Billy Coffey On The Writing Life

I read this amazing post on the WordServe WaterCooler blog today and had to repost it. I'm brand spanking new to the writing life, but I've already felt every emotion Billy describes there.

It's so nice to know I'm not crazy.

Wait, that might be too generous...

It's nice to know I'm not alone.

Staying Focused

I haven't done much blogging here or on my personal blog in the last few months because I'm desperately trying to stay focused and finish my book.

Like everyone else in the world, I have a day job and a super-busy family that I'm supposed to love and nurture and feed three times a day (or in the case of my teenage son, seventy-two times a day), so I have very little concentrated writing time. The time I do have, I spend on my work-in-progress. And yes, it's the same WIP I've been working on since last November. I told you how rough that rough draft was, right?

My goal is to have it completed by the end of November and enter it in another contest. I've found that contest entry deadlines are really great targets for me and help me to keep pushing through even when it's hard (which is most of the time). I like having something to shoot for and I think it's good practice at meeting real deadlines, which I hope to have someday.

Anyway, I just wanted to check in. Now back to writing rewriting. :-)

The Silver Lining of Loserville

I recently got my scoresheets back from the first writing contest I entered. Surprise...I didn't win. :-)

Let me just say, I have a whole new appreciation for anyone who creates something, then has the guts to release it into the world. It is a horrifying experience, but one I'm thankful for.

My entry was judged by two anonymous authors. Judge #1 gave me very high marks (we love her!). Judge #2 gave me very low marks (haters gonna hate). I've had some time to process, have an emotional breakdown, then come back to rational center. Now I can see how incredibly valuable each judge's feedback was.

I opened Judge #1's sheet first and it's a good thing I did. She made positive comments all over the place and gave me the kind of encouragement I really needed at this point in my journey. She also gave constructive feedback about specific areas she thought could be improved. Overall, Judge #1's comments helped me believe in myself and quiet that voice of doubt that had been whispering things like...  

The judges are going to laugh at how awful your entry is. 

They'll probably save your piece to use at conferences when they need a hilarious example of how not to write.

You're like one of those people on American Idol who says "My mama thinks I sing better than anybody else on the whole planet!" And then Simon tells them it was rubbish and that their mama's a tone-deaf idiot. (this one was honestly my biggest fear in entering the contest)

Thank you Judge #1 for helping me quiet those voices.

Then I opened Judge #2's sheet. She had nothing good to say about anything until the very end when the scoresheet specifically asked for her favorite part of the entry. And even then, she only mentioned one little sentence and said "Good detail." Meh. I had two solid pages of feedback consisting of comments like boring, not buying it, cliche, needs more grit, just commit and paint the picture, make me care about these characters. Okaaay then.

After I yelled at Judge #2 for a while, I went through and tried to look at every remark objectively. Even though it was painful at first, I had to admit that while I needed the emotional encouragement of Judge #1, following Judge #2's suggestions would make my story stronger which is ultimately what I want. I mean, if I can rewrite that thing and make Judge #2 love it, then there's a much better chance that other people would love it, too. Right?

So, I picked out a few things to keep from my original entry, then scrapped the rest and completely rewrote it.

And guess what. It's soooo much better.

Thank you Judge #2.


So the upside of being a big, fat writing contest loser is...

      1. Actual people read my work, criticized it and I didn't die.

      2. The criticism pushed me to become a better writer. Go figure.

Baby Steps

I'm taking baby steps on this journey.

When I first started thinking about writing a novel, I couldn't really imagine how little ol' me could start with a blank page and end up with an engaging story 100k words later. So my first year of dream chasing was spent testing the waters, seeking answers to "Can I really do this?"

I immersed myself in studying the craft and story ideas began to bubble up until one took hold and stoked me enough that I thought I could spend the next year(s) of my life laboring over it.  I created characters and outlined a plot, something I never imagined could be so life-giving for me.

I started following several writing blogs and joined My Book Therapy, an online community for aspiring writers of Christian fiction, a community that was invaluable to me when I took my biggest baby step yet. In November 2010, I decided to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo for short). During NaNo, people all over the world sign up to write a novel (at least 50,000 words) in one month. I don't know if it was a great idea for someone who has never written fiction to jump right in and try to write a whole book in 30 days, but guess what...I DID IT! I wrote my first-ever first draft of a novel and I got the little "NaNo winner" badge to prove it. (Note to self: slap that badge up on this blog)

That first draft was rough. Oh man, was it rough. But for the first time in as long as I can remember, I felt like I had actually accomplished something. I set a huge goal for myself and I reached it! And at the end of November, I decided I really can do this.

2011 rolled around and I set some more goals, mostly involving a complete rewrite of that rough draft, then fighting through all my fears & insecurities to submit my work to a contest where actual people who know what they're doing read it. Nauseating.

Baby steps, for sure. But with each step, I feel more alive. I feel like I'm finally becoming who I was made to be. My heart says this is it for me. I'm on the right path. 


Baby steps. It's really the only way to get anywhere, don't you think?


"Who dares despise the day of small things?" Zechariah 4:10

Chasing A Dream and Hearing Voices

It's been a whole year since a new dream hit me upside the head.

One night last May, I was overcome with the need to write, which in itself isn't all that unusual for me. But the kind of writing I wanted to do surprised me. I suddenly found myself wanting to write fiction. Like, really wanting to write fiction.

I've always had a little seed of a dream of writing a book in the way back of my mind, but I always thought it would be nonfiction. For one thing, I don't consider myself a very creative person, so it never occurred to me that I could create engaging stories. But in that moment, I just knew I had to try.

Why?

1. I love fiction. I love to read and get lost in a story.

2. Stories change people. In my day job, we say we measure success by stories of transformation. I want to tell those kinds of stories.

