Motivational Monday

THOSE WHO SAY IT CANNOT BE DONE

SHOULD NOT INTERRUPT THE PERSON DOING IT.

(Chinese Proverb)

Show this quote to all the people in your life who say you can't do something - write a book, complete NaNo, lose weight, run a marathon, start a business, move to another country. 

Show it to all those people who don't actually come out and say you can't do it but who obviously don't support you or encourage you or show any interest in this thing that is so important to you.

But most importantly, let's show this quote to ourselves, say it to ourselves, whenever we start to think we can't do it either. It has to start with us.

Motivational Monday

 EVEN IF YOU'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK,

YOU'LL GET RUN OVER IF YOU JUST SIT THERE.

(Will Rogers)

I'm a person who likes a good list. They make me feel organized and productive. However, making the list is not enough. It's good, it's a start, but it's not enough. I actually have to do the things on the list. It doesn't mean all that much to write "do laundry" and then not take the clothes from the hamper and put them in the washing machine, etc. It doesn't do a whole lot of good to list all the great story and novel ideas I have if I then close the notebook and walk away to watch TV.

Let's take some action this week. Let's walk a few steps or jog a bit down our tracks. Take in a new view. Breathe some new air. I think we'll be glad we did.

Motivational Monday

DON'T WORRY ABOUT FAILURE; 
WORRY ABOUT STALLING.

YOUR ART GETS BETTER AS YOU GO. 

JUST DON'T EVER USE THAT AS AN EXCUSE TO SETTLE.

(Jeff Goins)

I can stall with the best of them. Wait, wait, wait -  while the stars align, while I clean the house, while I make up the grocery list, while I put the laundry on. Let me just straighten my office, organize my files, make sure I have the right notebooks and colored index cards and pens. I just have to make sure the idea and the characters and the plot are all clear and sharp and perfect before I write it all down.  

It's often the stalling that stifles the art.

This week, let's not wait. Write down that great line of dialogue - even if it's on a dirty napkin. Take that photo - even if the light isn't perfect. Sketch out the image in your head - even if you can't really draw. Keep going, keep pushing, keep creating. Don't. Wait. 

Motivational Monday

 
THE THING UNDER MY BED WAITING TO GRAB MY ANKLE ISN'T REAL. I KNOW THAT, AND I ALSO KNOW THAT IF I'M CAREFUL TO KEEP MY FOOT UNDER THE COVERS, IT WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO GRAB MY ANKLE.

(Stephen King)

Amen, brother. Amen.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Motivational Monday

BE YOURSELF. 

ABOVE ALL, LET WHO YOU ARE,

WHAT YOU ARE, WHAT YOU BELIEVE, 

SHINE THROUGH EVERY SENTENCE YOU WRITE, 
EVERY PIECE YOU FINISH.

(John Jakes.)

I sometimes wonder if people who don't write understand how much of ourselves we put into our writing. I know there are some who look at flash, hint, Twitter fiction and think something along the lines of "It took her how long to write that?" or "That's not a real story." or "I could knock out one of those easy."  (That's similar to the "I could write a novel if I wanted to. How hard could it be?" bit.)

I used to defend myself, my writing, explaining how it takes time to find the true nugget of the story, to find the strongest, most powerful words to tell it in those tight parameters, etc. Now, I tend to just shrug and let my words speak for themselves.

Don't let anyone downplay what you do. This week - and always! - let your words speak for you and about you.  

Motivational Monday Quote

. . . WALK AWAY FROM THE 97%.

DON'T USE THEIR VOCABULARY,

DON'T USE THEIR EXCUSES.

DON'T USE THEIR METHOD OF DRIFT AND NEGLECT.

WALK AWAY, JOIN THE 3%.

TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR OWN LIFE.

(Darren Hardy)

This is sort of the answer to last week's quote. If you want "uncommon outcomes" and "extraordinary achievements," you have to do and think differently than the majority, than the 97%.

What if instead of watching as much as TV as the people we know, we use that time to exercise (if we want to lose weight)? What if instead of spending hours social networking, we jot notes for that novel idea (if we want to write a book)? What if instead of gossiping on the phone, we take a class (if we want to learn a new language, a new skill, meet new people)?

It still boggles my mind that this is easier said than done. Wouldn't you think that "taking charge of your own life" would be a given? Maybe for some people it is. (If you're out there, please stop by and share your secret.)

As for the rest of us, let's put ourselves in that 3% - some how, some way - this week. We can do it!

Motivational Monday Quote

LISTEN TO YOUR OWN TASTES. 

BE PREPARED TO BE UNPOPULAR. 

WHAT'S POPULAR IS WHAT'S COMMON. 
DO WHAT'S COMMON, YOU GET COMMON RESULTS (AKA MEDIOCRITY.)

