“I am a writer.” It took me decades to admit this publicly. For years I had written in secret, filling up stark white notebooks and leather-bound journals with my words, short stories, and poems. I had received awards for my writing as a child and was placed in gifted writing programs in high school. When it came time to choose a major for college, I went with my other passion: human behavior and science. I set upon a course that would lead to a career in psychiatry; a path where story and humanity intersect. What happened along the road that led me to a business career is a story for another day… The important point is that I re-discovered my voice as an adult and took up my pen once again.
Words poured out of me like a geyser and once again I began to fill up .doc files on my pc, having traded my pen for a keyboard. I entered into an enriching relationship with a local feminist writing academy and it was here that I could stand up and say, “My name is Michelle and I’m a writer.” I began the process of setting aside my love for the short story format and embarked upon writing a novel. Halfway through the story, I became enamored with an emerging industry that was changing the world and turned my focus into building a social media marketing consulting firm. I believe that social media is the quintessential conduit for bringing story, human behavior, and science (analytics) together. I had discovered my passion, but in the process of helping companies share their brand voice, their stories, I lost the time to work on my own.
I truly believe in Karma and the universe putting people and experiences in our paths for a reason. I recently had lunch with an amazing writer whom I first met via Twitter. We shared our stories and she encouraged me to find the time to write. Just a few days later I received an email from a writer that I do not know (not sure how I got on her mailing list) sharing a heart-felt and inspirational post. At the bottom of the post was a message about the difficulty in finding the time to write with a link to a book she had just written on the subject. Her words chilled me and inspired the post you are now reading. Here’s what she said,
“It’s not an easy thing to take time to write. The world says that writing doesn’t matter much. Our families and jobs need us. We have to make money. The ugly voices in our head tell us we’re not good enough. There are a ton of reasons why we choose to not write. . . and yet, if we are writers, we must find a way to the page. Over and over again.”
So once again I am coming out of the closet and claiming my title. Thank you universe for sending me people and stories that inspire and move me to action.
Michelle Beckham's Blog 