The First Taste

Stephen king once wrote, and I'm paraphrasing here, "If you can pay a bill with your writing, in my eyes you are a serious writer."

Let me tell you about my first real writing boost.

My first royalty check from amazon.com

The first time I got a royalty check from amazon came at such a crucial time. We were struggling with bills and living paycheck to paycheck. It was two days before I would get paid and as far as I knew, there was next to nothing in our account.

But, for the sake of curiosity, I looked at our account. And lo and behold, there was money there. Not a big amount but just enough to where we could have a meal that night. The royalties from my books had been direct deposited. I was in awe.

When I told my wife she just said, "Oh...okay...great...we can use that now."

And we did.

I drove to our local Jewel, walked inside and searched the shelves. I settled on spaghetti with traditional red sauce and a couple of cans of pop. I was in a complete haze, still skeptical that I was actually PAYING for food with MY WRITING.

After I checked out, I drove back, we settled down, cooked the food and ate our meal.

Two days later, I got paid by my regular job.

Best part about it, we had leftovers for the week.

So yes, I was able to buy small meals with the royalties I've made with my writing. But it means a lot to me. That first taste was the sweetest.

And that's why I still write.

Because I know that someday, I'll be able to pay my electric bill, a phone bill, a car insurance bill or even a rent bill with my writing.