Gary Lucero Writer

August 15, 2024

 

 

Not everyone has the inclination or ability to create great works of art. Many people are able to play musical instruments, and some can write music as well as sing or dance, but not all of us are capable of performance.

 

Fact is, many of us are seemingly without creative talent. We can hum in the shower, and create rudimentary drawings, and that's it.

 

But this doesn't stop us from being creative beings. We strive to create, to express ourselves, and we often want others to consume our own forms of art, to acknowledge and enjoy it.

 

I have felt this desire my entire life. As a child, I immersed myself in drawing pictures, coloring, writing stories, taking photographs, and later, as a teen, I started writing poetry. I had no choice but to express myself, but for decades I denied that writing was the correct outlet for me.

 

I convinced myself that I could program software, release it, and that people would buy it, use it, and provide feedback so I could improve it. I tried for years to succeed at this, but I just didn't have the chops to write great software.

 

So I returned to writing. It wasn't like I had stopped, but I had given up on my dream of being published.

 

In late 2023 and early 2024, I sorted through all the poems I had created over the last few decades, graded them, and decided which ones to release. I published a book of poetry called When I Flew. I spent more money than I could afford advertising the book, but had limited success.

 

I unpublished not just that book, but several more, and decided to take publishing seriously. I found a great editor, someone I trust, and worked with her to refine my poems. I found someone to create an appropriate book cover, and I plan to publish a book of poetry in the fall on October 1, 2024.

 

The book is called In Letting Go.