Do you view your writing life as a profession?
I watched the professor of my advanced poetry class open the lid of a metal box crammed with 3x5 cards. He wiggled out one of the worn cards covered with notes and held it up.\xa0\n\n\n\nOn this card was the title of one of his poems along with the date of the latest version. Below that he had written names of literary magazines where he\u2019d submitted that poem, followed by their response.\n\n\n\n\u201cOne poem per card,\u201d he said.\n\n\n\nHe showed us how he tucked the card behind the month when he was supposed to hear back\u2014a simple system to follow up with every submission.\xa0\n\n\n\nHe passed one of the cards around the room. I held it in my hand and studied the notes he\u2019d scrawled on the front and back.\xa0\n\n\n\nThe Box\n\n\n\nThere was no magic to his system. It was not fancy or expensive. Yet, he was a respected, prolific poet on campus for a semester, showing us how it\u2019s done.\n\n\n\nWhen the last student finished looking at the sample card and handed it back to him, he slid it back in its spot.\xa0\n\n\n\nI stared at that box.\n\n\n\nI was in an advanced poetry class because I\u2019d already had The Moment; that is, I\u2019d already begun to think of myself as a writer. \n\n\n\nThe day of the box was different.\n\n\n\nAfter class, I walked straight to the bookstore and bought a pack of 3x5 cards and a maroon plastic box with a hinged lid. Then I headed to my room where I started logging each of my poems on those cards: one card per poem.\xa0\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe Shift\n\n\n\nWhile I\u2019d had The Moment, this was different.\n\n\n\nI walked into that bookstore because I'd experienced "The Shift."\n\n\n\nWhat's "The Shift"? It's when I shifted from viewing the work as an assignment or hobby to something deeper, more serious.\xa0\n\n\n\nIt's when I committed.\n\n\n\nLike that poet with his metal box packed with poems, I too was committing to the craft and to a lifetime of word-work.\xa0\n\n\n\nIt would still be several years before I made any money as a writer, but I saw myself differently.\n\n\n\nI was a working poet. And because of this shift and the resulting commitment, I organized myself\u2014however simply and humbly\u2014with the intention of writing and submitting my work to publications.\n\n\n\nLooking back, that plastic box seems like so much more than a storage container. It held my intentions, my resolution.\xa0\n\n\n\nI don\u2019t know what it\u2019s like for other writers, but for me, the day I bought that little box was the day my life tilted in a new direction.\n\n\n\nThe Practice\n\n\n\nThe professor gave us vision. We got a glimpse of who or what we could become. He nudged us to take a step forward.\n\n\n\nAnd it worked. I was ready to send my work. I was ready to ship.\n\n\n\nOne card per poem.\xa0\n\n\n\nOne piece at a time.\xa0\n\n\n\nI had to write the poem, record it, track it, and ship it.\n\n\n\nSeth Godin recently released The Practice: Shipping Creative Work. On the first pages, he explains why he chose those three words in the subtitle. The first word, \u201cshipping,\u201d he says, is \u201cbecause it doesn\u2019t count if you don\u2019t share it.\u201d1\n\n\n\nHe included \u201ccreative\u201d: \u201cbecause you're not a cog in the system...you\u2019re a creator.\u201d2\n\n\n\nAnd he added work \u201cbecause it\u2019s not a hobby. You might not get paid for it, not today, but you approach it as a professional...and the work is why you are here.\u201d3\n\n\n\nThe Shift led to The Practice.\n\n\n\nThe Shift was my realization that the work was why I was here, a writer.\xa0\n\n\n\nThe Practice was how I would fill that box.\n\n\n\nCompelled to action, I stepped out and followed through to get in the game and take the hits.\xa0\n\n\n\nI began the practice of writing, recording, tracking, and shipping the work.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe Pro\n\n\n\nOver time, I saw new possibilities. Next thing you know, I was, in the words of Steven Pressfield, \u201cturning pro.\u201d4 Because The Practice makes The Pro.\n\n\n\nJason Pinter, interviewed for the podcast How Writers Write, says:\n\n\n\n"If you're really going to be serious about writing and you want to either make a career out of it, make a living out of it, or even just make a little bit of money out of it in any sort of way,