In Which Reality Stages a Slow Comeback

While I can't say that I'm still on cloud nine after the Golden Heart announcement, I can safely say that I'm on cloud seven-point-five. I would still be on cloud nine if I didn't have a day job; while my day job is fun and rewarding, it is also demanding, and the demands of the job didn't end just because I went off and did romance-writer stuff for a week. However, I'm incredibly lucky that my coworkers and bosses (all the way up to my VPs) know about my writing, support it, ask about it, etc. without wanting to fire me for it. Many writers keep their aspirations hidden from their coworkers for fear of retribution, but my workplace is incredibly tolerant of this type of pursuit. That means that I could wear my Golden Heart necklace to work and get a hug from my director instead of a pink slip -- and that means I can keep eating while I write, which is quite fortunate.

A writer only needs a few tools -- a computer, a dictionary/thesaurus, a printer, and a red pen for edits. But, she can greatly improve her likelihood of success if she has a supportive network of family and friends -- and the chances that she will fail increase tremendously if she's hearing poisonous whispers that destroy her faith in her dreams. I have the supportive network of family and friends, and that's really all I need. Of course, it would be nice to expand that "support" to include someone to pay all my bills and make my bed while I write, but I won't get too greedy :)

If you're a writer, or even if you're just pursuing a non-standard career, I would love to hear your thoughts -- how vital is others' support to your work? How do you deal with the inevitable insensitive remarks that make you want to pull your hair out?