Those who've followed this series of articles will find my latest noticeably shorter. In the past, I've delved at length into one dusty corner of motivation after another, beckoning to the light within all of us, nurturing inspiration, revealing negativity for the waste of time it is. But when it came to this month's topic, I discovered a brevity I and my critique partners were unaware I possessed.

Because nothing could be more simple than this one basic truth. We're writers. When we write, we thrive. When we don't, a piece of our soul dies.

Forget the publishing business for a moment. Forget the endless questions and worries. Chalk up the struggles, the lost opportunities, as simple facts of life. Everyday hazards of the job.

Difficult? Yes, a writer's career can be a difficult journey. Don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise. But so what? What does a little adversity matter, really, when you stop to consider the amazing gift you hold within your heart?

You're a writer. Say it with me. I AM A WRITER.

This is your calling, not just your job. Writing is your passion. So much so, the thought of stopping, even for a few days, should make you sit back in your chair and scratch your head. Why on earth would you stop? What could be better in life? You get to harness emotions, create new lives, new worlds. You get to share your heart, the essence of who you are, through your stories. You get to uncover truths you didn't even realize you realized about yourself.

Published or not, every word you ever write will change you in ways you can't begin to imagine. You find yourself in your writing. Give life to the worlds in your mind, and you recreate your own.

Writing should never be simply what you do for a living. Thoughts of quitting shouldn't be a blip on your radar. When the craziness of the publishing world grows too intense, escape into your writing and forget the other nonsense. In your safe place, writer's block has no sway. The rest of the world, be gone. You're at your best when you're creating stories. That's where your energies belong.

You can try to resist the golden pull of the words and images in your mind. But I'm warning you, they have minds of their own. The words, the stories, are already a part of you. They're what called you to write in the first place. Silence them, and you're denying who you are.