want that job. Maybe it’s a family business. Maybe they like big trucks. There are a thousand reasons for choosing such a career.
I have two distinct college experiences, one as an 18 year old, and one as a married, non-traditional student. After graduating High School, I attended the University of Wyoming for two years, studying Architectural Engineering. One of the main reasons I dropped out was that I was over-committed, and I didn’t know how to cut back so I could have a manageable load. If a club I was involved in needed a volunteer for something, I was all in. I was the secretary of several clubs, and the president of another.
I did a lot of maturing in the six years in between that first college experience and my later return to academia. I was more comfortable being proactive about choosing my part in any team, although that position still remained “picking up the pieces” more often than not.
As a Mom, I’m no pushover. Yes, the buck stops with me, but I also delegate. A lot. A family is, after all, a team, and everyone pulls together.
Some may think of being a writer as a solitary path, but that’s far from the truth. Even while I’m churning out a rough draft, preferably in a locked room with no interruptions, I’m counting on my family to take care of a lot of the little daily details of life. When I stumble at a loss for words, I go to twitter and ask “What’s a word for ____?” I also count on twitter friends to write with me, prompting #1k1hr at any time of the day. I interact with #ROW80 friends for mutual encouragement, and to keep on track. I have Beta-readers and critique partners who more intimately participate in the growth of my novels.
Hopefully, soon I will add more specific professionals to my team. Or rather, from their point of view, I’ll be joining their team. There’s the possibility of gaining an agent, who will probably already have a number of author-clients. Then there will be a publisher, or publishing-house which is an entity comprised of several (or many) people. And there will be an editor, a professional who works for the publisher and helps me to revise my book until it is the best it can possibly be.
A nice thing happened to me this week… a friend in the writing world was answering some questions regarding LGBT for me, and she mentioned that her imprint would be very interested in seeing my Pangalactic Sojourners when they’re ready! So it looks like I’ll be tweaking my goals to put those books at the head of the list.
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AmyBeth Inverness 
Teamwork
A garbageman.
You see, I was a very conscientious child. I knew that the nice people in a team or group would be the ones to pick up the jobs or tasks that no one else wanted to do. This is what my family did; it’s how I was raised.
But I didn’t want to be a garbageman. My logic was that no-one else would want to do it, but someone had to, so it might as well be me. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized there are plenty of people out there who do want that job. Maybe it’s a family business. Maybe they like big trucks. There are a thousand reasons for choosing such a career.
I have two distinct college experiences, one as an 18 year old, and one as a married, non-traditional student. After graduating High School, I attended the University of Wyoming for two years, studying Architectural Engineering. One of the main reasons I dropped out was that I was over-committed, and I didn’t know how to cut back so I could have a manageable load. If a club I was involved in needed a volunteer for something, I was all in. I was the secretary of several clubs, and the president of another.
I did a lot of maturing in the six years in between that first college experience and my later return to academia. I was more comfortable being proactive about choosing my part in any team, although that position still remained “picking up the pieces” more often than not.
As a Mom, I’m no pushover. Yes, the buck stops with me, but I also delegate. A lot. A family is, after all, a team, and everyone pulls together.
Some may think of being a writer as a solitary path, but that’s far from the truth. Even while I’m churning out a rough draft, preferably in a locked room with no interruptions, I’m counting on my family to take care of a lot of the little daily details of life. When I stumble at a loss for words, I go to twitter and ask “What’s a word for ____?” I also count on twitter friends to write with me, prompting #1k1hr at any time of the day. I interact with #ROW80 friends for mutual encouragement, and to keep on track. I have Beta-readers and critique partners who more intimately participate in the growth of my novels.
Hopefully, soon I will add more specific professionals to my team. Or rather, from their point of view, I’ll be joining their team. There’s the possibility of gaining an agent, who will probably already have a number of author-clients. Then there will be a publisher, or publishing-house which is an entity comprised of several (or many) people. And there will be an editor, a professional who works for the publisher and helps me to revise my book until it is the best it can possibly be.
A nice thing happened to me this week… a friend in the writing world was answering some questions regarding LGBT for me, and she mentioned that her imprint would be very interested in seeing my Pangalactic Sojourners when they’re ready! So it looks like I’ll be tweaking my goals to put those books at the head of the list.
Like this:
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About AmyBeth Inverness
A writer by birth, a redhead by choice.