As Dreamers Do...

"When you wish upon a star,

makes no difference who you are,
anything your heart desires will come to you.

If your heart is in your dreams,

no request is too extreme,

when you wish upon a star as dreamers do." -- Music by Leigh Harline / Lyrics by Ned Washington

Faith is the light that brightens our darkest moments. We need faith to stay true to our vision no matter what.

I spent my wild high-school years in Orange County, Southern California. I adored Hollywood but my true home was Disneyland, the enchanted land where magical dreams come true. Walt Disney was an innovator, a pioneer and an unabashed dreamer who fueled his vision with a sense of optimism that would not be dimmed no matter how many clouds darkened the skies. We have only to consider his fantastic legacy to realize just how far we can go if we hold fast to our dreams and let faith in our destiny guide our way.

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." ~~Walt Disney

Ah, courage. Yikes. It's one thing to bask in the lovely fantasy of being a best-selling author, signing books (not to mention contracts!), and quite another to scrape up the courage to tackle each phase.

The Dreaded Synopsis.

The Horror of Endless Editing.

The Revision That Would not Die.

The Curse of the Unwoven Subplot.

Each and every aspect of our budding career requires us to believe. To have faith. And to have the courage to tackle the inevitable fear that arises when those clouds roll in. We may chide ourselves for our procrastination—our innate talent for avoidance. Yet the issue often runs deeper than we realize. We need to remember that it really is scary out there. As budding authors, we're confronting the Great Unknown.

Imagine your fingers are the shaking legs of your inner self, and you're pushing, saying, "Go ahead, step off that cliff. It'll be fine. Trust me."

Of course it will be fine but our quaking fears don't know that. Yet. That's why we need to keep moving forward. We need to push ourselves a little bit further each time.

Remember the first time you rode a bike? Remember the wobble and pitch, the fear of crashing? Ah, but the terror of balancing on those thin wheels fades with repetition. The quaking panic of being a writer also dwindles the more we write. Before you know it, you’re steering through plot twists, climbing mountains and changing gears with ease!

"If you can dream it, you can do it." --Walt Disney

Anything we want to achieve, we can. That's the secret all successful people share. Action is the vehicle to make our dreams come true. However, it does no good to visualize without taking action. You can sit on your lawn all you want, visualizing cut grass. Those blades will continue to grow until you get out the mower.

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." --Walt Disney

Hah! Aye, there's the rub, eh? There's a huge difference between wanting and doing. Discipline is required. As is Focus and Determination. Those books won't write themselves. Dang it. *heh-heh*

"When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable." --Walt Disney

No half-measures. No "I sort of think that maybe I might just be able to write if the heavens open up and give me a sign and the weather cooperates and every circumstance happens just right. Maybe."

Say it. "I'm A Published Writer."

Believe it. “I Am A Published Writer.”

Then… make it happen. How? Writer's write. They persist. They push. They don't let up. Ever.

Keep writing, keep querying, keep perfecting your art. Seek out and utilize critique partners. Pay attention to the craft of every book written by the authors you love. Hold fast to your dream, keep the bright vision of your success like a beacon in the night and You Will Make It Happen.

“Somehow I can’t believe there are many heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making dreams come true. This special secret can be summarized in four C’s. They are: curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of these is confidence.” –Walt Disney

The four C's. This formula works quite well for writers, wouldn’t you say?

Curiosity. What might happen if a shy, awkward girl with psychic powers was cruelly tormented by high school bullies? Stephen King wondered just that and his curiosity propelled him to pen the bestselling novel, Carrie. A maddening sense of curiosity is vital for an author. Let your curious nature propel you to discover answers, truths and more questions that any reader has ever imagined.

Courage. Six hundred is the number of rejections Jack London piled up before his books found acceptance. Madeleine L’Engle was turned down twenty-nine times and Rudyard Kipling was told he didn’t know how to use the English language. Clan of the Cave Bear, The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, Valley of the Dolls, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, any of these books sound familiar? They were all rejected and if not for the persistence of their authors, we would never have heard of them at all.

Constancy. Be relentless in your quest. Successful writers continue to write, continue to query, continue to strive to reach their goals. There’s no room for second-guessing. Clear out any doubts that clutter your mind. When needed, seek out other writers to offer encouragement and support. Doubts can strike fear in every writer so trust me, you’re not alone. Be determined to stay true to your course no matter how the winds might blow.

The most useful of all traits to add to your writer’s toolbox is Confidence. You must believe because you are, and you will be, exactly what you believe you can be. The old saying was, "I'll believe it when I see it." Let’s rewrite that to be more realistic. “I am a success and I'll see it when I believe it."

