Keeping Secrets from Ourselves (Jodi Moore)

The secret to writing is honesty.

We’ve all heard Ernest Hemingway’s famous quote: “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” (Well, at least you have now.)

But I think we too often keep secrets from ourselves.

Sure, we tell ourselves we’re being honest. Open. Authentic.

And we do try. We strive to create believable characters. We work to write captivating stories. We scramble to find the best words to make our readers laugh. Or cry. Or think. We dig deep to develop the best plots and scenarios to help people remember. To feel connected. To heal.

It’s one of the reasons so many of us create.

But we’re also human and fiercely protective of our secrets. We too often bury what has hurt us in the past. We lock it away and insulate it in an effort to keep it suppressed. 

We dust off our hands and think our secret is safe. And we think we can forget.

Then one day, something somewhere begins to gnaw away at that insulation. The secret we thought we’d entombed finds a crack. A portal. It presses for release. Thoughts begin to bubble up that give us chills. Words eek through our typing fingers and emotions leak out of our eyes.

We find the secret staring us in the face.

Sometimes it’s embarrassing. Distressing. Other times, it’s grounding. Freeing.

It's a personal decision as to whether or not we wish to share it, but very often, we do. Because as writers, we know that some of our readers may be struggling with the same secret and need to know they’re not alone. And we know that the rest may need to be made aware of the challenges the others may face.

However, in the spirit of “the rule of 3”, there’s something else I’ve recently learned.

I’m currently working on a “secret” project, one that I’ve put off for years, but that I’m now ready to confront. Because even writers need to know we’re not alone.