YOU ARE LOOKING FOR UNCOMMON OUTCOMES, 

EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENTS.

(Darren Hardy)

Permission to be unpopular? To be uncommon, unusual? To want, to do, to be, something and someone different?

Not that we actually need permission, of course, but boy, it's sure nice to have that recognition, that encouragement, isn't it?

(This Motivational Monday Quote is actually part of a longer one, so please come back next week for the rest of it.)

Motivational Monday Quote

A PAINTING IS NEVER FINISHED - IT

SIMPLY STOPS IN INTERESTING PLACES.

(Paul Gardner)

I enjoy art that goes off the canvas/page, that's not necessarily contained by borders. I like to imagine the paint, or whatever the medium, reaching and stretching off into the distance, continuing its journey in whatever direction it needs to go. The artist may have to work within physical borders - and so has to stop, to "finish" - but the art itself can go on. 

Now substitute poetry/stories/novels for paintings. As writers, our words are concrete and set within pages or a screen, but our stories travel farther and wider than we can ever imagine. Our job is to take the story as far as we can, to take it to "an interesting place," and then step back, step away and let it fly. 

Let's take the stories we write, the stories we read, this week and "continue" them. Imagine the characters are living and working in an alternate universe, see the seasons change around them, answer the story questions that maybe weren't answered to your satisfaction and maybe ask some new ones. The story ended in one "interesting place" - let's take it to another.

     

Motivational Monday Quote

IF YOUR SUCCESS IS NOT ON YOUR OWN TERMS,

IF IT LOOKS GOOD TO THE WORLD BUT DOES NOT FEEL GOOD IN YOUR HEART, IT IS NOT SUCCESS AT ALL.

(Anna Quindlen)

I was pretty sure my life would look different than most of the people I knew. Not that there was anything wrong with what anyone had or did; it just didn't feel right to me, for me. It felt like I was wearing a heavy coat that was too big, that pulled me down, that made my shoulders slump and sag. 

I struggled and shrugged and wormed my way out of that coat. And once I was out...I was cold and scared and kinda lonely. I had no pre-formed ladder of success to climb, no one to follow, and little encouragement. But I knew I was doing the right thing.

So I set to work building my own ladder of success - okay, it's rickety and sometimes it goes horizontal instead of vertical but it's all mine. I look for and find people who live and believe and strive the way I do, the way I want to. And encouragement? Support?  Have you met my husband? :) 

When I worry that I'll never "make it," that my novels will never be on bookstore shelves, my husband reminds me that even if those things never happen, I'm already a success because I live my life on my own terms, I live my life pursuing my passion. 

What does success mean to you? Define it for yourself today, this week and start living it, or keep living it, and know we're all with you.

Motivational Monday Quote

 
BEING A WRITER IS LIKE HAVING HOMEWORK

EVERY NIGHT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.

(Lawrence Kasdan)

And the nerdy girl-geek inside of me screams deliriously, "Whoo hoo! Yeh, homework!" 

(Are any of you really that surprised?) 

Motivational Monday Quote

I LEARNED, WHEN HIT BY LOSS,

TO ASK THE RIGHT QUESTION: "WHAT NEXT?"

INSTEAD OF "WHY ME?"

(Julia Cameron)

So simple and yet...so not easy to do.

Motivational Monday Quote

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FICTION AND REALITY?

FICTION HAS TO MAKE SENSE.

(Tom Clancy)

This is something I struggle with in my own writing. I've had my work - novel manuscripts - critiqued by professionals and one of the things the majority of them say, independently of each other, is why. "Why would she do that?" "I don't understand why he did that." "Why would someone react that way?" 

To me, it usually makes perfect sense why my characters do what they do but when I step back, out of my world and into the real one, and I look at the story, the characters, the motivation, the stakes with a more objective eye, I see what they're saying. 

It doesn't mean things can't happen randomly - they do in real life, all the time - but the actions we take, the decisions our characters make have to be true to the circumstances and to the person. I've read books where the characters do some weird things and make some odd choices  - things I probably wouldn't do - but I keep reading because it all makes sense in the story.

Let's get real with our writing today.

Motivational Monday Quote

WHEN IT COMES TO BEING MASTER OF YOUR LIFE,

YOU ARE NEVER GOING TO FEEL LIKE DOING

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO.

(Mel Robbins)

I know, this sounds sort of depressing but it actually makes me feel better. Why? Because it means I'm not crazy (not in that way, at least) and I'm not alone. How many times have you said to yourself, "I know I should...[fill in the blank] - eat better, exercise, get up when the alarm clock goes off, control my temper, be nicer, clean the house, watch less TV, spend more time on actual writing and not the trappings that go along with writing, etc."

