A New Direction: Work Style Leads Writing

This past week has been exceptionally busy. I've switched gears again as far as writing is concerned and I've been promoting my fledgling business Mommy Writing. The second I'll leave up for discussion in other spaces. Instead I'll focus on the somewhat unexpected writing decision I made.

I've been struggling in the past 7 months over where I should direct my energies. At first I thought I would be able to focus on fiction relatively easily while being a new mom. Then I discovered I needed to be able to work uninterrupted on fiction. It's the kind of work habit that doesn't lend itself to life with a baby, let alone a newborn.

Then I turned my attentions to short stories. This works pretty well, but the problem is it's very difficult to do regular research for submissions and keep track of the whole process when your memory is compromised by hormones and sleep deprivation.

Finally I came back around to non-fiction. I had started several different non-fiction pieces last year that I just couldn't bring myself to finish for one reason or another. In fact, the only non-fiction piece I have EVER finished was the curriculum I wrote for my masters thesis project, and that remains unpublished due to some difficulties in formatting (and a lack of desire regarding promotion).

You may be wondering what drew me back to non-fiction considering the above. Well non-fiction doesn't require me to work in a huge chunk. I can easily put it down and pick it back up again, unlike a novel. The piece I'm working on is actually based on an essay/short story I wrote for submission and was never published. It ties together several things that came up in the self-inventory I did a week ago.

I'm writing about being a pastor's kid - actually a double pastor's kid. So far it's irreverant, frank, and at times quite revealing. It's not an examination of theology or an academic study of American religion. It's my perspective on growing up with a unique position in a political and religious family. Some people will probably get upset reading it. Others may cheer (or at least I hope so) and many will be surprised.

I'm surprised I fell into ths project, but there it is. This last half year has been full of surprises. I just hope we all enjoy the results.