Thank you, I love all of this!

Less than a month ago, I finally decided to do this very thing- although I would not have been able to explain it clearly at all! It was the first time in my life that I put a number on anything, and that number was five years- I would commit five years to actively learning and practicing this skill. (Serendipitous moments are fun, aren't they?)

I've been a writer since I can remember, but I've never gone after it. When I told my SO of my revelation (yes, it was), his fear of my failure fueled my own less than it had before. Which makes me wonder- maybe an offshoot of that fear is because I've been led to believe it was not really possible to succeed in this field?

Writing is still largely believed to be a mysterious thing where I come from ("starving artist, starving writer, same thing" is a common refrain)

The people around me, from community to close friends and family, well-intentioned or not, give me looks of incredulity if I mention it.

They don't quite understand that it's not about the money, it's about how I want to spend my time now. The cool thing is that when I fully committed to doing this thing, other people's judgement mattered less.

Now, for instance, when my SO's dad asks me what I did that day, and I tell him oh, a lot of reading, writing, maybe a YouTube binge or podcast marathon, his disappointed reaction doesn't bother me the way it used to. And I think it's because I'm not looking to make money from my writing at this time. But it is a skill I want to acquire so that one day, it can become a source of income for me.

Jeez, did I just finally figure something else out? (I'm particularly thick-skulled, apparently) Having a long-game with a set of skills that no one can take away from you is a powerful thing indeed!