At least we're trying. At least we're striving. To do better, to be better - in our craft, in our lives, for ourselves and for those we love. And even though it's difficult, even though failure hurts and that fall is a hard one, I'd still rather continue to try, to strive, to learn, to grow, to challenge myself than to just drift along and watch my dreams and potential drift right along with me.

This week, let's do something we need to do, even if we don't feel like it. We'll be better off for it. 

Motivational Monday Quote

IT'S EASY TO STIR THE MIND,

BUT IT DOESN'T WORK IF YOU DON'T

STIR THE HEART.

(Harlan Coben)

This explains the reason why I put down a book:  I don't care. I don't care about the characters. The plot can be twisty and intriguing and complex but if I don't care - somehow, someway - about the people who are on that wild ride, then none if it matters to me.  

I started a book the other day by a pretty popular author. It was a mystery/thriller with an interesting plot. I read about 25 pages or so, then put the book down. I couldn't get behind the characters. I was supposed to like them. I wanted to like them. But I didn't. They felt stereotypical and flat and...forced. I'm not saying I have to like all the characters - or even the protagonist. I've read a handful of books where I didn't care for the main character but there was still something about that person that made me want to see what happened to them, made me want to see how it all turned out.

I want characters who are so real, it's as if every time I look up from the page, they've just left the room. Today, this week, in general - let's write those stories, let's write those books.

Motivational Monday Quote

WE DO NOT STOP PLAYING BECAUSE

WE GROW OLD; 

WE GROW OLD BECAUSE WE STOP PLAYING.

(Ben Franklin)

 I just got back from spending some time with my nephew, B, and my niece, T, and boy, did we play! We played and played and played. I'm not sure who had more fun, them or my husband or me. Okay, it was me (although my husband might disagree.)

When I play with the kids, I really play. I run around. I blow bubbles. I play board games and I play with cars and dolls. I go to story time at the library where we make crafts and pick out books and we read, read, read. The couch becomes a pool and whales swim beneath the playground bridge. Sometimes, we are robots or monsters or horses or babies and yet, I am more myself when I play than I am at pretty much any other time. Except for when I'm writing. 

Now go play! 

(But watch out for that sea monster throw pillow. Hurry! Jump to the armchair... Whew! You made it.)

 

Motivational Monday Quote

I CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT BOOKS.

(Thomas Jefferson)

 

Neither can I. How else would I learn things and meet people and entertain myself and... Oh, yeah. I guess I could go outside and do all those things.

Nah. I'd rather read.

Go ahead. Stay home and live.

Motivational Monday Quote

MANY OF LIFE'S FAILURES ARE PEOPLE WHO 

DID NOT REALIZE HOW CLOSE THEY WERE TO

SUCCESS WHEN THEY GAVE UP.

(Thomas Edison)

I know I need to think of this as: 

I finish my novel.

I revise it. And revise it again. And again. 

I craft a pitch.

I write a query.

I develop a synopsis.

I send them all out into the world. And send them out again. And again.

I write my next novel. I revise it. And revise it...

Hmm, maybe it would be easier to just stencil this quote on the walls of my office...

Let's not be one of "life's failures" this week. Let's keep going!

Motivational Monday Quote

DON'T ASK WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS.

ASK WHAT MAKES YOU COME ALIVE, AND GO DO IT.

BECAUSE WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS IS PEOPLE

WHO HAVE COME ALIVE.

(Howard Thurman)

For me, that's writing. Don't get me wrong, lots of other things make me happy and excited about life. But writing (and stories, books, reading) feel as much a part of me as my blood and bones and breath. 

What makes you come alive? Are you doing it? Why...or why not?   

Motivational Monday Quote

BEING A REAL WRITER MEANS BEING ABLE TO

DO THE WORK ON A BAD DAY.

(Norman Mailer)

What he said. 

If you're having a bad day - or week, or month, etc. - hang in there. You're doing what you're meant to be doing. If writing (or whatever your craft is) was easy, everyone would do it.  

Motivational Monday Quote

THE ELEVATOR TO SUCCESS IS OUT OF ORDER.

YOU'LL HAVE TO USE THE STAIRS...

ONE STEP AT A TIME.

(Joe Girard)

And let me tell you, that is one steep staircase. 

I'm about halfway through Camp NaNoWriMo and I feel like I'm on one of those stair climber machines at the gym. I am going nowhere fast. Not even fast. It's more like I am going nowhere slow. 

But you know what? It's not really "nowhere." I'm going somewhere - I am going farther and further into my novel. Each step is a word, a sentence, a character revelation, a plot twist. All of these steps might be part of a gigantic, winding, movable staircase with lots of landings but I know if I just keep going, one step at a time, I'll reach the top. Eventually. And I know, without a doubt, that the view from up there will be breathtaking.   

Join me, won't you? We can yank each other up a flight or maybe give a strong shove from behind. Let's all just keep moving!