Becoming a "real" writer.

These days, I no longer feel like a sham when I tell someone I'm a writer. 

It's almost an honor, really, to be able to do so.

But why did I wait until I had the full-time professional title to feel this way? Sure, it feels nice to have the highest salary of my career thus far, doing something I am passionate about. Sure, I worked hard to become a writer. 

But the truth is, I've always been a writer, ever since I was a wee child. I've always been a dreamer, an imaginer in my own world. I was a writer before anyone ever paid me for my words. I became a writer when I mailed my first story about a lost puppy to my grandparents.

So why did I wait?

I waited because I could feel people judging. I felt them laughing, and rolling their eyes at me. I felt them scoffing. 

Yes. That's it. For a rebellious wildcard who typically doesn't give a shit about what people think of me, when it came to my writing, I felt sheepish and shy claiming writing as an identity v. a hobby. 

I felt silly. And unworthy.

I have never been more confident in who I am as a person. Here's to becoming a more confident writer, too.