Friday, April 22, 2016

Every Writer Wants One Thing...


At some level, every writer wants one thing.  Oh sure, we may be afraid to admit it - might not have the courage to say it out loud. We discount the thought when it wriggles into our consciousness. 
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But still, it remains.
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and that thing we want is...

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to write something that lingers.
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words that 
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stay in the heart of our reader 
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incite emotion 
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make even a small difference
then have someone believe in that something enough to publish it.
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And what is our greatest fear?
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that it won't happen.
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through our own ineptness or unfortunate circumstance.  
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And that thought is terrifying to us.
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I believe it's a large part of what we call writer's block.  A tenuous whisper in the back of our subconscious that says you're a hack. she's better, he has the contacts to make it happen, you're behind the curve, whisper...whisper...whisper.
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So we stop writing.  
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Because maybe it's easier to quit on our own terms, you know? Make up a good excuse...my life is too busy, I don't have the support of my spouse, my children are too young, and on and on
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Which is sincerely tragic. 
And yet so real. Trust me, I've been there many times.
It doesn't go away after publication...it's insidious.
However, we must push through those fears
because here is my question:
If we don't believe in ourselves...
how can anyone else?
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