On the Dream of Becoming a Writer and the Joy of Writing Non-Fiction

by Megan Hayes

Tell me: what do you dream of when you dream about writing?

When one pictures the lifestyle of a bonafide writer (at least, when I pictured this lifestyle in my younger years) the pinnacle tends to be the image of a traditional fiction author. You know the sort of thing: floating around a countryside idyll, intermittently tapping out novels on a shiny iMac. Oh, and landing big advances.

Yet, I’ve built my rather humble writing career another way: penning commercial non-fiction. This, for some, may look like something of ‘sell out’ writer’s life. Where, they might think, are the floaty outfits? The typewriter by the open window? The artistry. But, for me, writing non-fiction works. More than that—it is a joy. And it’s a joy for three big reasons—but I’ll get to those.

First I want to talk about dreams. How, we think we ‘follow’ them—but how the truth is they follow us. They nip at our heels to get our attention. They, very often, simply will not get off our case. As such, you can only live as someone you are not for so long. Soon enough, something fractures. Our dreams will always follow us into false lives.

Perhaps it starts small—maybe you find yourself crying in your Marigolds at the kitchen sink over you’re not sure what. Or you get irritable at your sister on FaceTime about nothing in particular. Maybe the book you were enjoying sits unread by your bed—the bed, which, as it happens, you don’t seem to get out of as quickly in the morning. Things start to look… grey. 

That’s a cliché but, if you’ve been there, you’ll know. 

The truth is, if you dream of being a writer, any kind of writer—if you know this to be true in your chest, and in your bones, and in your clenched fists—then any other life will always feel as if it doesn’t quite fit. There will always be fracturing. Eventually.

If you’re a writer—but somehow the world seems determined to twist you into something else—then your existence will, soon enough, start to feel like an itchy jumper you would like to take off.

If you’re a writer—and writing is your joy—then any other life will, soon enough, begin to feel joyless.

I know this because I have tried to live that ‘other life’. I have knocked on the proverbial doors that were not my doors. Sat in rooms that were not my rooms. Worked with people who were not my people… This is easy to do, it turns out, when you are in a false life. 

But, forgive me the reiteration: you can only live as someone you are not for so long. The dream catches up with you. The heavy, exhilarating, terrifying dream that will not stop chasing you like a shadow. The writing dream.

Maybe you’ve begun to feel the fracturing. Maybe you are wearing the itchy jumper right now. Maybe something just feels… wrong. Maybe it is time to forget ‘following your dream’ as a writer and focus, instead, on a somewhat more mundane practice: finding the day-to-day joy of writing.

We have all heard of the powers of practising mindfulness, but the Buddhist masters also teach the practice of joy as something quotidian, something unassuming and unglamorous. Simply finding the pockets of life-affirming positive emotion in the nooks and crannies of one’s days. 

Buddhists know that joy is not something that befalls us—it is something we must be a little more pragmatic about. We must prioritise, learn and make space for joy—as writers and as human beings. And we can do this through writing. 

My work in the world lies in helping those who write to discover, explore, and plan for joy in their life through putting writing at its centre. My work—my joy—involves introducing writers to someone very important: their own joyful inner writer—whatever they look like. That’s right—I said ‘introducing’. In other words, that person is already there. You have probably already spent some time with them; you just might not have known it at the time. 

Practising the joy of writing is, I believe, less about transforming yourself and more about becoming aware of yourself—yourself at your most joyful.

Your joyful inner writer… who is that person? What would embodying them feel like? How do they sit, move, arrange their hair, spend their early mornings and weekends? Because, when you look a little closer—when you listen—it might not be the countryside-idyll-obvious vision that ‘fits’ you as a writer. It might not be fiction, or poetry, or whatever you thought it was going to be.

Which brings me back to the joy I find in writing non-fiction. Sure, I still dream of writing fiction—and I know that dream will catch up with me if I want it enough. But, for now, my non-fiction brings me joy in three main ways:

My non-fiction bolsters my credibility.

A non-fiction book is a ‘big business card’* for your other work in the world. If you teach, tutor, pen poems, do speaking gigs, coach… or, well, anything really, your non-fiction book can help you sell your services.

*I’ve heard this idea attributed to the wonderful Sara Tasker, but I am not sure where she said it!

My non-fiction is (gasp) fun.

Think of it this way: what topic could you waffle on for hours about in the pub with unending enthusiasm? That’s your joyful non-fiction niche. I regularly feel, when writing my books, ‘I can’t believe someone is paying me to harp on about this’. Which brings me to my final joy…

My non-fiction makes me money.

We have all, as the saying goes, got to eat. While I am not churning out bestselling fiction, my niche non-fiction brings in a small but significant income. And, for me, there’s nothing like getting paid doing something I’d love doing anyway. That’s a joy I don’t think I’ll ever get over.

And, hey, maybe non-fiction isn’t for you. Maybe the writing dream that is nipping at your heels is something else entirely. 

Your work may just be to stop. 

And to listen. 

About the author 

Megan began her career in academia and is the author of four books, the creator of PositiveJournal.org and a teacher of joyful writing habits. Her PhD explored the links between writing, psychology and happiness and her latest book is titled The Joy of Writing Things Down (Greenfinch, 2021). For more visit www.meganchayes.com 

The Joy of Writing Things Down

In this book you’ll discover practical ways to turn the ordinary ritual of jotting things down into a remarkable source of peace, focus and confidence. Learn to take pleasure in your correspondence, find fresh delight in your diary writing and put renewed heart in your humble to-do list.

Dr Megan C Hayes has spent her academic career exploring the links between writing, identity and happiness—and she is on a mission to encourage us all to pick up a pen and reap the wellbeing benefits in writing.

‘A treasure trove of uplifting and accessible practices, to organise your mind and give shape to your day.’ Suzy Reading, author of The Little Book of Self-Care

‘Easy to read, deeply inspiring and oh so wise, it was the perfect antidote to my in-box overwhelm.’ Susannah Conway, author of This I Know: Notes on Unraveling the Heart

 

BUY HERE https://amzn.to/3q8ufpr 

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Category: Contemporary Women Writers, How To and Tips