Identity Crisis

 

It took me a while to figure out my writer's 
purpose, but this definitely sums it up.

As an author who writes both fiction and non-fiction, I can't help but feel a little divided and, sometimes, even a little confused.

Today, for example, I posted my organization-themed e-book news here, where I usually talk about fiction. I caught my mistake almost immediately but, in the process of fixing things, thought again about this whole sharing process.

Right now, I'm taking a social media marketing course, and I'm almost positive they'd tell me to share everything on every available platform. But I'm not in retail (been there, done that), I'm in writing. And I have two blogs so that I can talk about my characters in one place and my organizing stuff in another place.

But that begs a new question. If I write a non-fiction book on a topic besides organization, will I need a third blog? I can tell you right now that's not gonna happen (the third blog, not the book on a different topic). During the semester, two blogs is my limit.

Still, the line is blurry and some of the same people are on both sides of it -- me included. I'd be lying if I said I wished I could be a writer who stuck to either fiction or non-fiction because I love doing both. I love to learn and, as an educator, I love to share my knowledge. Sometimes, I want to deliver it directly. Other times, I want to explore the intricacies of life through characters and the stories we knit together...together. Part of the fun is figuring out what I want to say, how I want to say it, and who should say it.

Take, for example, a project I'm working on now. It will probably land on the non-fiction side of the line but, when I got stuck, I immediately employed fiction techniques in the form of vignettes, so this one could end up being a non-fiction book with fiction elements. It probably won't be a novel, but it probably will flavor my fiction because all of the information is flowing through the same filter: me.

While I'll endeavor to stay on the right side of the line, I can't promise I'll always be successful. There will be mistakes (like today's accidental post that I couldn't bring myself to delete) and intentional blending (like my Wednesday Crossover posts). In addition, whatever I'm working on in non-fiction is likely to flavor my fiction (my novel with a protagonist who's a professional organizer, for example) and vice versa.

What does that mean for you? You get to choose. In general, it's fiction here on the porch swing, and organizing at Organizing by STYLE, with a lot of Lisa in both places. Read what you like, skip what you don't, but please keep stopping by because porch swings are more fun with visitors.

B A Preston via Pixabay