Here we are again at the start of a new school year. Autumn, customarily notable for its decay—leaves falling and winter coming—has always signaled the start for me. I’ve spent forty-two years of my life teaching people how to be better writers, so fall has always meant renewal. It’s always been the chance to start again.

This has me thinking about how we often hit walls in our writing careers. We get frustrated with a particular project or with the trajectory of our journeys in general. Sometimes we think about giving up. Sometimes we do throw in the towel. I’ve got more than one novel “in the drawer,” as the saying goes. These early attempts will never see the light of day. In fact, they’re probably buried now on some ancient floppy disk, and who will ever take the time to recover them? This is probably for the best. I’ve also reached points where I’ve seriously considered giving up writing altogether, but I’ve never been able to do that. I’ve kept writing through sadness and illness and self-doubt. The one constant in my life has been that work.

It’s been a fabulous way to spend my days. As challenging as it sometimes is, it also enriches me. It allows me to bear witness to this crazy thing we call living. It increases my ability to empathize. It makes me aware of the contradictions we all carry in our hearts. It helps me understand the sources of people’s behaviors. In short, it makes me more human, and that’s the grandest educational experience one can have.

The point is no matter how tempted we are to give up, each day asks us to make a choice to keep doing what we love, no matter how maddening it can be on occasion. We often pretend that others can dictate that choice for us—the editors who say no, the critics with their barbs, the indifference of a universe that often appears to not care about the value of the written word—but the truth is we’re the only ones in control of how we choose to live our days, and we can make that choice day by day, month by month, year by year.

So, here’s to all of us who choose to keep going. No matter what your passion might be, keep doing what you love. Let the work itself be the reward.