Impostor Identity

I’m a writer. I’ve been one since I was fifteen and decided I didn’t want to just read stories. I wanted to make my own. Still, I don’t always feel like a writer.

I know several people who published stories in magazines or poems in anthologies. Many even have their own novels. What do I have? A few stories on this blog and a few works in progress I can’t seem to ever finish.

I’m not upset about the success of others. I’m glad they’re able to do what they love and do it well. It gives me hope that one day I’ll be like them. Maybe not rich and famous, but at least accomplished in my craft.

But it makes me scared to say I’m a writer. Not because I’m embarrassed, but because I don’t think I’m qualified for the title. Currently, I haven’t sold anything or completed a novel. To say I’m a writer makes me feel like an impostor. I’m not, and I know it, but the feeling can be hard to shake.

One day, I’ll be published, but until then I’m still writing, and that’s what matters. That’s what makes me a writer. I’ll only stop being a writer if I stop writing, which will never happen.