Who Will You Inspire?

This past weekend I attended a writing event at nearby library. A friend of mine from there asked me to come and take part. I was grateful for the opportunity as I was trying to reach out to more people. Unfortunately, no one, aside from other authors, showed up. But that's not to say nothing came out of it. In fact, this was a major learning experience for me.

You see, I've always considered myself an ambivert. This is not a term one usually hears, but its a combination of extrovert and introvert. Although, over the past few years, I've become more introverted. This, I found, doesn't really help when you're trying to show the world your masterpiece.

My introverted side has a tendency to come out when I'm surrounded by writers who I believe are more experienced than I am. But my friend at the event expressed to me how glad she was I could make it. According to her, I was a huge influence to the kids who came. But when I had to leave for college, many of those kids lost interest in writing.

I had no idea how much of an impact I made on them. I felt quite guilty that I lost contact. I tried to convince myself that I was at college and there was nothing I could do. That's not true though, I could have definitely kept everyone updated and even communicated more with my friend at the library.

This weekend I've learned that it's really important not to cut ties with people, even accidentally. Networking is a HUGE part of being an author. Even if you aren't in the process of publishing your next big project, that's okay! Take the time to reconnect with people. You never know who you'll inspire!