Writing for pleasure

This is me easing my way back into writing. Did you know I was a writer?

It’s been a dozen years since I last had a byline. I left journalism behind when the birth of my first son prompted me to trade in my press badge and notebooks for pampers and nap times.

I enjoyed my job, but I ached at the thought of leaving my 3-month-old, and thankfully not doing so was a choice our young family could afford to make.

My early months of motherhood were sprinkled with some freelance writing, but by the time our second son was born three years later, I’d lost myself in the emotional and mental vacuum of parenting littles. I needed something more. The void has been filled by Usborne Books & More, where my love of all things literature turned into almost 10 years empowering women while promoting children’s literacy.

But I was a writer.

My habit of putting pen to paper began with me filling journals in elementary school. Then in middle school I fancied myself a fiction writer. By the time I headed off to The University of Montana, I decided to weave my love of written words with my knack for nosy. Hello J-School. Go Griz!

My brief journalism career was spent at The Associated Press’ Seattle bureau, with a quick few months in Raleigh. I confess, my confidence took a beating in AP’s rapid fire training ground, but I learned so much and met amazing people, both in the office and out.

More recently, I’ve realized how much I love writing for pleasure. I enjoy storytelling. I crave the challenge of crafting a just-right phrase to evoke emotions and prompt conversation.

So this is me writing again, journaling in the virtual as I navigate the real. My musings of life momming three kids, and sometimes a husband, with a book lady side hustle and a diy addiction.

Afterall, there’s no better time than the pandemic present.

And I am a writer.