It’s beach time… or how to de-stress

24 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

by TK Lawyer in Advice & Inspiration, Writing Tags: , , , ,

Whew…  what a long week…  Time to de-compress.  How does a writer do that?  In any way she can.  For me, during the upcoming weekend, it’s heading to the beach for a few hours to listen to the waves rush up to the shore.  There’s something calming about being near water, letting it run over your toes and wash over your ankles.  It’s beautiful. It’s the power of nature in rhythm with the world.  It’s a good reminder that we, too, should be in in tune with that natural rhythm but often we get caught up with ‘survival of the fittest’, marketing ourselves, searching out reviewers, publishers, running contests, and trying to figure out how in the world we can gain more fans without declaring bankruptcy.

We put our books and livelihood first when we should put our mental and physical health, friends, family, and living our individual lives first.  It’s time to take a step back, refocus, realize we have support and place love, fun and friendship back into our lives for if we forfit proper care of ourselves to chase down our dreams, we won’t have the energy to pursue them.

Having been stressed out and overwhelmed these past three weeks with not only writing but the monumental task of searching for a home, I am extending to you, my friends, this friendly bit of advice.  Take care of yourself, love yourself for you are worth it.  Everything else will fall into place, naturally and in the proper timing and rhythm specific to you, for your future success.

Wishing all of you a wonderful, relaxing weekend!

Live, Breathe, Be

08 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

by TK Lawyer in Writing Tags: , , , , , , ,

A good friend once told me “All you need to do is live, breathe, be.  Everything is taken care of.”  Wise words from an amazing man.  These are unfailing words to live by and a helpful reminder to us when things get rough or don’t go as we planned and we start feeling stagnant, as a result.

Time moves fast but for those of us who are just starting out, wanting to make it, badly, with a library in our heads of 30+ future novels, time can stand pretty still… a lot.  What you do after hours while waiting for that cover art to finally come through or waiting for a publisher to take notice of your creative masterpiece, makes a big difference for your future.  So, take some time to write a few pages every day or to self-edit your manuscript, instead.  Or… When life gets you down and you feel you’re just taking up space, it might be a good time to organize yourself for success.  Get your whiteboard out and create a plan.  Get your calendar out and set a reasonable schedule for your future projects but know that this time frame can always be adjusted by you or by life events because it’s all about timing.  Your book’s success may not happen when you want it to and if things don’t go according to ‘plan’, it may be you need to “live, breathe, be” and let things occur naturally.

In the meantime, take time out for yourself and re-energize but never let go of the goal.  Sit in a quiet place or blog it out.  Re-affirm your truth and what you want for your future.  You are worthy of every good, even if you can’t see it at the moment due to temporary but sometimes blinding impatience.  Maybe it’s time to build a fan base, run a contest, or network with other authors who can help you with tales of their own experiences.  Talking to others who have experienced the rollercoaster world of writing and becoming published can give us clarity if not, also, several shared moments of laughter.  Every day, though, do something toward your writing career.  Keep it fun and lighthearted to make it work.  When life rolls you out potatoes (long, desert periods of nothingness), sit still with your thoughts, re-affirm who you are and what you want and go ahead and peel those potatoes and make a casserole!  For you deserve the best just like every other author out there trying to make it.

Take care my friends and be well.