Feeling Like a Real Writer

Writing and publishing a book doesn't make you feel like a real writer.  Opening the box with your first copies is very nice, as are the emails and Facebook messages and tweets that tell you the book is good.  Being asked to sign or inscribe the book is nice too.  Stephen Hurley, at voicEd.ca has done his best to make me feel like an author, having me record the stories for his podcast and having me on his show, but still, there's this nagging little voice at the back of my head that calls me a bit of an impostor.  "You're a retired principal, Mr. Garlick, and you may have written a book, but you're not really an author.  You're just posing."  

Well, last night I began, really, to feel like an author.  I'm gearing up for a local authors' book show in less than two weeks (December 11th, if you're available), I was asked to record a piece from my book in advance of being interviewed for an upcoming podcast; my course description on my book and on writing was approved for a course I'll be teaching next month; I read a great review of my book by Rabid Reader's Reviews; I was asked how much I would charge for a book reading (nothing); and there may be the possibility of a local acting troupe turning one or more of my stories into plays!  This was all in one day!

I guess I really am ​a writer now!