She believes

Today's 100 words:

I never knew him, but I've been told that my grandpa--my mom's father--loved to write. My mom always says that I get my writing abilities and love of words and language from him, which may be true if those sorts of things can be passed down through the generations. Mom has always encouraged me to write. She tells me about contests she learns of and urges me to enter; she wants me to publish books. I know that I'll always have her support. She believes in me--maybe sometimes too much--but I'll always be grateful for that.

Do you get support for your writing?

Writing is a lonely endeavor, most often a one-person job in which we sit in front of a computer, typing away while the world outside goes on without us. There's no gathering around the coffee machine or chatting with the worker in the next cubicle. Instead we spend a lot of time in our own minds, listening to the voices that speak to us, stopping occasionally to stare at the wall or, if we're lucky enough to have one nearby, out the window.

Because writing is such a solitary activity, it's good to have people around us who support our work and our writing dreams. These people could be husbands, wives, children, friends (online or "real")...anyone, really, who cheers us on as we work toward our goals. But what if the person you're closest to doesn't support your work? Then what?

I learned recently that someone close to me--my husband--doesn't think of my writing as anything more than "my wife's hobby." It hurt to hear that, as becoming a published writer is something I've wanted since I was a child, and I've been working hard to achieve that goal. He thinks that the hours I spend writing stories and drabbles and working on novels is just time wasted in front of the computer, and that's a hard thing to deal with. I have a lot of online support, which I'm extremely grateful for, but there are few people in my offline life who take much of an interest in what I do and recognize how important it is to me.

What about you? Do you have writing support from the people closest to you? And what do you do when someone you respect doesn't respect your need to write?