“Get a good idea and stay with it. Dog it, and work at it until it's done right.” –Walt Disney

Plug away and keep the focus. We all start with a cool idea. We type feverishly until we've carved out an incredible story. Invest endless hours of editing. Only to be hit with the critiques. Back to work on the new revisions. Uh-oh, now comes the realization that a subplot needs to be expanded or doesn't work or drops off… and what the heck happened to Scruffy the dog in Chapter Three anyway???

We begin with the barest wisp of notion. Out of that tiny, almost imperceptible seed a full-grown story blossoms. Amazing. Freaking Amazing. Truly it seems impossible, when we think about it. What started out as letters became words. What began as words became a sentence. Out of the heart of our imagination sprang a tale.

“It's kind of fun to do the impossible.” –Walt Disney.

Yeah, Walt. I'm with you on that one.

Have a great week, everyone! Dare the Impossible. Dare to Dream. Even more importantly, Dare to WRITE!

See you next week!

--Chiron O’Keefe

Also featured at Pop Culture Divas and Between the Lines.

Embracing the "No Way" Factor

"Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away… Now it looks as though they're here to stay. Oh, I believe in yesterday…" (Lennon/McCartney)

With all due respect to Paul McCartney, I prefer to believe in Today. Even better, I want to believe in Tomorrow. Every word I type in the present is transported into a magical future, which is still yet a dream. The essay I'm composing will be read tomorrow or Monday or maybe next Friday. A new WIP will take months to finish and weeks more to edit. We can forget in the tedium of the effort involved how miraculous tomorrow can and will be, especially if we lose sight of the magic in our words. There's something to be said for introducing Optimism to Risk-Taking and discovering how amazing this collaboration can be.

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore." –André Gide

Every writer goes through it. A manic-depressive swing depending on where the story is at. When we're in the zone, the words fly, the ideas are so thick they infiltrate our dreams and we can't type fast enough. When we're stuck with a plot point or drowning with too many choices, we can unfortunately be quite unbearable. My favorite image (which I'm embarrassed to say is only slightly exaggerated) is of me dashing through the house, hands waving in the air, while I shriek, "I'm a hack!"

Ups and downs. Highs and lows. Welcome to the wonderful world of writing.

"You can do anything you think you can. This knowledge is literally the gift of the gods, for through it you can solve every human problem. It should make of you an incurable optimist. It is the open door." --Robert Collier

No matter how many times we go over it, the truth always bears repeating. Our thoughts shape our world. At the very least, they shape our perception of our world and perception really is everything.

"A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes." –Mahatma Gandhi

Studies are ongoing in regards to mapping the brain and proving repeatedly that Positive Beliefs Work. Science has taken it a step further, revealing that thinking about accomplishing a task lights up the same region of the brain as the actual activity. Even more exciting, visualizing that finish line (in whatever race we're facing) seems to carve a pathway in our brain that leads to success. Scientific proof for what has been a tenet of every successful person's philosophy for eons: Positive Thinking Leads to Success.

"Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness." –Oprah Winfrey

It's good to be the queen!

Truth is, there are no safe routes or any way to assure a life free of troubles and pain. Life is messy and filled with complications. Since we're going to get out hands dirty anyways, why not go for it?

"The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one." ~Elbert Hubbard, The Note Book, 1927

There's an endless variety of methods people utilize to move past writer's block or procrastination or (let's call it what it is, folks) Fear. Yet each and every method ends up at the same place. Sooner or later, you have to plop yourself down, whether in front of a computer or with pen in hand, and write. Why? Obviously, if you don't write it's all over but there's more. This is the horse you've fallen from. The longer you wait, the greater and more fearsome this beast will appear to be. Don't hesitate. Grab the reins and let the words take you for a ride. Don't concern yourself yet with deciding whether the prose is brilliant or prosaic. That's what editing is for.

And keep this in mind: The only writers who don't make mistakes are those who don't write. That's my quote and I'm standing by it.

"If you're not failing every now and again, it's a sign you're not doing anything very innovative." --Woody Allen

Why play it safe? Safety is for wusses.

I read this brilliant post on the BookEnds blog by Angie Fox, author of "The Accidental Demon Slayer." Her words are so good I'm going to re-post them here along with a link to the complete article.

