Writers are notorious complainers. The rejection is hard to swallow and the waiting tantamount to waterboarding. I’ve plastered positive idioms all over my vision board and I meditate upon them each time a pass (aka rejection) comes across my email.
But sometimes I ask myself, Heather, what are you doing?
Are you nuts?
Why are you blogging each week?
Shouldn’t you be concentrating on selling a few more houses?
Isn’t the obsessing over your writer’s Facebook page and Twitter account getting old?
Can you please relax about getting a book contract?
Silence! I tell myself lest you sound like a major complainer. Plus, I hate whiners. I’m more of the Just Do It Nike school of thought.
And most of the time I do—just do it.
But this writing business is hard. And breaking in is even harder. It can wear a person down.
In a few of my blog posts, I’ve hinted at my middle-aged-chasing-a-dream-angst (Do You Dread Birthdays?). My mom tells me to persevere. My best friend insists that I never give up.
When I think about it, maybe they’re right.
Someone has to create the art.
Why not me?
If every person who had an idea, a poem, a play, or a painting hid her labors, there’d be no art in the world. It would be a bland place.
But it is nice to get some validation. Part of being a writer is having a reader. A great response on a blog post makes my week. A poor one puts me in a grumpy mood. When someone comments on one of my articles, gives it a LIKE on Facebook or a tweet on Twitter, or sends me a private message, I think, Okay, maybe I’m not nuts. Maybe I do have something worthwhile to say.
So is that why I’m doing this? To get a Facebook LIKE?
Yes and no.
There’s more.
One of my favorite recent books is Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker. It’s a beautiful coming of age tale about girl who’s living many years in the future and the earth’s rotation has gone out of whack. The days are longer as are the nights. Everything starts to die but life goes on, too. At one point, there’s a tender scene in which the girl and the boy she loves come across a sidewalk of wet concrete. They carve a message into the pavement. But the reader doesn’t know what they write until the last line of the book:
We dipped our fingers in the wet cement, and we wrote the truest, simplest things we knew—our names, the date, and these words: We were here.
My blog and my novel are my wet concrete. Each week I leave a little of myself on the sidewalk—this is what my life was like and my family’s life, too. Maybe thousands of years from now cyber anthropologists, picking through the remnants of the World Wide Web, will find my humble blog and, in turn, understand a little about our time.
They loved their kids.
They worried about their weight.
They sold houses.
They made chicken for dinner.
They were lovers.
They (this family in particular) spent a lot of time at sporting events.
But even in the midst of everyday life, they still attempted to create.
Those futuristic scientists will recognize the same strand of humanity in me that they feel in themselves—it will be a thread connecting us in time and space—a sliver of immortality. Maybe through my weekly scribblings, we’ll be linked in human consciousness, in our collective unresolved need to make sense of why we’re here.
Yup, you might think I’m crazy. And that’s okay. Writing feels good.
So when things aren’t going quite right. And it seems like I am writing in vain, that maybe the hopes and dreams I have for my work won’t go beyond my tiny space on the internet, I remind myself why I’m doing this.
Because I was here.
On earth.
For a short time.
And I was trying to make my life count.
To put my drop in the bucket of what it means to be human.
 * * *
We are at our very best, and we are happiest, when we are fully engaged in work we enjoy on the journey toward the goal we’ve established for ourselves. It gives meaning to our time off and comfort to our sleep. It makes everything else in life so wonderful, so worthwhile. – Earl Nightingale
What will your legacy be?
Your children? Your work? Your art?Â
Share.Â
***
P.S. That book I’d been working on for eight years? Well, it finally found its way into the world.
Read the first three chapters of my novel, WHAT THE VALLEY KNOWS, HERE. I hope you love it enough to want to buy the book. Find it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Black Rose Writing. Happy reading!
“A taut, compelling family tale.” Kirkus Reviews
Till next time,
Heather 🙂
Heather! Beautiful and poignant sentiment. You’ve been able to capture what is in so many artists’ souls: the desire, passion, pain and angst of creating. AoM is one of my all-time favorite books. Thanks for pointing out the relevance of that scene to our lives. That’s what literature is about–helping us make sense of our own lives. I”ve been regrouping for a couple of days away from home to gather up new resolve for my writing and this post has put an exclamation point on my weekend. Thank you thank you thank you.
Thank you, Lisa! Sometimes it’s hard to justify spending so much time on our creative endeavors with the responsibilities of daily life. But it’s a calling! To ignore it would make us frauds.
Reading your blog is something I look forward to and want to share with the world! You make me laugh, cry, wonder and feel determined every Sunday morning!
Sometimes a kind word or small encouragement is all we need to keep working toward a goal. Relish in those moments!!!!! It’s the small joys that make up a beautiful life. It’s also the small accomplishments that lead to achieving dreams.
You got this!!!!!!!!!
Thanks, Darla! Your encouragement fortifies me! And thank you for spreading the word about my blog and sharing it with your friends.
Reading your Sunday blog is becoming something I look forward to, as I complete my other Sunday morning readings. We dont always accomplishe what we set out to do. We dont always get rewarded for things that we have done. Wether you become a successful writer or not, is not as important as the fact that you tried. I happen to think you will succeed. The important fact is that you are not going to quit. You keep doing what you love. That in it self breeds success. I remember when I got into the real estate business. For the first year I was a complete failure. On the verge of quitting. My DNA. Would notlet me. Down to my last bit of money it happen…the rest is history as they say. So in the words of Jimmy Valvano “dont give up , dont ever give up “
Leon, thank you for your continued support of my writing, your cheerful encouragement, and your wise advice. I hope you are well.
As always, you DO have something to say to the world, Heather.
Love the inspiration to keep going toward our dreams.
Hugs,
Cathy
Thanks, Cathy! Write on, my sister-in-arms.
I am very moved by today’s blog. You color my world every Sunday morning and for that, I am glad you are here. Oh, the ties that bind! I am still sorting my ‘spewed’ writing and need a break. I just bought some watercolors because I have this desire to paint birds. Why? Who knows?
Start your next book, kiddo!
Geri, thank you! Sometimes we need to take a break from our writing. When I feel that way, I dive into my knitting. Watercolors sound like the perfect solution.
With so much focus today on STEM, I appreciate your support of and participation in the arts. Keep on pushing STEAM whether with words, recipes, water color, or any other form of the arts. (Personally, I doubt that digital texts will survive as long as paper texts–because technology changes so frequently–so I hope you are keeping a paper copy of your writings.)
Good advice, Joanne! I should print out my posts and make a journal for my kids. Long live the arts!
This was amazing mom!!
Thank you, Sweetie!
Heather, you are an inspiration in your forthright and heartfelt dedication to what is essential in your everyday. Kudos, sister blogger. With appreciation.
Thanks, Faye! Write on, my fellow blogger.😊
This blog made me sob -so moving
Thanks, Mom…you’re always my biggest fan. I’m not sure if you are entirely objective though!
Heather, I totally look forward to your Sunday blog! Please keep doing it!
Oh, Teri! Thank you for reading💕
Well done Heather! Succinctly summarizing an essential element of the human condition.
Thank you, Barry!
Hey I really enjoyed your view points. I love how you speak from the heart. I was looking for a piece you wrote about @wesmoore for @grownandflown and stumble on to this read: it made me smile….”she gets it!, that’s exactly how I feel”….I love the metaphor Wet Cement, that’s beautiful…keep doing you.
Thanks, Godfrey! You’ve made my evening with your kind words.
Here’s the link to Wes Moore piece: http://grownandflown.com/teenage-son-hated-reading/
Your most welcome and it’s well deserved! Thank you for the Wes Moore article also.
Yes! This is one of my favorites of yours!
Thanks, Amy! Write on, my friend.
I am one of your admirers . .. keep writing. I always look forward to weekly blog.
Thank you, Sue!
Well Heather, I remember telling you a couple of years ago that I really appreciated the way you expressed your feelings when you wrote several articles for RBAR. But in this writing you sum up the feelings of many people who make constant efforts to succeed in so many endeavors in their lives. It’s easy to have that feeling, “Will I ever achieve my desired results?” To this I say, “If you ever actually believe that you have, then you’ve given up!” And I don’t ever see you doing that.
Many years ago, I had a buyer in my industrial sales career who had a simple calendar on his wall. It had a water color illustration of Hannibal crossing the Alps on the backs of elephants. There was a quotation below that I have never forgotten. “I will find a way … or make one.” Nearly every human I’ve ever known has had the desire for approval and validation. So, your pining for further success is so human. That in itself is validation. Never stop going Forward!
Norm, thanks for reading and sharing your wisdom. I love the quote, “I will find a way or make one.”