What I want to be when I grow up – and more by donalee Moulton

 

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I was recently interviewed for an online publication. I thought I’d share the questions – and my answer with you.

What do you want to be when you grow up?  Has this changed at all when you were really, really young?

When I was young, I wanted to be a lawyer. When I landed in university – with law school around the corner – I discovered academia and research. Then I wanted to get my PhD and teach. But through all of this growing and evolving, I was writing. I wrote poetry and short stories. (I even got some published.) I belonged to and joined writers’ groups. I worked for the university newspaper. I published articles in magazines (and I got paid!).

When push came to shove – when it was time to head to TO for the PhD – I decided to get a job that required less academic knowledge and more writing skill. Just to see what this would be like, of course. I got my first communications job and waved goodbye to any other career.

Do you prefer writing by keyboard, do you prefer pen and paper, or do you have another favorite method?

I’m a keyboard person. It is the most efficient, and it is the primary way of writing and communicating professionally. It has become second nature. That said, I was never trained to use a keyboard, so I have my own unique typing process. And that’s just fine. Writing is not about speed but about thought.

What's the story of how you came to publish your first written work (fiction or non-fiction, it could be a work in progress as well)?

It’s probably a tie. At about the time I got my first article published in the university newspaper, I also won a university poetry contest and got my first poem published. Writing and publishing have gone hand in hand for me. That may be because I had some early publishing luck or that being a freelance journalist is contingent on being published. Or both.

What's one thing about being an author that most people don't understand?

Tough question. I think, for me, the answer is solitude. I live in a house with people who walk by, holler out, play noisy games on their phone, and ask me questions mid-sentence. Non-writers don’t always see what the big deal is. You just pick up where you left off. Writers know why this removal from the fray of life is essential.  

Do you do any writing exercises or other work to further develop your writing skills?

I write. This sounds simple. Many days it isn’t. Some call this dedication, others devotion. I’m not sure it matters what it’s called as long as it happens. I will never be a better writer, I will never write another book if I don’t sit down in front of my computer screen and begin to put words on the paper.