Writers' Attitudes Matter

How embarrassing! I invited everyone to join me in The Writer's Chatroom yesterday, and then I showed up late. Mea culpa! However, the part I caught was a great lesson in writerly behavior and attitude. One dude who claimed to be a successful writer was insulting the others, trashing Steven King (I mean THE KING!) and generally making an A$$ of himself.

I guess if you want to continue the myth of "The Lonely Writer" that's as good a way as any other to ensure you'll be alone. At least his company is not welcome in a gathering of writers and those who aspire to become writers. Or probably editors, either. The fact that we sometimes critique each others' work, does not open the door to criticizing the rest of others' lives.

The big take-away for me was a reinforcement of the truth that the way we talk about other people reveals much more about ourselves than them. Calling others "failures" if they don't write full time, suggests a self-loathing equal to that of Hunter S. Thompson. The way we talk about ourselves to ourselves and others also influences our happiness and success. Find something nice to say, or at least think, about someone else today. Then find something nice to say about yourself.