# 29.01.2022 Memorabilia - When does a writer become a writer?

It’s not because you don’t do concerts that you can’t play the piano” - Alexis Jenni

I recently read an article on the Atlantic, which actually inspired the name of this series - When does a writer become a writer. The article covers several stories about the moment normal, regular people, started to be acknowledged as writers. 

One of the stories was about  Alexis Jenni, a 48-year-old high-school biologie teacher from France who won the big literary prize -Goncourt, in 2011. He found that a writer is not defined by his career, but the simple act of writing regularly”.  He called himself a Sunday writer, and planning to continue to be one, while proudly keeping his regular job.

This really hit me as I used to think that art comes  from pain and suffer, cutting an ear kind of gesture, from moments of deep despair. It seemed to me that one must suffer and be completely miserable before claiming an artistic art, whatever that is. And then, there he was…a father of 3, a biology teacher… “a Sunday writer just like there are Sunday painters” … he gave me hope.

The point is, we are all creative but we are blocking creativity with lots of excuses, because we are afraid to even start something. Unfortunately, the ego and fear of rejection are most of the time bigger than the creative act. As long as you did not write the novel, you are still a great writer, you know…

And if not this, then, the impostor syndrome is waiting around the corner hand in hand with procrastination.

I guess we need routines in our lives, healthy habits, even for creativity- Thomas Mann, for example, had a full time job but wrote a page every day, so 365 pages/year. This requires a lot of effort and discipline.

Anyways, I am feeling like I want to start writing again, reading some books, and I’m planning to document my creativity journey, also. So, You will hear from me again, soon!

Thank you for being here!

Oana