One phrase kept running through my mind that night and has continued every day since. I want to tell a compelling Kingdom story.


So, I decided to learn how to do it. I went to the library, checked out a stack of writing craft books and started studying. Some concepts were easy for me to grasp, but for the most part I felt like I was in waaaaay over my head. And the voices of doubt began to whisper. Or shout.

Who do you think you are? 


You'll never be able to write a novel.


You're too old to start chasing this dream. You should've started 20 years ago.


There's already a writer in your family. You'll never be as good as her. (It's she! "You'll never be as good as she." See?! You're not even good at grammar!)


The voices kept talking, but I also began to hear whispers of encouragement that kept me going. I had to choose which voices to listen to and which to shut up, which, as it turns out, is a full-time job! The voices never stop.

Learning how to write fiction has unearthed a whole new set of insecurities and fears for me. I have a feeling I'll be posting about those a lot as I continue to battle them on this journey.

But I'm pressing on.

My dream is worth it because God put it in my heart. He intended for me to chase it -- why else would He put it there? When I fully believe that, chasing my dream becomes an act of worship, an offering to the Creator of the universe. And worship is never wasted.

Whether this dream turns out like I want it to or not.


Are you chasing your dream?

My Very Princess-y Mother's Day

Another Mother's Day has come and gone, and I'm happy to report that I survived with my dignity and self-esteem intact...mostly. (Check out last year's Mother's Day post for more info on that).  I did receive the ever unpredictable Mother's Day card/poem from school, but it painted me in a fairly positive light this year (if fairly positive light = not a total flake). So that was good.

I also got a very special gift.

About a week ago, my 7 year-old started talking about the gift she was making for me at school, ramping up the excitement and anticipation (aka anxiety) each day.  Her comments started on Monday with a little grin and twinkling eyes saying, "I can't wait to give you your Mother's Day present." And by Friday, we had progressed to squeals and clapping and jumping from the furniture with declarations of, "You are going to LOVE your Mother's Day present! It's going to make you feel just like a princess!"

Oh. snap.

Cue heart palpitations and scaly fingers of dread constricting my throat. (Dramatic much?)

What in the world could she have made at school that would make me feel just like a princess? I had no idea.  I mentioned it on Facebook and Twitter and the general consensus among my friends was that...

1.) I should, in fact, be very nervous about this gift.

2.) There was a strong likelihood that at some point on Mother's Day, I would end up in an adult-sized tutu. A tiara was not completely out of the question, either.

The one ray of hope I clung to was that surely an adult-sized tutu couldn't fit in her little backpack. Right? It couldn't, could it?! Please, God, don't let it fit in her backpack.

Looking back, there were a couple of hints that should have clued me in on this princess-inducing gift, but my muddled mommy brain didn't put it all together until afterwards.  One was when she said, "Mom, have you ever had tea in a pouch?" 

"Uh, not that I recall.  Is that like a CapriSun or something?"

"Yeah, I guess. But I think you mix it with water first."

Hmmm. Tea in a pouch? That sounds as though it would make me feel like the exact opposite of a princess, but okay.

Well, Sunday finally arrived and I woke up to Corban's sweet, freckled face beaming with pride as she delivered this to my bedside table...

Breakfast in a Bag! And tea in a pouch! Turns out, I've completely failed Parenting 101 since my kid has never heard of a tea bag. My English friends are going to be so ashamed of me.

I have never felt closer to being royalty in all my life. I've also never been more relieved to receive a brown paper bag as a gift.

I love that little girl. She's just one of my three amazing reasons to celebrate being a mom.

If you're a mom, I hope you had a beautiful Mother's Day and were treated like a princess, too.


What's your favorite (or most shameful) Mother's Day gift story? 

The Foundational Success Factor

I ended yesterday's post with a cliff hanger (I'm surprised any of you were able to sleep last night from the suspense of it) and a question: What is the biggest factor of success?

I think there are a few key factors, but I believe there is one that is absolutely foundational. I'm convinced that we could have 47 other success factors nailed and still fail because we lack this one thing.

What is it?

Character.

It doesn't matter what job we're doing, if we display strength and depth of character, we will set ourselves apart from everyone else because good character is rare.  

Here are three ways to exhibit the kind of character that's necessary for success:

• Be Reliable -- We need to do what we say we'll do, be where we say we'll be, and be there on time.  I see the impact of this characteristic (or lack thereof) in my business when I talk to people who are looking for a new cleaning service. The most common reason they give for wanting to find someone new is that their previous service was unreliable. The cleaning lady was supposed to be there every other Tuesday at 9:00am, but they never knew if she'd really show up.  Customers won't put up with that kind of performance for long. Neither will employers. If we prove our reliability, we'll quickly find ourselves gaining favor with the people who matter in our business.

• Do Every Task With Excellence -- Excellence is accomplished in the details, so we can't cut corners or take short-cuts. No job is insignificant. Every little thing counts, so it's necessary to give our best to every task, no matter how small or unimportant it seems. A guy named John W. Gardner said, "Excellence is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well." (I'll bet he had all kinds of excellent accomplishments). When we give the extra effort to do things well, we set a standard for excellence that shows in everything we do. 

• Be Faithful in the Little Things -- At Bloom, when we interview new people, we always tell them that we're looking for people who are faithful in the little things. We want people who are willing to work hard and prove themselves over time. People who are humble, have a willingness to learn, and can be trusted with really big things because they've shown themselves to be consistently trustworthy with really small things. (Jesus tells a pretty good story about this in Matthew 25).

These are just a few ways we can show ourselves to be people of strong character in the workplace, but I really believe living these things will set us apart and help us move forward.  

Do you agree that character is foundational to success?