The one thing that I always wanted to be since I was a little girl was to be a writer. Specifically, to be an author/novelist. When I was in grade school, I was obsessed with Nancy Drew books and I remember I used to write mystery novels in notebooks back then with a Filipina lead/local version of Nancy Drew. I remember I even wrote in a story where the lead uncovered a major drug smuggling operation. It’s too bad I never kept those notebooks!
As I got older, I started writing romance stories, again in notebooks. One story that stood out for me was fanfic I wrote about one of my favorite boy band members as a child. I don’t think fanfics were a thing back then, but I was already writing them. Again, this was something that I didn’t keep, which is too bad since I really liked that story. I remember showing it to an older cousin of mine who told me that I really should be a writer.
When I was in college, I had this idea for a historical novel based on the Japanese period in Manila. I remember sharing this with a friend who made me promise that she would be the first to read it when I published. I started doing research for this but never got around to writing it, even if I do have an outline already.
In the early years of the new millennium, I also had ideas for a series of books – an action/ fantasy/ romance along the lines of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Alias. Later on, I started having ideas for other books, this time for romance novels. Most of the books already have outlines while some have plot ideas written down. It’s frustrating that I can tell anyone the whole story off the top of my head but I can’t seem to write everything down. Whenever I start, I tend to overthink things and end up writing and deleting things over and over, ending up with nothing.
I’ve been learning a lot about writing novels, particularly romance ones, from books and from people – particularly from the Romance Class group that I have joined on Facebook. That group is filled with amazing writers who have published works that people read and enjoy all over the world. One day I would love to be one of them.
I’m hoping that this year can be the year that I finish at least one book. I’d love to write more than that but considering how much I am both blocked and procrastinating over this just having one completed book would be an achievement. It is a dream of mine to have my writing published, and in these times where self-publication is now possible, I really don’t have any other obstacle now other than myself.
It might be a far-fetched dream that I can become a successful writer who can earn enough to just concentrate on writing but it is the goal. I’d love to have books that people would love to read, recommend, and produced into movies or a TV series, somewhere along the lines of Deborah Harkness (A Discovery of Witches), Melissa Dela Cruz (Witches of East End, Descendants), and Cassandra Clare (Shadowhunters).
It’s hard to write these days with work and home responsibilities. Add to that having to manage chronic illness that comes with aging...it’s a challenge. I just hope that it is a challenge that I can overcome this year. It’s never too late to start living the dream. I am crossing my fingers that this is the year that I finally make it happen!
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