Wednesday 2 September 2015

IWSG: Back to School


It's the first Wednesday of the month, and time for members of the Insecure Writer's Support Group to share their writerly insecurities. The group was started by Alex J. Cavanaugh, and those interested in joining in can visit www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com for more information.

Today is the day of the big IWSG announcement that has been alluded to since the last round of IWSG posts. It's been a somewhat lengthy month-long wait, but I have no doubt that whatever the Ninja Captain has in store for us would make it worth it. You'll need to head over to his blog for the answer though, since this post was written and scheduled before the announcement was made.

But while you're here, I also have an announcement of my own to make, one that I have equally been keeping close to the chest until the right moment. And as you may or may not have guessed from the title of my post, it has something (read: everything) to do with school, or my higher education to be precise. That's right, this IWSG member has decided to further his education with a master's degree.

The degree in question is in Computer Science, a field that has always been a huge part of my evolving interests, and the course itself is to be delivered online, which means I can still continue to work and whatnot. The decision was made a few months back, even though this is a move that has been in the pipeline way before I started this blog or decided to publish any of my writing. In fact, one of the reasons why it took this long for me to pursue it was because I had decided at the start of 2012 to focus exclusively on my writing, a year that resulted in one of my most productive as a writer.

But I guess there comes a time in every writer's journey when you need to weigh the difference between what you want to do and what needs to get done. Getting my master's definitely falls in the latter of the two categories. So I guess my biggest insecurity right now is where this would leave my fledgling writing career. Would I still be able to squeeze time out to write, as unrealistic as that sounds, or does this mean I would be putting everything on hold for the entire duration of my course?

18 comments:

  1. I think a Master's is what makes higher education relevant at this point. Good for you.

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    1. Thanks, Tony. And yes, it seems the additional year or two it takes to get one serves to cap off the whole thing.

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  2. Yes, good for you! It will be challenging and limit your writing time, but you'll find a way to keep writing.
    And yes, you should definitely enter the anthology contest!

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    1. Thanks, Alex. I suppose there's always a way to squeeze in the time, provided the desire to do so is there as well. That's my fear really, that I might not be able to muster enough desire to want to write something in the first place. Only time would tell I guess. Either way, I would definitely be entering the anthology contest, so there's that to look forward to. :D

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  3. Oh my, going back to school is a major decision. Time consuming, but worth it. I am sure you will still find some time to write as it is your passion, and probably a favorite pastime as well. Good luck Michael :)

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    1. Thanks, Dolorah. It is definitely one of my favorite pastimes.

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  4. I worked on an I.T. help desk before I left to write full-time. FWIW, I did find the two were very compatible. Creative jobs zap your brain...tech jobs seem to make you WANT that creative outlet. However, finding time is definitely a challenge. Many people have found the 100-day challenge works. You write 100 words for 100 days without missing a day. If you miss a day, you have to start over. When you reach 100 days, you reward yourself and start over with a new 100-day challenge.

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    1. That's some sage advice right there, Stephanie. Thanks. The 100-day challenge sounds just manageable enough to work out for someone with a packed schedule. I'd definitely be noting that down for future implementation.

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  5. Anything you do in live or earn in live will aid in your writing. It never hurts to better yourself and you are a writer so the writing will always be there. Good luck on it all.

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    1. That's one way to look at it. Thanks, Brandon.

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    2. Wow I must have been out of it when I typed that lol. I just want to add, life* and learn** lol.

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    3. Lol. I figured that was what you'd meant to say. Thanks for taking the time to clarify. :)

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