October 1, 2010

Two weeks ago I was supposed to meet with six writers at an SCBWI conference to discuss manuscripts I had critiqued for them. I was unable to be at the conference, so I mailed their manuscripts and did phone conferences instead.

(FYI: I missed the conference for the best of reasons. My middle daughter flew home that weekend from her third long deployment in Iraq. We went to Phoenix to meet her plane. Hallelujah!)

The Things We Say!

Anyway, listening to the writers during the conference calls, I was struck vividly by the differences in their words. Some sounded like they could write “Murphy’s Laws for Writers”: everything was negative, they just “knew” that they wouldn’t sell anything anymore, “everyone” said you couldn’t publish unless you were a “big name,” etc.

On the other hand, about half were the most positive people I’d talked to in a long time. They knew the economy was challenging right now, but they were buckling down, writing more, and finding unusual markets for their work. They found silver linings for the dark clouds, sounded a lot happier, and were sure enjoying their writing more.

Surprisingly, each group had newbie writers AND much published writers. That wasn’t a factor in the attitudes. Then what was?

Power Thoughts for Writers

I think I found the answer when I started reading Joyce Meyer’s new book called Power Thoughts: 12 Strategies to Win the Battle of the Mind. (I highly recommend it.) I’ve done many past posts on retraining your brain, but I’m going to push it again. What we allow ourselves to think and believe is critical.

On Wednesday I asked you to leave a note about how the 100-Day Challenge was coming along, and I got some great responses (see below). I think they’re terrific examples of changing the thoughts-feelings-behavior cycle. Thanks to each of you who left a comment and shared great ideas.

Writers Who Are Changing

These comments came in Wednesday–you’ll find them encouraging in your “bit by bit” changes. I know I did! Each one had to start by changing her thinking.

• Deanna: I’m on the way. Determined my goals, strengths, and obstacles. Created a timeline worksheet and a master task list. Posted the “Seven Essential Habits” near my desk. Completed a couple of twenty-minute tasks. Now to stick with it! [Wow! KH]
• Ally M: Here’s my update. I’ve got a long list and my large goals/projects aren’t too clear but my list is getting done. I’ve only listed items which take no more than 30 minutes to do. If I do find a listed item that takes longer I cross it off my list & break it down into smaller pieces. I plan to work on my goals/projects this weekend. [I had to do the same "second breakdown" myself. KH]
• Vijaya: Yes, every day I am able to work on my novel. I missed a couple of days because I was mucho sick, but that’s life. At least the kids and pets were taken care of and they are far more important than any novel. [Very true! KH]
• Andrea: I’ve been keeping a daily record for my fifteen minutes of daily writing. The first day I wrote “Wrote, time not measured, too many interruptions from children,” can you hear my lack of enthusiasm? As I continued to give it my best shot I wrote things like ‘I think I wrote,’ to ‘starting to adjust to writing in a busy and loud environment,’ to ‘getting lots done.’ [What a change in your thought patterns! Great! KH] The comment I recorded that really showed progress was the one that said, “Wow. Not so much writers block, everything is advancing faster, the quality and quantity is remarkable and I can focus while my children make the legs of my chair a May-pole!” I have not lost anything from sparing fifteen minutes (or so) each day, I have gained – in fact, I gained more than I thought I ever would! [Fantastic! KH]
• Yvette: “Every day can be a successful day.” Yeah. I’m totally going to print that out in three-inch letters and wallpaper the wall beside my desk with that phrase! (Can’t hurt for the rest of my family to be reminded either!) As far as my challenge, if I can finish a scene, I’m successful. If I keep going and finish a *chapter*, I’m golden! So far, so good. [Wallpaper the wall--love it! KH]
• Laura: So far I’m loving “chunking down” in the 100-day challenge. Instead of putting big tasks on my to-do list like “research X” or “edit Y” I write “research X for 30 minutes”. I now feel like I’ve accomplished my goal for the day because I’m not writing down a big goal that takes a lot of time to complete as a daily task. [Yes! We have ways of discouraging ourselves--this turns it all around! KH]
• Trudy: Kristi, how do you make short enough tasks to do in only 20 minutes? I struggle with this, because I’m too much of a perfectionist, I guess. I like to complete a task, not feel like I’ve left it undone. [I struggle with this too! KH] For example, my task was to find a market for a particular devotion. By the time I check out the market guide, find some fits, look online for more information, and rule out some markets, I was well over the time and able to add to my task list. Do I need to narrow down my tasks even more or am I just slow? [You're not any slower than I am. Yesterday finding two markets for a book manuscript and addressing envelopes, etc. took me two hours-or six of my 20-min slots. I guess we could give ourselves a BIG REWARD on those days! Want to do chocolate and a chick flick with me? KH]
• PatriciaW: 100-Day Challenge – Wrote 1200 words last night. Planned for 20 min; wrote for 45. Tends to happen that way. But I’m planning on the 20 min, 5 nights a week to finish my wip by January. Then multiple 20 min intervals on weekends to work on freelance stuff. I’m enjoying this part. A little hung up on the “hidden assets” though. [Great progress, Patricia! Sometimes it takes a writer friend to know your hidden assets, I've found. KH]
• Beth Mac: That’s so true. Large is overwhelming. Small consistencies are better. I love SparkPeople, by the way. Thanks to their bite-sized exercises on Youtube, my jeans now fit much better after two months of small consistencies. A war is won in the small battles, I think. [Beth, truer words were never spoken! KH]

THANK YOU to all who shared by the time I wrote this post. I love surrounding myself with such positive, encouraging writers!

6 Comments »

1. 

   As a man thinks, so is he. That’s the truth.

   At the beginning of each chapter of Ron Clark’s ‘The Excellent 11′ is a quote. I’ll share two:

   “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” —Martin Luther King. Jr.

   “Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right.” —Henry Ford

   Writing is one of the most arduous, lonely, thankless jobs there is. You’re going to have to do it because you believe you can, not because anyone else believes you can.

   Comment by Beth Mac — October 1, 2010 @ 9:26 pm

2. 

   Beth, thank you for sharing those quotes. I am finding more and more, the older I get, the awesome power of our beliefs. Certainly a good warning to us to be thinking right thoughts–all the time!

   Comment by Kristi Holl — October 3, 2010 @ 4:59 am

3. 

   Excellent and helpful article! State of mind is so important to the flow of creativity.

   When we’re feeling discouraged and sorry for ourselves, what about scheduling a 5-30 minute freak-out session? We could sob under a mound of comforters, flail at a houseplant, or draw devil-horns on a printed out image of an agent or editor? Hopefully by the end of it we’ll be laughing at ourselves and ready to proceed. If not, perhaps regularly scheduled freak-out sessions might be in order.

   Comment by Heather Kephart — October 3, 2010 @ 9:08 am

4. 

   Heather, you’re a riot. “A merry heart doeth good like medicine” is so true. A good laugh can take us from a discouraged mood to a hopeful one in much less time than talking ourselves out of the mood or journaling out of the mood. You’re right–sometimes we need to not take our moods so seriously. Thanks for the reminder.

   Comment by Kristi Holl — October 4, 2010 @ 5:59 am

5. 

   Greetings, I enjoy your article. This is a great site and I wanted to post a note to let you know, good job!
   Best wishes,
   Amy

   Comment by Amy — October 5, 2010 @ 3:09 am

6. 

   Your words is simply great, well-founded, especially for beginners and dummies!

   Comment by free software — October 7, 2010 @ 1:58 am

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