Be Writing

I came across this quote by William Faulkner yesterday…

“Don’t be a ‘writer.’ Be writing.”

For a long time, I have had the dream of being a writer. I speak, teach & lead often but it is almost always through the spoken word. Yes…I write the words I speak but they are words that are often shared in a single space, in a single moment in time, with a single group of people.

Rarely have I written words that remain…words that remain beyond a physical venue, beyond a moment in time, beyond the scope of the audience sitting in the room with me.

There is something frighteningly vulnerable about putting your words out there for others to read. You never know who is going to read them.

Will they agree with you? Some may, many won’t.

Will they understand your purpose in writing? Maybe, maybe not.

And yet…I am compelled to write. I am compelled to “put ink to paper” and share what is stirring in my heart, mind & soul. My words may lack substance at times while at others times they may be deep & profound. At times, my words may be simplistic while at other times they may be deemed complex. My words may be seen as too narrow or too broad in their scope.

And yet…I am compelled to write.

My words may never be read by anyone beyond close family & friends. I may never gain an audience at all.

And yet…I am compelled to write. So write I will.