How God Works, for Writers

Do you ever write something--a letter to a friend or an article for publication--and then debate with yourself, "Send? Or sit on it?" I think something's wrong with my "send" button. My "sit-on-it" option usually wins.

This morning I was engaged in such a debate about something I'd written for a magazine for teens. When I got up from the computer to duke it out with myself while I made a pot of coffee, I left a forwarded e-mail on the screen unread. When I came back to the computer, my eyes fell on the last line. "If you pass this on, you could very well save someone a lot of pain and suffering." The article was on boiling water in the microwave, not about writing, but I got the message. Someone needed to hear what I had to say.

It's just a short piece. If accepted for publication, the pay is only $25, but publishing isn't always, or even often, about the money. Saving someone pain and suffering is reason to write and send.