Pages Of My Life – Emily Wright
by Emily Wright
I like my comfort zone.
I like how predictable it is–it’s safe, invulnerable, and, well, comforting. Just to give you an example, I’ve been attending the same church for twenty-six years. I teach in the same high school I graduated from. I live only ten minutes away from the house I grew up in. I don’t like change. I’m not a fan of things being different.
And, of course, God will shake things up when we get too comfortable.
This can come in many forms: a shift in your job, a new phase of life, or even moving to a new place. If you’re like me, you get uncomfortable when asked to break out of your “bubble.” It’s familiar and safe. For me, historical fiction is that safe place. I’ve written it and read it for years, and it’s home to me. I’d never liked reading or writing contemporary fiction. For me, if there was a cell phone or modern car in the book, I wouldn’t want to read it. I lived in that world already; why would I want to be immersed in my own time period any more than I already was? I wanted to break free of my contemporary world and be transported to times and places I would never actually get the opportunity to experience.
A few years ago, I tried writing another historical fiction novel. However, words just refused to come. I conducted my research, I tried different places in the house to sit, and nothing would help. My imaginary characters just wouldn’t speak to me (fellow writers know what I’m talking about). One day, as I was teaching The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan in my high school English class, I began thinking, I could write something like this. Something contemporary. Something different. I began writing a short story set in the modern-day, which was a very different experience for me. Then, as if that weren’t enough, another idea came: try writing poetry.
I’d written a few poems before, even winning second and third place in two poetry contests within the past few years. But a lady at church asked me to write a themed-poem. Then, I wrote a poem in memory of a former student who had passed away. After a second themed-poem was requested for church, I began to feel that maybe God was giving me a nudge; even then, I thought, I’m not a poet. I don’t write poetry. However, the more I challenged myself, the more I gained an appreciation for it.
Since then, I have compiled a collection of short stories and poetry. Some of the short stories are historical, some contemporary. I still don’t like to tread into unfamiliar territory. But I believe that is also how we grow, both as writers and as people. We are not called to do the exact same thing every single day for the rest of our lives. We have to change. We have to learn new skills to better ourselves.
Want to know something interesting? As the sponsor for my high school’s Creative Writing Club, I challenged my students when we began our unit on poetry. When I said that word, some cheered, and some groaned. Yet I told them, “I didn’t like poetry, either. I didn’t get an appreciation for reading it until college. I didn’t think I was any good at writing it until I forced myself to try it. I’m not saying you have to like poetry at the end of this, but just try it.” We are currently working on publishing our school’s first literary arts journal. Submissions were due last Friday. You know what? Most of what the students submitted was poetry. I pushed them to challenge themselves, to get out of their own comfort zone. The result? They grew as writers.
When was the last time you went out of your “bubble”? How did you grow from the experience?
Known for her page-turner stories and well-developed characters, Emily Wright is a writer of Christian historical fiction. She is the author of the Trials of the Heart series (Trial of Strength, Trial by Fire, and Trial of Courage) and has also been published in The Copperfield Review and The Tennessee Magazine. She lives in Tennessee with her husband, daughter, and Labrador retriever.
The Conversation
Emily, this is SO true! Sometimes getting “comfortable” is anathema to our progress. I am so glad you challenge your students to try new things by leading the way!
As a military spouse, my bubble pops often when we move. As an author I have been stepping out of my bubble to write more devotions and now I am trying to make reels and short videos of me learning God’s word.