The Writing Spirit

I have writing friends who, after a certain amount of rejection, pulled their necks into their shells and turned out the lights. I'm hoping and praying to see them emerge again, healed however they needed healing—stronger, better equipped to focus on the things that matter.

Others are playing the waiting game while Powers That Be take their own sweet time to make a decision on whether or not they're willing to give a green light to a new project. Still others are taking what they've learned, re-girding their efforts and plowing ahead, immersing themselves in creating something wonderful.

Writers need to write. When our spirit flags, sometimes we need to be reminded to write.

We need to follow our hearts.








CR: Caught by Harlan Coben.

It's all better with friends.

Deliberate Practice

I'm not sure where I learned about a book called Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else by Geoff Colvin, but I'm glad I did.

One of the factors that seem to separate the "good enough" from the "great" is something researchers call deliberate practice. I'm trying to figure out what, exactly, deliberate practice is.

Colvin: "It definitely isn't what most of us do on the job every day, which begins to explain the great mystery of the workplace—why we're surrounded by so many people who have worked hard for decades but have never approached greatness. Deliberate practice is also not what most of us do when we think we're practicing golf or the oboe or any of our other interests. Deliberate practice is hard. It hurts. But it works. More of it equals better performance. Tons of it equals great performance."

In the video below, Stephen Cannell tells us what we hear all the time, "Write every day." He even gives a little hint about what might happen with our skill set if we do.

Writing every day isn't an issue for me. Doing the right kind of writing can be. I'm hoping that by studying Talent Is Overrated, I can tap into that well of passion I need in order to do something every day that hurts. If I shoot for the moon, I might at least land among the stars.








CR: On Edge by Barbara Fister

It's all better with friends.

The Twelfth Day of Christmas: A Gift for Writers

Okay. So don't come knocking on my door if I don't get all twelve days done. Deal?

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, the knowledge I must Write Every Day.

My writing, my own words, my own mistakes, are how I learn. Usually it takes the eyes of someone I trust (a critique partner; an editor) to see the mistakes I make that I catch easily in someone else's work, but never my own.

But first, I must write.

Write my heart out. Write my guts out. Don't take my normal route and say, "Well, I need to clean this, or I need to cook dinner, or I need to run errands." Just don't.

Just Do It. Just Write.

Let's make this a battle cry for 2009.

WRITE!

Every single day, I will string some words together. (Emails and thank-you notes don't count any more than my grocery list.) Every single day, I will pour some of my poor, sad soul into words I can edit and use as a base for something better.

Every single day, I will write.

It doesn't matter where I am in the learning curve. Writing will make me a better writer. Stringing words together will show me how to apply what I've been shown. (Show vs. Tell works in more than one way.)

I will listen to the guidance from those I trust and I will apply it to my WRITING. If it feels right, it stays. If not, it's outtahere.

But regardless, I will write every day.



CR: Picking something new tonight . . . but I totally enjoyed the Robert Crais, The Two Minute Rule. The plot was tight, the characterization developed, and the writing, next to brilliant.

It's all better with friends.