We Create Magic

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be. ~Douglas Adams

For many of us, writing is a happy accident. Whether we meticulously plot out every scene in advance or jump into the fray with a vague idea (knowing our future self will be in charge of editing out the dreck), we often find that our best writing is a surprise to ourselves. Hopefully, to our readers as well.

That's where faith comes into the picture. We need to trust that somewhere in the caverns of our unconscious the story resides in full. Like the proverbial block of marble, the completed book already exists—we need to carve away what Isn't the story to find it.

"Like an old gold-panning prospector, you must resign yourself to digging up a lot of sand from which you will later patiently wash out a few minute particles of gold ore." ~Dorothy Bryant

Outlining, editing, revising, querying… Work-work-work, where's the fun? Yup, being a writer isn't the happy-go-lucky traipse through springtime flowers we imagine when we first begin tapping those keys. *sigh* Ah, but the rewards are indescribable. As our unique tale emerges, we delight in how smooth the story feels, how solid the sculpture appears, how grand and glorious it is to be a writer! There's no denying the effort involved yet... what an amazing triumph.


Whether the story snaps in at eleven pages or stretches for three hundred and fifty, You Have Created A New World.

A world where characters gasp and giggle, struggle and strive, kiss and snuggle, and dare to prevail against dire odds. You Create Magic. Which is why writers more than anyone understand the element of surprise. Hah! When we re-read a particularly good day's work, we might find ourselves sucking in a startled breath when the words drop off. But… but… but… we sputter… where's the rest? For one amazing instant, we *feel* the complete book and our linear consciousness wonders why the heck we stopped!

Relish the shiver of excitement, my friend, because YOU are a writer!

That's the way things come clear. All of a sudden. And then you realize how obvious they've been all along. ~Madeleine L'Engle

Those bursts of illumination aren't constant. Like fireflies, they flit in and out providing flashes of inspiration when our inner sky grows dark. Yet every writer experiences a similar rush—a combination of exhilaration and anticipation. We Are Magic. Ideas dancing in the air. Words transforming into stories before our astonished eyes.

How freaking cool is that?

This week, let's celebrate the magic. Recognize how the process of writing takes us places we never imagined we could go.

"I think that wherever your journey takes you, there are new gods waiting there, with divine patience - and laughter." ~Susan M. Watkins

Let's recognize writing isn't about playing it safe. Jump into the deep water! Walk the tightrope without a net!

"To do anything truly worth doing, I must not stand back shivering and thinking of the cold and danger, but jump in with gusto and scramble through as well as I can." — Og Mandino

Writing is a grand and glorious adventure. An opportunity not only for self-exploration, an opportunity to be daring and freely take risks. We're not actually skydiving here. We're free to leap out of the airplane a dozen different ways, knowing we can back up and jump again and again and again. Why play it safe? Have faith and tell Your Story Your Way…

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did so. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. —Mark Twain

Let's have a fabulous and productive week!

Remember:

"The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible." --Arthur C. Clarke


Now, do you have any tales of magic to share? Any times when your writing took you by surprise?


--Chiron O'Keefe


Also featured at Pop Culture Divas and Between The Lines.

Taking Risks vs. Riding the Brakes

"Don't be afraid to go out on a limb. That's where the fruit is." –H. Jackson Browne, Jr.

Last weekend, hubby and I were jamming on guitars. It's something we love to do, sip a little wine and play our favorite songs. He paused and looked over at me, saying, "Don't hold back. Hit those strings like you mean it."

I needed the reminder. His next comment though really struck home. "You need to let go of that tendency to ride the brakes all the time."

Bam!

Wow... The thought reverberated in my head. The visual image meshed beautifully with the startling realization of my own tentative nature. You can bet I did play more aggressively for the remainder of the evening and loved it. Woo-hoo!

"There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." –Anais Nin

The next day I studied those words I'd scribbled down with such haste.

Riding the Brakes.

Being a writer is all about risk. Sure, just about anyone can string words together into the semblance of a sentence. Writing a story can be as simplistic as See Jane Run. Yet as readers, we know the difference between a story that merely connects the dots and one that sweeps us into an enchanted world. No matter the genre, whether commercial or literary, the writer who pushes past the boundaries makes us gasp with delight or sit stunned as a revelation resonates within our hearts.

I want to be that writer. Don't you?

"Sometimes when you think you are done, it is just the edge of beginning. Probably that's why we decide we're done. It's getting too scary. We are touching down onto something real. It is beyond the point when you think you are done that often something strong comes out." --Natalie Goldberg

Taking Risks vs. Riding the Brakes. Writing isn't an easy task. Which is why we heave a sigh of relief when finished and often eye revisions with the same enthusiasm with which we might face a cluttered, spider-infested garage. Ewwwwww…. But… I'm all done! WAH!

*chuckle*

Part of why the task can feel so onerous is simple. If our story isn't awakening our souls, rattling our bones, clenching our fists, touching our hearts, we may simply be bored. *gulp* We need to dig deeper. Take the foot off the brake. Take A Chance.

If you're feeling stuck with a passage, pull up a separate document. Now, give yourself free rein. Let loose and explore by writing the three wildest, most preposterous (or provocative *wink*) scenes that you can yank out of your imagination. Remember, this isn't part of your story so you can get as crazy as you want. When you're done, try three more. Let yourself Feel that tingle of excitement knowing You Can Write Anything.

