Life is constantly evolving. Things change and morph as time goes by. That’s nothing new. Few people would argue that we are living at a time in history where the planet seems to be evolving on so many different levels and at a speed we’ve never experienced before. The Internet has played a huge role in that. Suddenly, thoughts and ideas can be shared in seconds, instead of what once took days or even weeks. Does anyone write letters these days or does it take too much time for them to arrive?

As a writer of historical fiction, I find myself even more aware of how much faster life is then in years gone by.

I was thinking, the other day, how just as writers evolve, we are all constantly evolving on a personal level as well. The person we were a decade ago, for instance, is not the same person we are today. It doesn’t mean we changed dramatically, although that change could be dramatic. Sometimes change happens so slowly we’re not aware of it until we have reason to reflect back and think “Hmm, I never would have done this or that a few years ago.” I’m sure we’ve all experienced these moments.

A writer evolves as well. It’s made clear in the stories we write and themes we choose to tackle. Over time our style evolves as we work toward finding our true voice. Sometimes, in the beginning, self-consciousness can prevent us from exploring a certain theme or character, stifling our creative flow. We’re not sure what others will think. and so we might shrink into the background, opting for a safer route, the one most expected of us.

There are also those critics out there who’s opinions might matter much more to us than they should. Writer or not–we all have these critics in our lives who never seem to tire of trying to force us into following the path they’ve deemed more appropriate. They are the people who often think they know what’s best for others.

There is also our own “inner critic” who has absolutely no problem crushing our dreams and demanding we be more realistic.

Me? A Writer? Who would read something I wrote? Who would pay money to read something that came from my imagination?

Sound familiar?

Putting work out there for others to scrutinize can be scary, no doubt about it.

For a writer, the stories we create are often very personal for many different reasons. But I would argue that we are the only ones who can write these particular stories because we view life from our own unique perspective and wouldn’t it be a shame if we gave that all up because of own fear? There is nothing more satisfying for a writer than having someone connect with one of our stories. Or maybe we shed a different light on a particular subject for someone or maybe even give them a new concept to consider.

So, if you’re a writer and if you choose to look at life as a means of evolution, perhaps you’ll be more gentle with yourself and come to the understanding that just as life continues to evolve, all writers evolve. This means, your writing will change, as will the themes and the complexity of your characters. And perhaps as your writing evolves you will learn to trust in the knowledge that you’re included in that evolution and simply allow your creativity to flow.

Maybe what you write won’t find a publisher immediately, maybe it never will. But f you stick with it, your writing will evolve over time and you’ll eventually find a place where you are comfortable with the act of creation.