A Writer's Gratitude by Jamie DeBree

It’s Thanksgiving Day here in the US, and a day to reflect on what we’re thankful for. I’m not normally one prone to sentimentality, but there are many things I’m thankful for that are specific to the writing side of my life, and I thought I’d share them today.

I’m thankful for the writing community. Even with all the fighting about what, where and how to write and publish that’s been going on lately, it’s still a close-knit group of people who, at the heart of it, care enough about each other to discuss the hard issues from all angles. For the most part, writers are friendly, intelligent and helpful, and I’m truly not sure if I would ever have finished a single book without the support of my peers both through NaNoWriMo and the writing community at large.

I’m thankful for technology – email, the internet, social media, all of it. For this one-hundred percent introvert, it provides a way to connect with people “mind to mind” that would be absolutely impossible for me to do in person. I’m a writer. I express myself best on the page (or screen, as it were), so for me, a physical group of writers the size of my online network would be both intimidating and exhausting to be around. Someday perhaps I’ll get up the nerve to attend a conference (where undoubtedly no one will realize I’m there because I’m hanging out quietly in the back), but the internet is my writerly nirvana. It’s an amazing, wonderful thing for someone like me to connect with people this way.

I’m thankful for random strangers, who can’t help but be inspiring. They’ll never know that once upon a time, I watched them for a little while and spun a whole story off the tiniest, perhaps most insignificant part of their day. The people who inspire me most are those I never talk to, and don’t have a name for. Characters-in-waiting that I can mold into whomever I want them to be.

I’m thankful for publishing options – go big, go small, do-it-myself. Several years ago when I decided I wanted to publish, starting my own book business wasn’t even on the radar. Now I own a small press where I call the shots and things happen on my own terms. I love that I have the option to explore other publishing companies or even big conglomerates if I so choose. Options are good. Options equal freedom.

I’m thankful for the people who read my stories, both those who enjoy them, and those who took a chance but found that my books weren’t quite their cup of tea. The reason I write is to entertain – first myself as I’m writing, and then anyone else who cares to listen in. Writing wouldn’t be nearly so satisfying for me without readers, and a lot of times they show me things about my own writing I hadn’t seen before.

I’m thankful for books, in any format, written by others for me to get lost in and rejuvenate myself. Romance, horror, suspense, fantasy, erotica, adventures – I’ve experienced it all at some point between the pages (physical or virtual). Whenever I’m tired, lost, or just have a few free minutes to myself, I crawl into the world created for me by some unsuspecting author, and by the time I make it back out, I’m a new person. Books have been my solace for over thirty years now, and I don’t see that coming to an end anytime soon.

And finally…

I’m thankful for the people in my immediate family who are supportive of my work even though none of them read a word of my fiction. My husband is my biggest supporter, always understanding when I need “just a few more minutes” to finish a scene, and willing to listen to me ramble on about all manner of writing and publishing topics that he’s heard a zillion times before and is undoubtedly bored with much of the time.

Also, my parents, who have been behind me one-hundred percent since I first expressed interest in writing, and who fed me books of all genres as fast as I could devour the words when I was young. They always kept me grounded in the reality that writers (indeed, contractors of all stripes) have a hard time making decent money, but still encouraged me to follow my dream. Even now they always keep tabs on my writing projects and celebrate sales numbers of all sizes with me.

As you can see, I have a lot to be thankful for, and I’m sure you do too. There’s plenty of room for more writerly gratitude in the comments…join me?