Anything at all.

In fact, you can write anything you damn well please.

That's right. It's Your Story. If you're bored or beleaguered, feeling overwhelmed or burnt out, why not twist into a direction you absolutely would never consider? Take a chance. Whether or not you continue in that direction is irrelevant to your process of writing. Shaking up the map will often reveal roads you never would have seen otherwise.

"One doesn't discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time." –Andre Gide

Writing is a voyage of discovery. We must take risks in order to discover not only an incredible story, but also our self within each page. Those amazing revelations that leave you gasping will strike your readers too.

"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart... Write from the soul, not from some notion what you think the marketplace wants. The market is fickle; the soul is eternal." --William Wordsworth

Write the story you've always dreamt of composing. Write a paragraph without worrying how it will fit in (remember our mantra—It's Only A First Draft). Write from your heart and soul. Let the words flow from you like a burst of spontaneous laughter.

We all have chosen goals and nagging deadlines. After all, We are Writers. We write. By page count and word count. Today, let's make another goal. To dig a little deeper and remember why we write. To experience that tingle of delight, that shiver of excitement, that gasp of awe.

You can do it. You are a writer. Feeling a little fear at the mere thought of pushing yourself? Trust me, it's natural. That, my friend, is a shot of pure adrenalin. You are an adventurer, about to leap off a cliff into the unknown. Trust in the wings of imagination to whisk you away to undiscovered lands. Breathe in the sweet breeze and let your spirit soar.

You, my friend, are a writer… *wink*

Tell me, are you a Risk-Taker by nature or do you tend to Ride The Brakes? How have you encouraged yourself to push beyond your own boundaries?

--Chiron O'Keefe

Also featured at Pop Culture Divas and Between The Lines.

Free Your Dreams…

"Courage is the power to let go of the familiar." –Raymond Lindquist

Back when I first learned to type, the teacher addressed the class. "Would those who already know a little about typing please raise their hands." The reason? The novices would require more attention to 'unlearn' their bad habits.

Learning music, it's the same situation. My hubby growled in frustration at my tendency to drag the pick across the strings instead of striking them with intent. Yet with my decades of playing haphazardly *laughs* it really took focus to retrain myself to be more precise.

Not just focus. Courage. I needed to embrace a willingness to be a beginner all over again. Scary stuff indeed.

Writers face this same dilemma every time they attempt something new. Whether it be a new book, a new genre, a new scene, a new revision.

"The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become." –Charles Dubois

Each rung we climb takes us higher, but sometimes it feels as if we daren't look down nor up, lest the realization of our momentous undertaking cause our fingers to quake and our hearts constrict with terror. Yet unless we open our eyes, we may believe clinging to that rung is safe when the only practical solution is to keep moving forward, one page at a time.

"It's not so much that we're afraid of change or so in love with the old ways, but it's that place in between that we fear . . . . It's like being between trapezes. It's Linus when his blanket is in the dryer. There's nothing to hold on to." –Marilyn Ferguson

Realizing that our prose needs work, that we have a tendency to lean on crutch words or phrases, or that our characters need fleshing out to become more than just stick figures on a page can be daunting. That's why we need to remind ourselves that while the process of writing does require precision and an evolving ability to craft stories, we dare not let this overwhelm our sense of adventure. As Helen Keller pointed out, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."

To be a storyteller requires us to take risks. To unfurl those literary wings and leap off the cliff, soaring to the heights of our imagination.

"Yes, risk taking is inherently failure-prone. Otherwise, it would be called sure-thing-taking." ~Tim McMahon

"A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in doing nothing." –George Bernard Shaw

After three books in one genre, I switched to suspense. At first, I bubbled over with excitement. *laughs* Then the doubts set in. Could I really do this? Did I have it in me to create a villain? Could I create tension, manage the pacing, work through the mystery?

All good questions. Only one answer: You'll never know until you try.

"Progress always involves risks. You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first." ~Frederick B. Wilcox

My passion for this new genre astounds me. The story is slowly taking shape. The characters becoming more real. Even my villain is manifesting more clearly each day I devote to delving deep into my book.

My risk-taking venture is opening my mind to new possibilities and generating more excitement as a result. Unless you take risks, you are in danger of becoming bored or worse yet, complacent. Seize your wildest fantasies and fling them onto the printed page. Make the biggest splash possible within your creative pool, you can always clean up the puddles later.

"We fail more often by timidity than by over-daring." ~David Grayson

If you're feeling a loss of motivation, it could be simply that you're not splashing enough water! *laughs* Open up a fresh page and give yourself permission to write crazy-ass, unbelievable things. What's the wildest action your character could take? What's the most shocking statement your character could make? Splash those words onto the page and at the end you might discover a welcome surprise. At the very least, embracing spontaneity and kicking aside the usual restraints will liberate your soul. Not a bad thing at all. *smile*

"Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow." ~Mary Anne Radmacher

In honor of the changing seasons, let's 'spring' into action and ignite our passion once more. Remember this is Your Book, Your Choice, Your Life. No matter what the outside world demands or desires, The Power is in Your Hands.

Be free to be yourself.

Be free to dream…

"Dreams are free, so free your dreams." ~Astrid Alauda

Any goals to share?

My focus this week:

I Will Persist. I Will Take Risks.

How about you?

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

Smiles,
Chiron O'Keefe

Featured at: Pop Culture Divas