July 23, 2010

I talk a lot about having a positive attitude about the writing life, but your attitude isn’t everything.

There’s no doubt about the power of a positive outlook–I would be the first to say so. Dealing with your self-doubts and writing fears is critically important. However, don’t make the mistake of thinking it will substitute for other things.

At some workshops I gave last week, I met several new writers who had the most positive expectations about their future careers that I’d ever seen. I envied them actually! But then I probed a bit deeper and found something that may well derail those writers’ dreams.

What a Positive Attitude Can’t Do

• Having a hopeful and cheery  attitude about your writing won’t matter if you’re not competent at handling words and basic English grammar. You need those skills! If you don’t have them, acquire them.
• Are you actually writing and developing your craft? If you’re a fiction writer, are you working on character development, how to write believable dialogue, and plotting? If you write nonfiction, are you working on your research and querying skills? (And no, contrary to what you might hear, blogging or journaling doesn’t count because it rarely builds actual necessary skills other than the habit of daily writing.)
• Attitude won’t change the facts in your life. Fact: you have three children under the age of four and get little time to yourself. A positive attitude won’t change that. Instead, you must incorporate that fact into your writing plans. (Write in snippets of time. Write about your experiences for parenting magazines and e-zines.) Thinking positively that today you’ll have three hours alone to write is just a fantasy.
• A positive attitude won’t substitute for change. Time runs out after a while. There comes a time when you have to stop dreaming about the writing life you want to lead, complete with visualizations and an illustrated wish book. There comes a time to actually start living the writing life. (Keep an idea file. Join a critique group. Write daily or almost daily. Learn to do market study–even if you detest it.) Unless you take concrete steps to actually live the writer’s life, all the positive attitudes in the world won’t help.

Go One Step Further

Never stop having a positive attitude! It’s vital. But as writer and leadership expert John Maxwell says, “Attitude fills us with hope that we might reach our dreams. But hope apart from action falls flat.”

Definitely KEEP your attitude positive. I don’t mean to negate that in any way. But take definite steps to put a foundation under your attitude so that your dreams really do come true.

So…what is one small step you can take today to move your hopes to the next level?

[P.S. Forgive me for not getting to your comments this week until tonight. It's been one of those weeks! But I believe I've responded to them all now. Thanks for your patience!]

4 Comments »

1. 

   Uhh…yeah, taking all those small steps. Yikes! Which one to choose? Getting letters ready to send out my first manuscript. Working on my proposal idea – daily – until it’s finished. Revising my story, again. But at least I’m blogging, right? Well, it forces me to write, even if it’s not at the top of my list in WHAT I want to write.

   I’ve made several comments to several of your posts just now. I took a trip to the beach and I’m just now catching up on my blog-reading. Your blog is hands down my absolute favorite! I can only hope mine does half as well as yours in the next two years.

   Comment by Christie Wright Wild — July 28, 2010 @ 10:29 pm

2. 

   Christie, thank you so much for the compliment about the blog. I’m writing for myself most of the time–whatever I happen to be struggling with–but I’m always glad when I hear that it’s struck a chord with another writer. You have so many irons in the fire! I plod along with one idea at a time. Hope you enjoyed the beach!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — July 29, 2010 @ 9:33 am

3. 

   Hi Kristi,

   I love this post, and it is so true. I don’t positive attitude is all that writers need. In fact, it may get in the way sometimes.

   Thanks for sharing this with us.

   Irene

   Comment by Irene — July 29, 2010 @ 12:38 pm

4. 

   Irene, that’s very true. A super determined positive attitude can keep people from taking an honest look at what needs to be done. Everything in life seems to be in finding the balance!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — July 29, 2010 @ 5:35 pm

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