On Having Writer Friends

It was only in the last few years that I met people who were just like me: people who were just as obsessed with words as I am. I met three of my best friends over the internet. Angela and Krystle via LiveJournal (thanks to our love for Throne of Glass, or Queen of Glass, as it was called when it was still on FictionPress), and Nafiza through book blogging. One thing we all share in common is our love for reading, and our love for writing. In fact, Krystle and Nafiza are both doing NaNo this year.

Before I started uni, my writer friends were only the people I met on the internet. I had never ever ever come across a person in real life who'd shared the same passion for words. And, to be honest, it felt kind of lonely. It felt like I was the only person in the whole of Australia who liked writing.

Now that I've finished my first year of uni, where I study Creative Writing, I've met so many wonderful, like-minded people. I already have two best friends, and many other people that I would openly call my friends. I know, it's starting to sound really sappy right about now, but just bear with me.

So, a few of us RMIT kids are doing NaNo this year. Last Monday, we gathered at a bar and talked about our ideas, and man, it was awesome. It really got me thinking about my story, and it was really inspiring to sit with a whole bunch of people who share the same love for writing.
On Thursday, which will be the 1st of November, the first day of NaNo, we'll be having a write-in, and I'm super excited. I'm expecting myself to write a lot, since I'm really competitive, and I can't stand the thought of someone writing more than me. And the best part is, that if I'm struggling, they'll be able to cheer me on, and help me out. Ditto with my internet writer friends.

The moral of this post, I guess, is to surround yourself with people who write. Wether it be on the internet, or in real life. People who share your passions are far more likely to understand why you're crying in the middle of the night because you just killed off your favourite character. Non-writer people, on the other hand, will just think you're just a bit crazy.