How I Started My Writing Career

My mom always said I talked too much. She called me 'Miss Twenty Questions'. Sometimes she became aggravated enough to forbid me to ask another. If I failed to comply I was sent to bed early.

During one of those early evening sessions I discovered the pleasure of a strategically aimed flashlight. Propped under the bedcovers, a beam of light aimed at the pages of a book, I fell in love with virtual worlds, but the reading often raised more questions than it answered.

Then I read Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. Harriet carried a notebook everywhere, writing down observations about friends and neighbors. I was enamored with the idea. I got myself a notebook and began to write. I chronicled everything: my thoughts, my feelings, and all the questions I had. Many questions remained unanswered, but at least they were out of my system and no one was telling me to keep quiet.

I discovered that personal chronicling helped me sort things out. Often the act of writing down the question helped resolve the issue. Writing taught me to express myself succinctly.

I kept writing, chronicling a marriage, children, and a career working with horses, a job I loved. Until my partner decided to move from the horsey enclave of Westchester County, New York to the shoreline of Connecticut; less horses more boats. He was employed, I was not.

I soon discovered how difficult it would be to find my kind of work in this new location. I grabbed a notebook and began to write. I also looked for regional equestrian publications and read everything I could get my hands on, anything to keep me up to date and my questions answered about the horse world.

At the library I found an old copy of Writer's Digest and read an article by Stephen King. It basically said, write what you know, write in your own voice and don't let anyone tell you that you can't write. The light sparkled in my head and I began to write down what I knew about horses. I organized my thoughts and submitted an article to a newspaper in nearby Newtown, Connecticut. The editor at that time, Bill Brassard, contacted me, requested a few simple changes, and published my piece. I received a check for $50. I was hooked.

I made a list of equestrians I wanted to speak with and a list of questions I had. I called them. I asked questions. They didn't tell me to be quiet. I had a lot to write about. I began placing articles in local and regional magazines. Eventually I covered dressage, a particular riding discipline, for an international equestrian publication.

Thanks Mom; thanks Mr. King. All this happened because I asked too many questions, and read some great advice. When you're having trouble just remember, write what you know, write in your own voice, and don't let anyone tell you that you can't write.