Monday, October 1, 2012

From Pigtails to Chin Hairs; A Memoir & More

The fabulous Becky Povich decided to stop by and share her love of writing! Here she is!
 
 
Although I proclaimed for years that I wanted to be a writer, I never did anything about it. It was much easier to say I wanted to write, but I just didn't have the time. That way, I couldn't possibly be a failure. It was just a dream and didn't seem like a practical one. (Practical dreams? Isn't that an oxymoron?!)

Looking back, I realize I actually wrote a great deal all through my life. I just didn't look at it that way. As a young girl, I had several pen pals and I loved composing my letters to them. As I grew up and moved from home, I wrote to family and friends. One year I surrendered and decided it wasn't tacky to write the Generic Christmas Letter. That very first one got rave reviews. Hmm, maybe I'd stumbled onto something here!

A few years later, I was the drapery coordinator at a large company. I took it upon myself to type newsletters to the sales and customer service departments. I loved the challenge of making the letters informative, interesting, and humorous. At times, I received compliments, yet it never occurred to me that
this was writing, this was something I was good at, this was something exciting and rewarding.

Then in May of 2001, my estranged father became very ill and was near death. The emotions that came over me were so powerful and unexpected I felt the need to write about them. I sat down at my desk and the words just flowed out of me and onto the keyboard. A writer was born.

That story was accepted by a local newspaper for their guest opinion column, and eventually by Chicken Soup for the Soul. I fall asleep every night and wake up every morning, thinking about nothing else: Writing! I can't even remember what I used to do or think about all the time…..oh, I guess it was probably housework…..so please don't ever stop by unannounced!
 
Becky is currently finishing her memoir, "From Pigtails to Chin Hairs; A Memoir & More." It's both poignant and humorous anecdotes about her life, some from the recent past, therefore the "& More" part of the title. Becky can be found at www.beckypovich.blogspot.com and her e-mail is Writergal53@gmail.com

34 comments:

Green Monkey said...

Becky is my muse. Her story and her work ethic inspires me like no other. Becky reminds me that I too am a writer!

Laurel Garver said...

All those little bits of writing--pen pals, newsletter articles, journal entries, do help you build skills and learn to develop a voice.

Thanks for sharing this encouraging story!

Karen Jones Gowen said...

Hi Becky! Nice to see you here on Unedited. Your story could be my own, and my first published book was the memoir of my mom. Now I feel like I need to write all the time to make up for lost time. I love the title of your memoir :)

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

Oh, this was a beautiful interview! You've inspired us all so much, Becky! Keep up the good work! Hugs!

BECKY said...

Hello everyone! Thanks so much for your wonderful comments, and it's great to meet two new people: Jen Chandler and Laurel Garver. I'm so happy you both enjoyed my guest post. I need to remind myself all the time that I'm a writer, and to keep at it! :)

And Ms. Green Monkey -- it's so good to hear from you, and gosh, you always make me feel so, so....smart and talented!:)

Hey Karen G. -- I don't think I knew that about your mom. I need to check out your book! So glad you like my title, too! It finally came to me after YEARS of thinking I had THE title. :)

Hi there Lav Dreamer! You're so sweet! You always encourage me so much. :)

Thank you all, again. Encouragement and support is what it's all about, isn't it? I'll be back later to check for other comments.

BECKY said...

Duh! I forgot to say a BIG THANK YOU to Jen Daiker, for having me today!! You're definitely a fantastic blog friend and inspiration to me!

JE said...

That is the cutest picture ever. Thank you Becky for sharing with us.

~JD

BECKY said...

Hi Justine! Thanks so much!!

Elephant's Child said...

Thank you for featuring the wonderful Becky. She is an inspiration to those of us who are still sitting on our behinds muttering 'someday'.

BECKY said...

Awww, thanks, EC! You're too kind.

Laura said...

Hi Jen, Hi becky! Can't wait to read this :)
Lx

BECKY said...

Hi Laura! Thanks...!! I can't wait to finish it and hold it in my hands! :)

Jai Joshi said...

Becky, nice to meet you!

Jai

BECKY said...

Hi Jai! Thanks so much, and it's nice to meet you, too!

Pat Wahler said...

Enjoyed your guest post, Becky. You truly are an amazing writer and a terrific friend!

Pat
Critter Alley

Lynn said...

Fun post - thanks to both of you!

Laura S. said...

I love hearing about when other writers got bitten by the writing bug!

BECKY said...

Hi Pat! Thank you so much! What wonderful words!

Hey Lynn! Haven't heard from you in a while. Thanks for stopping and commenting!

Hi Laura! Thank you! It really is an interesting "bug" too, isn't it??

Mevely317 said...

THERE you are, Becky!
I'm really enjoying getting to know you .. n' now, through your cameo appearance, I can meet Jen!

BECKY said...

Ahhhh, thank you, Mevely! You're a sweetie and I'm glad you're meeting Jen now too!

BECKY said...

I'd like to thank Jen Daiker, again, for having me as one of her guest bloggers. It's been great and I really appreciate it!

Unknown said...

This was beyond a fabulous guest blogger and what an honor to have so many lovely people drop in!

You know I loved your guest post. I feel you've taught us a little bit more about ourselves.

BECKY said...

Thank you, again, Jen! I've decided I'd like to have guest bloggers sometimes, too! I'll be giving you a holler! :)

Terri Tiffany said...

I love the title of your book!!

Carolyn V said...

Aw! I love her story of how she began to write. Congrats Becky!

BECKY said...

Hi Terri! Thanks so much! When it hit me, I just knew it was The One!

Hi Carolyn! Thank you very much! I'm always happy to share my story and hopefully it will inspire others. Great to meet you!

Gigi Ann said...

I loved reading a little bit about your writing life and where it began and where it is taking you. I hope I am around when your book is published, I'll be sure to read it, actually I'm looking forward to reading it.

BECKY said...

Oh, Gigi Ann! My goodness, I certainly hope you're around,too! It won't be TOO long before it is completed and printed, I promise! And I'm so happy you are looking forward to reading it. You're among my friends who keep me going, when the going gets...tough! :)

Lisa Ricard Claro said...

Can't wait to read your book! Like you, I wasted a lot of time talking about writing, or just writing intermittently and then never doing anything with it. What a change took place when I made up my mind to declare my purpose. In any event, I'm glad you found your calling!

Karen Wojcik Berner said...

Very interesting post, Becky. I can't wait to read your book! Best of luck with finishing it up.

BECKY said...

Hi Lisa! I don't think I knew that about you, but so glad you are writing more now, too! And thank you for your kind words!

Hey Karen! Thank you! And best of luck to you with selling yours!! (One of these days, I need to make a list of all the books I still want to buy from my blog friends, because I've definitely lost track of them.)

Jennifer Shirk said...

Wow, that'a fantastic, Becky! I'm going to add your memoir to my Goodreads list!

Jennifer Shirk said...

Oops. I guess I have to wait, huh? LOL
Well, hurry up and finish it!!

BECKY said...

Ha! Thanks, Jennifer! Yes, please add it to your list of books to read...and yes, I'll try to hurry and finish it!! :)