Of Weddings and Blessings and Getting Things Done

I grew up in the sticks. One gas pump at the small country store. If you didn't want to cook, you headed to the saloon. My mom and dad, in their wisdom, joined 4-H and dragged us along.

It was awesome. I learned about raising chickens, working with leather, art, and a variety of other things. But one of the best things my mom taught me was how to sew. Until last Halloween, I hadn't sewn anything in a long time. I'd forgotten how much I love it. You can see the project at my post on Creativity.

My daughter is getting married and the dress she fell in love with was way outside my budget. I looked at the dress and knew I could make it. I spent hours gathering what I needed. One thing I lacked was motivation, another was a block of time. (Does that sound familiar with novel writing?) My mom, again to the rescue, came to stay and has been my task master, reminding me we have a dress to make and helping me sew and fit it and stay on task.

Who helps you stay on task? If you don't have an accountability partner, find one. They make a difference when you need that extra push.

It Most Definitely IS Important

Is what we do as writers really that important? It's like a stone skipped on water or simply thrown to the middle of the lake. We cannot know the far-reaching effects of our labors. I would argue that we absolutely don't, and shouldn't, write for that reason, but it is for that reason we cannot give up. We must tell our stories and I want to share this because I think we sometimes forget. Write On, my friends, and thank YOU Dean Koontz for reminding and inspiring us to not give up.

Recently an email came through from Publishers Weekly which contained the following from Dean Koontz:

Efficiency

Efficiency: n the state or quality of being efficient (Random House Webster's)

Efficient: adj performing or functioning effectively with the least waste of time and effort

Take a good look at this envelope. I got it in the mail last week. What is so utterly bizarre about that? Check the date I mailed it. August 2014. It took over a year to be returned to me. Seems a little inefficient to me. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe the French post decided to walk it to the ocean (Pacific or Atlantic, take your pick, it really doesn't matter), then handed it to a sailor who had decided to break some world record for sailing a dinghy around the world, sticking it in a bottle (just in case, you know, it gets knocked overboard). Let's say that was good planning on the sailor's part and eventually it drifts ashore somewhere in the Americas (North or South, either works). A Canadian Goose (I went with North), liking the color, picks it up in his beak (evidence near the stamp) and flies South for the winter. The other birds became jealous and in order to protect himself, he flips it at a white milk truck. Only it isn't a milk truck, it's my mail carrier. Hooray, it finally finds itself back on my desk. 

If I asked any one of those people/geese if they could improve the process, what would be their response? What would be your response if I asked you if you could improve your writing process, trim some things, make the process more efficient? 

Is there an area where you spend too much time? (research, FB, email, games--I'm guilty of a few of those on any given day). What can you do to make your writing time (or even your 'free' time) more efficient? Commit to one little change. Even if it's tiny. And, as always, Write On my friends.

Perfection--Is It Worth the Effort?

Strawberry shortcake, Nadia Comaneci (1976), Randy Johnson (05/18/04), a 300 score in bowling... All signify perfection. Yes, strawberry shortcake is perfection. Ask my taste buds.

In church on Sunday, the speaker shared a story (and I tried to find it, but couldn't) about an experiment the military did. The test group first measured the strength of their individual grips. Under hypnosis, they were told they were weak and sick. Their grip strength was then measured, the results, predictably, were less than the initial measurement. Hypnotized again, they were told how strong they were. I'm sure you see where this is going: the results were considerably higher than the baseline measurement.

Do we choose to listen to the negative side of striving for perfection (it's not possible, so why try?), or do we continue to work hard to reach it and in doing so bypass our expectations and perceived abilities?

Which path will you choose? Learn all you can, strive to be perfect (even if it's just one area like grammar or time committed each day to perfecting your craft), and as always, Write On my friends!

Obstacles. What are yours?

Atsushi at the Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon is, no doubt, a masterpiece. Over millions of years, a river carved out this deep and colorful chasm. We do not have millions of years to build our masterpieces, but we do have obstacles in our winding path of creation.

Things that hold us back may range from poor use of our time to lacking self confidence to difficult seasons in our lives. But what is it you really want to do? What is one thing you can give up to do it?

A while ago, I read a fabulous book, Faithful, Fit, and Fabulous, by Connie Sokol. It changed how I saw my time and that I could make tiny changes that would have a significant impact. I had wanted to read to my children, but the time never seemed consistent or right. The bedtime routine went something like this: brush teeth, get in bed, mom hangs out playing on her phone while kids go to sleep. I decided that I would give up playing on my phone and read to them while they fell asleep. It wasn't that I suddenly had more time or a better time, it was that I gave up something I'd been doing for something that I really wanted. I found that it worked far better than I thought it would.

This week's challenge it to make one tiny change. What is it you really want? One tiny change--what will it be? 

#AmReading

I finished reading several books over the summer.

How about you? Did you get to escape on an amazing adventure within the cover of a book? I would love to know what your favorites were.

My favorites (and thus being, the ones I can highly recommend) were:

Kingdom of Ruses, by Kate Stradling

Tournament of Ruses, by Kate Stradling

Attractive Nuisance, by Jennifer Griffith

The Boardwalk Antiques Shop, (novellas) by Heather B. Moore, Julie Wright, and Melanie Jacobsen

and

Rising, by Holly Kelly

They're all clean with varying levels of romance. And not only clean, but I didn't want to put them down.

#AmReading: I'm currently reading All Hallow's Eve (novellas), by Heather B. Moore, Annette Lyon, Sarah M. Eden, Lisa Magnum, Elana Johnson, and Jordan McCollum. Loved the first story and can't wait to get into the rest...

Happy reading and as always, Write On, my friends (or maybe for this post I should say "Read On, my friends, Read On!").

Luck

In the temple of the giant Buddha in Nara, Japan, stands a large post with a tiny square hole cut in the bottom of it. If you are able to squeeze through, it is said to bring good luck.

In our stories, our characters sometimes get themselves into tight places. Like real people, our characters can't grow without some challenges. And like people, it isn't believable to have a character without a trial they have to face.

What's the worst thing that could happen in the scene you're writing? Write it. How do your characters respond? This will show what they're made of. Of course, we can't have pages and pages of difficult things without a break, without a shimmer of silver lining, without a little bit of luck. Weave both challenging situations and a bit of good fortune into your story and as always, Write On my friends.