Writing Heroes

We all want to be heroes. We all want to think that we’re the kind of person who would stand up and fight. No one wants to be the one who ran away, even if staying means you’re probably insane.

But the truth is… we’re writers. There’s a reason we write about other people’s heroics. There’s a reason we don’t put on capes and prowl the streets in search of crime. Heroes are stoic, composed. Writers? Well, we aren’t typically known for being calloused. Unless you count the funny looking bumps on our fingers where we hold our pens.

So where do we get this hair-brained idea that we know how to write about heroes?

We might not dress up in capes or save the world, but like our beloved characters, we know struggle. We know rejection. Heck, maybe the whole publishing industry is set up the way it is just to help us become better writers. There's no way our struggles won't spill over into the lives of our characters. And who wants to read about a character's smooth sailing?

The good news? The battle never ends. There will always be people who think we’re crazy for doing what we do. But anyone who pursues a dream that might be a little “unconventional” knows that the hardest battles are fought within ourselves. We can have the support of the world, but there will always be that little voice in our heads telling us we’re insane. The struggle is in refusing to listen to it. And that is good news, because without it, we'd be writing about sunshine and rainbows and forget there was ever a storm.

So go ahead. Write those heroes. You’ve earned it.