Writers/Plumbers

There are a few "successes" that we, when we were young, celebrated that our parents did not. For example: “Yay! I got into film school!” And “Yay! I got into art school!” And “Yay! I’m going to be on 16 and Pregnant!” And when I had mine – “Yay! I got a $24,000 a year writing job!” – I knew that mom and dad were not about to take me to Red Lobster.

In fact, although I’m 30 years old and I’ve managed to make a living as a writer, to this day it is my mother’s greatest wish for me that I “go back to school and learn a trade.” Yes, my mom wants me to be a plumber. Please understand, I am not dismissing this trade or any other. It is highly skilled and well-paying work. But a plumber I am not.

This being the case, every six months or so, when she throws plumbing into the conversation, I feel the need to remind my mom that writing is a real job, too. And that, as a matter of fact, the two careers have much in common. So, when my mom figures out how to use the web cam on her computer, here is the poster I will show her the next time trade school comes up.

(For those of you who check it out, I have no idea why some of the letters near the Atwood photo have disappeared. Guess I should have gone to design school, too.)