you ARE an artist

Last year, we had some family friends over for dinner and my daughter was coloring next to me at the table while we all ate.

Our friend Doris said to my daughter, “Wow, what a beautiful picture! Maybe you’ll be an artist when you grow up.”

My daughter kept coloring and said, “I AM an artist.”

With the rock-solid attitude of someone telling you what’s what.

She was four years old when she said this.

I think about that moment all the time. I AM an artist.

She’s not going to “become” one when she grows up.

Or take a class, or study, or practice.

She already IS an artist.

And so are you.

A few weeks later, my friend Tam drove with me while we picked up my daughter from daycare. Tam said, “I see these amazing markers back here! Are these yours or your brother’s?”

And my daughter said, “They’re mine. *I’m* the artist.”

Rock. Solid. Artist. Identity. YES QUEEN!

It reminds me of this meme I saw a while back:

Whether you identify as a woman or not, I hope we can all start embodying THIS level of author identity.

My favorite author, other than myself, is…

I AM an artist.

Featured Workshop

I’m teaching a workshop next week called Publishing Pathways: How Traditional, Hybrid, and Self-Publishing Really Work. It’s hosted by the HerStories Project. We'll go in-depth on the three publishing pathways, covering how they work, the pros and cons of each, how the money and the rights work, with time to answer questions.

Get your ticket here.