The post is called Angie Fox: Three Things I Had to Do in Order to Sell. She speaks of the steps involved with taking her writing to the next level. To get from 'almost there' to SOLD. Here's the first segment (may it whet your appetite for more):

The “No Way” Factor:

"My characters had to take bigger chances, have more to risk and lose. It’s easy to say, but a hard thing for a writer to do. It’s a vulnerable, risky place to be. I knew my story was big enough to sell when instead of ending my writing sessions thinking, “I hope that’s good enough to impress an editor,” I ended them thinking, “No. I did not just write that. I did not just make my character defend herself with a toilet brush and a can of Purple Prairie Clover air freshener.”

Taking risks can lead you into unexpected places, and even better… it transforms your perspective of writing from an effort to an adventure. Plus, from a purely practical point of view, when our writing excites us, our enthusiasm will spark a flame within the hearts of our readers too.

"I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark burn out in a brilliant blaze than it be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet." --Jack London (Note: London received upward of 600 rejections before publication)

So, this week's motivation is two-fold: Keep Believing and Take Risks. Those two qualities go together like books and readers.

And remember…

"If you wish to be a writer, write." --- Epictetus

Thanksgiving is just around the corner with Christmas and New Year's a mere breath away. Let's keep the energy up and make this next week count!
Remember all books are written One Page At A Time.

--Chiron O'Keefe

Also featured at Pop Culture Divas and Between the Lines.

The Path of Persistence…

"I handed in a script last year and the studio didn't change one word. The word they didn't change was on page 87." --Steve Martin

There is nothing more eye opening to the Real Business of writing than handing over your manuscript to a professional editor. Or, even worse, entering a contest and having your entry trashed by an anonymous judge. Ouch!

We've all felt it. The sting of rejection. The reason this hurts so very much is because we become attached to our words. We slave over them, take pride in them, feel a special glow when we reread them. Every artist shares this. Once a well-meaning hairstylist gave me a 'do which she thought would absolutely make my singer-songerwriter persona. When she spun me proudly around to face the mirror, I saw my hair shooting out like spikes. I made the mistake of bursting out with laughter (to my credit, it did seem kinder than bursting into tears).

Yet we ARE writers. Real writers. Which means, once we experience that slap in the face (and it really does feel like that, doesn't it?), we pick ourselves up, collect our pages and start polishing once again.

"Real writers recognize the words they cut are as vital as the words they leave in." –Chiron O'Keefe

We get our hands dirty, so to speak. Real writers don't back away from the tedious and messy task of revisions. Some love this part (I'm one) and some would rather poke their eyes out with a burning stick. What fills me with awe are those writers who hate revising and still they tackle it without hesitation. Bravo to you, I say!! Take a well-deserved bow. Considering all the souls in the world dedicated to procrastination and avoidance, You Are A Winner.

"In going where you have to go, and doing what you have to do, and seeing what you have to see, you dull and blunt the instrument you write with. But I would rather have it bent and dull and know I had to put it on the grindstone again and hammer it into shape and put a whetstone to it, and know I had something to write about, than to have it bright and shining and nothing to say, or smooth and well-oiled in the closet, but unused." --Ernest Hemingway

Truth is, "natural born" talent is overrated. As a musician, I speak from experience. As a teen, I remember being awestruck by the talent of two girls. They could play music, write songs, and harmonize, everything I yearned to do. Well, decades later, I am the far superior musician. Why? Because they never went further than their initial talent took them. While I (who had NO TALENT to speak of) persisted and pushed to reach a level of expertise. Every week I keep learning more. As far as I'm concerned, I haven't reached my pinnacle yet! They skated on their fluency and stayed there.

Persistence, dedication and passion will take you further than "natural born" talent ever will. The passion must spring from a desperate need to for self-expression. It's not enough to want to write, you must burn with desire to Tell Your Story Your Way.

"A book must be the axe for the frozen sea inside us." --Franz Kafka

"You can't wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club." --Jack London

"Fiction is a lie, and good fiction is the truth inside the lie." --Stephen King

Axes and clubs! Writing is brutal stuff. As we scribble pads or tap keys searching for the truth in our story, we must persist. Take heart though, because the rewards are unparalleled.

You Are A Writer.

You Create Worlds Within Each Story You Pen.

"I admire anybody who has the guts to write anything at all." -E.B. White

So do I… *grin*

Here we are entering the last week of August. Summer will soon be a memory as the leaves transform into brilliant bursts of gold and scarlet, reminding us of autumn's approach. Enjoy those lingering rays of sunshine, my friends, then… Back To Writing! *smile*

Ready for goals?

I finally finished my tentative outline. *faints* Thank Goddess!!

So… writing this week. Shooting for fifteen pages.
My weekly essay.
Four chapter crit.
Might be pulling out my second book for revising too.

How's about you?

Go-go-GO! Write-write-WRITE!!

--Chiron