I know what it’s like to defer your dreams. I did that until I was in my 40s.
I deferred my dream of being an author. First I raised hell, then I raised my kids, then I took care of my husband as he lived with cancer for 7 years before he died in 2019.
During his illness, I had an awakening. I asked myself why I wasn’t reaching for my goals. There would always be a reason to put them off a while longer. Then, I said, “If not now, when?”
I set aside space and time to write.
I decided to do NaNoWrIMo that year and set a goal of 2,ooo words a day in order to complete the first draft of a mystery novel. Then I set up a blog and began to write about our life as a family of someone living with terminal cancer.
Published Author
I wrote one book about living with cancer, and then another–and then another! I cried the day I published my first book. Partly they were tears of relief, but mostly they were full of fear. I was so afraid that people wouldn’t read the book, or worse–that they would and they wouldn’t like it and I would find out I wasn’t a good writer after all.
But, people did like it.
My books even won awards. Best of all were the amazing things that people would tell me after reading the books about the ways they had been helped and encouraged by them. That was my purpose!
Now I write full-time.
I am an SEO Content Writer. That means that I write website content for a local web development company. It is thrilling to be able to work my dream job with a fantastic team of people. Every day I get to meet people from different businesses and I have the opportunity to put their message into words for their website.
I write non-fiction
Facing Cancer as a Friend: How to Support Someone who has Cancer
Facing Cancer as a Parent: Helping Your Child Cope with Your Cancer
The Memory Maker’s Journal: Putting Your Memories into Words
I have 2 blogs!
Heather Erickson Author~Writer~Speaker
Here are my social media links: