My 7th grader suffered through another skiing lesson yesterday. While her little sister was labeled "a bullet," my eldest was called "meticulous," which is simply code for slow, and far too cautious. With two spine surgeries in the past five years, she has good reason to be timid, but will she ever be able to ski? Learning to ski takes a bit of risk-taking and a willingness to fall, over and over again. I learned to ski by following my more-skilled friends, straight down the mountain, and crashing, often spectacularly, at the bottom of the hill. Once I even got stuck in a small tree for more than 30 minutes! I've approached writing the same way. I just plunge into a new novel and write, write, write, often without rereading until the thing is done. And, yeah, sometimes I crash spectacularly (although I have yet to relive that stuck in a small tree experience). But I revise and revise and most of the time those risks turn into good writing. I've also suffered through lots and lots of rejection by sending my manuscripts out to those mean old slush piles. I think writing takes a certain amount of risk-taking. You've got to risk writing something honest (and that can be scarier than a double-black diamond ski run). You also have to risk rejection--sometimes for years and years. Writing is not for the timid. I know far too many talented writers who spend years revising their work--hoping to achieve the kind of perfection that might protect them from painful rejection. That's just not possible. To find success, you have to risk falling. So go out there, fellow writers and take risks! At least when you fall in your writing, you can't break your leg. Tags: inspiration
Current Mood:  hopeful
Current Music: NPR--is that music?
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sydney_salter's journal
curious
