Writing Diary: The Difficulty of Enjoying Work

I’ve learned something about writing from my Frog Hunting series. While the aim of the series was to have fun and grow while dating, I noticed a bit of a shift (or perhaps an awareness) of the aim of my writing. 

There is a reason I did not decided to pursue writing full-time when I graduated from high school. There is a reason writing was not the sole career choice. In high school, I wrote because I loved it. I feared, if it ever became something I needed to earn money, I would no longer love it. 

I wondered the same thing about ministry. I was always volunteering and going on mission trips. I questioned whether I would love the work as much once it became my bread earner. 

I think this all came down to a misconstrued vision of work. I believed, somehow, that work should be difficult. I believed that enjoying work would be an unlikely achievement. 

I am grateful to know I was wrong. I am grateful to know, just because something is difficult, does not mean it has to be un-enjoyable. Just because something is enjoyable, does not mean it is no longer work. 

I became more aware of this while Frog Hunting. While the aim was to grow and have fun, the fun and the growth balanced out one another. What was difficult caused growth, what was fun also caused growth. 

A few months ago, a writer and editor looked over the first few chapters of my book. Her notes had me on the verge of giving up. Not giving up completely, but conceding that my project was not worthy of publishing. While I wanted to finish it (because I loved it) I thought it better to not even try to share it with the world. 

I looked her notes over once. Closed the email. I haven’t looked at them since. 

Now I’m considering returning to those notes. 

Why? Because of Frog Hunting. 

When something is difficult, it doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. I write for the love of writing, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be difficult. Difficulty does not have to kill my affection. Affection does not—should not—hinder my growth. 

Photo by David Iskander on Unsplash