Most writers are hoping for recognition of one sort or another. You believe in yourself and hope to “make it” one day. But with every passing year we get older and we begin to fear that our big opportunities have slipped away.
Is your age an attribute or handicap?
You’re a writer, not a teen-pop musician. If you’re no longer a spring chicken, age can be your ally, right? Think of that deep well of wisdom, imagery, experience, and dedication you can draw from when you sit down to write your next story or poem.
And yet—age is still a sensitive subject in the literary world.
In the editor’s notes for the most recent issue of Poets & Writers, you’ll find two cases of authors who are self-conscious about their age. Novelist Ben Fountain says, “It’s slightly ridiculous to be fifty-three years old and about to have your debut novel come out.” And author Anna Keesey, in talking about why it took her 10 years to finish her first book, says, “Oh God! If something takes you that long to write, it had better be Middlemarch or Gravity’s Rainbow to justify the time. So it’s embarrassing to discuss.”
Read More...
