That’s a play on words, and what I feel when I hear the song Bird Set Free by Sia.

I took a few weeks off of social media. I needed it. I felt myself being slowly taken over by it. I lost my identity in it. I listened for the last year as to what I needed to do to sell books–you have to write a lot. You have to just put as much out there as you can. I did. I published three books in a years time. It came easy to me, but then it stopped. It wasn’t the muse, I still had story ideas, but I lost myself in the process.

For me, writing isn’t about selling books. Writing isn’t about growing my number of likes. I write for the love of words. I write for myself, for the healing way it makes me come alive when I put words to page. I’ve let reviews and comments on my books hit me over the last year, and I must confess, at times it has stung. It broke me in the sense that it made me question if I should rewrite parts of my books, or if I should cater to the masses and what they want in my upcoming books. But, that’s not me. I’ve never been one to cater to the masses. I do things my own way. I live my life how I want regardless of how crazy people think I am. I’m a hermit that finds herself on the pages and screens of what she reads, watches, and writes.

If someone wants me to do something, I tend to do the opposite, because I don’t like being forced to feel or change my ways to make someone else happy. I don’t expect others to do that, so I expect the same in return. But, I’ve let it strike me. I let criticism lock me up and shut me down. That’s not me. So, at this point on December 14, 2015, I’m setting out to hold tight to who I am. I’m not going to let the idiocy of the world break me.

I’m a thinker.
I love words.
I love to feel a connection to the world and the universe.
I love the moments we can share with other human beings that get it.
I love speaking words with another person that feels life and creativity.
I’m an author.
Writing words is what I was put on this planet to do.
I don’t care what others say anymore. I write for love. I write for me.