Be brave
As far as I can so far make out, the three most valuable attributes for successful writing are the willingness to be brave and honest, stamina and imagination. We need to be authentic, and to give expression to our unique voice, as well as stamina for the road ahead, and imagination to feed our prose.
Honestly, I wonder why I write, sometimes. It is such a labour of love and the process is akin to leaping off a cliff without a parachute. We leap, hoping for a soft landing. And if we are not careful and proud of what we do, we can be injured by such comments as one I received recently, ‘Oh how are the mighty fallen…!’ when I said I was now writing women’s fiction. That comment from an intimate of my circle could have stopped me in my tracks and made me take down everything….
Then, in a cooler moment, I recall that I write because, honestly, I want to express my version of the truth. If we take it that few truths are immutable, and that most human truths are a matter of perspective, our view opens up the reality of a gazillion different opinions and sights on every question.
I also really enjoy writing. You know those times when you don’t really give a damn what your fingers are doing, and you’re not listening for the phone or the doorbell. When the time seems to go by faster than you’d like, and you feel the cold holding your legs stiff but are too far away to care…? I love that feeling of crafting something different, being away in a different world. That feeling is worth a great deal to me. It makes me happy to smile when daughter comes home, when hubby asks ‘did you have a good day, and I can agree wholeheartedly that yes, I did, thank you.
Thanks for reading!
Please share:
November 14, 2016 @ 1:56 pm
Yes, I love being lost also. 🙂
November 14, 2016 @ 2:30 pm
I just lost my first reply–ugh ? But…trying again. I’m thrilled to know that a woman of your depth of insight is writing women’s fiction! What better way to capture what we cannot see, yet recognize. I also relate to the zombiehood of being in the groove and losing all sense of time. ?
Hugs for today! ?
November 14, 2016 @ 2:46 pm
Dear Diane and Elouise!
YAY! Thanks for getting in touch. Elouise, I’m so sorry you lost your first reply, and thank you for writing a double response. Today I was all set to go out and do some shopping, when I sat down here – as you do – and started looking at my editing, which is going so well! Amazing, how things work out when we least expect them to, isn’t it?
I had hoped to resume book two tomorrow, but I doubt I’ll finish editing ALL of Lisa Somerville today. But, I’m loving being lost in that narrative. 😀 xxx
November 15, 2016 @ 6:38 pm
A joy to read! I know and love that feeling of crafting something unique.
November 15, 2016 @ 8:06 pm
Thank you so much, Susan! It can be a bit scarey, sometimes, writing something that could go anywhere and tell any story, but wow, it is a wonderful feeling. As I believe Terry Pratchett said, writing is the most fun anyone can have by themselves… 😉 xxx
November 21, 2016 @ 1:49 pm
I’m still scared of writing fiction probably because of my Catholic childhood, the punishment for telling whoppers and porkies meant I would be condemned to roast in hell for all eternity. Of course there was always confession.
November 21, 2016 @ 3:16 pm
LOL! You know hell doesn’t exist, right? Except in fiction…. 🙂 Thanks for visiting, Tam, and for contributing. There is a story about a guy walking around in what he thinks of as Hell, suffering and being prodded with pitchforks, probably, and he sees Jesus walking calmy towards him. Jesus says, ‘what are you doing here? You don’t have to be here, you can just change your mind about that, see?’ and Hell vanishes.