Blogged Down

The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are. Joseph Campbell

“I noticed you haven’t been blogging. Any reason?” emailed a writer friend a couple of weeks ago. I hadn’t posted on my blog in April, not one single time.

Yep, there was a reason. I contracted a terrible case of blog envy.

I’m not sure when it began, but in March I posted I wanted to write like author and entrepreneur Seth Godin. Next, Tiffany Stuart’s blog, full of awe-inspiring photographs, alongside her heartfelt prose and gratitude lists caught my attention. A couple of months ago, I stumbled onto Heather Kopp’s blog, SoberBoots. By the time I finished reading her first post, I wished my stumbling was the result of being a recovering alcoholic. I wanted to write like her. And that’s not everyone. In fact, if you’re a writer, I’ve likely envied your writing as well.

Needless to say, I got blogged down.

Instead of doing what made sense and following (instead of envying) their example, I hoped for a gift I don’t have – impersonation. I tried quoting scripture like Tiffany, rewrote this blog post several times to imitate Heather’s poignant style, and attempted to mimic Seth’s matter-of-fact writing. I have six or seven completed posts, each one in someone else’s voice. You couldn’t (and wouldn’t want to) pay me money to post any of them. They sound silly.

I was so focused on others’ talent for writing, I lost sight of my own.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – Dear God, help me remember I want to learn from others, not be them.

Ernest Hemingway Created Twitter

Those were the best rules I ever learned for the business of writing. I've never forgotten them. No man with any talent, who feels and writes truly about the thing he is trying to say, can fail to write well if he abides with them. Ernest Hemingway

Okay, so Twitter was before Ernest Hemingway’s time. But you have to admit, he knew how to write a tweet. The author’s tight writing would have surely fit the character count, and his choice of words, worthy of a retweet.

Here are writing tips handed to him when he was a reporter at the Kansas City Star.

1. Use short sentences.

2. Use short first paragraphs.

3. Use vigorous English.

4. Be positive, not negative.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – Twitter is still a mystery but maybe if I follow the same rules as Hemingway, Twitter and I will get along better.

On the side: Stay tuned to apply these rules to life.

Coming Full Circle

A journey comes full circle like a spiral staircase – the same view, only higher. S. Kim Henson

The Write2Ignite! Conference is this weekend in Greenville, South Carolina. The two-day event is for writers whose articles and books appeal to children and young adults. A presenter for the conference, who I didn’t know till I got her message, asked if I planned to attend.

So what’s that got to do with coming full circle and spiral staircases? Once upon a time, I attended my first writing workshop called Realizing the Writer and Illustrator Within. Also offered in Greenville, I drove five hours to find a publisher for two children’s books that I’ve since rewritten ninety-something times. Instead of a contract, I picked up a flyer offering classes to learn how to write for newspapers and magazines. I signed up and the rest is my resume.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – Now, a half decade later and I’m going back to find a children’s book publisher or whatever is around the next flight of stairs, only this time I have a little higher view.

I’d love to hear your full circle story.

I Don’t Have Enough Time

Know how to live the time that is given you. Dario Fo

“I like painting but I figure I don’t have time since it’s with oil-based paint and the cleanup takes so long. If I can’t paint more than an hour, it isn’t worth it. Did I mention I’m painting with oil-based paint?”

The message was from our daughter. She sent an email explaining why she wasn’t painting although I wasn’t even aware she had a painting project underway. But then, no one has to question me either. Many times I spend more time justifying my inaction (to people who didn’t ask) than the project would take to complete.

I convince myself I don’t have enough time. It’s propaganda, and it’s my primary excuse for not beginning an article, the pile of ironing, a blog post, yard work, website updates, grocery shopping, the list of errands, walking, exercise class, you name it.

“I don’t have enough time” sounds like I got cheated out of something. I whine as if God gave you the extended 24-hour model while I’m stuck with the condensed version of a day.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – I feel frustrated writing this blog post since it’s difficult for me to take responsibility for every hour in the day. Suddenly, if I’m expected to manage each one, 24 sounds like a lot.

How about you? Is time management your strength or not so much?

Dinner with Jerry B. Jenkins

The first evening of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference, the table organizer forgot the place cards for Jerry B. Jenkins and his wife, Dianna. My husband John and I sat at a table, just the two of us, on the empty side of the dining hall. We noticed Jerry and Dianna circle the crowded tables twice, trays in hand. “I’m almost sure he’s the keynote speaker, and that must be his wife,” I said.

When the couple realized they didn’t have assigned seats, Dianna glanced our way, said something to her husband and they headed towards our table. I groaned, feeling anything but sociable after our long drive earlier in the day. Truth is, I was afraid I’d act absurd trying to impress him. Silly, I know, since most attendees would pay money for our seats and pitch their stories with all they had.

Instead, I settled into our conversation. Jerry and Dianna were easy to talk with and I couldn’t think of much to say in the way of being impressive. However, my cutely proud (and extroverted) husband told Jerry about my magazine article that happened to be on the shelves of the campus bookstore that week. Author of 170 plus books that have sold upward of 70 million copies, Jerry graciously congratulated me.

We talked about beach property and mountain homes and grandkids and places to travel. Jerry mentioned taking in The Billy Graham Library during their trip. The noise in the dining room was so loud I didn’t hear anything but the word library.

“Whose library?” I said.

“Billy Graham’s library. He’s a famous Southern evangelical minister,” said Jerry, half smiling.

John informed him Billy Graham owned a house nearby the conference center that is located on the outskirts of Black Mountain, not realizing Jerry helped write his autobiography. Jerry politely mentioned he visited Mr. Graham in his home on occasion while writing segments of the “famous Southern evangelical minister’s” memoir Just As I Am.

Turns out, we made quite an impression after all … in a quirky kind of way.

On the side: I wrote Jerry and Dianna a thank you note for their company over dinner and for his keynote and workshop. When he replied, it crossed my mind to try to keep our exchange going. However, “afraid I’d act absurd” also crossed my mind. I decided not to stalk, which winds down my series of celebrity tales. What’s your claim to fame?

Blogging Like Seth Godin

I'm not writing to maximize my SEO or conversion or even my readership. Seth Godin

So why does he blog?

“I’m writing to do justice to the things I notice, to the ideas in my head and to the people who choose to read my work,” he said.

I read this and swooned.

Recently I took my husband into my confidence. I told him I wanted to blog like author and entrepreneur Seth Godin, however, instead of writing to the business world, gear my posts toward readers looking for inspiration and humor. Seth inspires and humors but these two would be my primary focus and appeal at a more personal level.

Admit it, I’ve already made you laugh over my bigger-than-life-sized dream. I grin when I think about it too, which makes me want it more.

I’m practicing putting my ambitions on paper since experts say writing down our goals works. Here it is: When my writing grows up, I’m going to blog with humor and inspiration the way Seth Godin blogs about business and marketing.

For now, I can learn from him. I figure by the number of daily posts and the way he writes, he has a million ideas in his head and spontaneously shares them. I know the feeling so we’ve got at least a couple of the same blogging symptoms. I think it is my responsibility to write. Another I believe we agree on. And most of the time, I disagree that just because people make up a bunch of rules, the rest of us have to follow them. Seth says it best in his today’s post.

One of my readers asked if I knew Seth personally, probably because I quote and post about him almost weekly. But still the question brightened my evening. I took it as a sign and a wonder.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – I’m one blog post closer to being like Seth since this one is “doing justice to the ideas in my head.”

I told you one of mine so what ideas do you have in your head? What goal have you written down whether silly, far-out or wildly beyond what you believe you deserve or can accomplish? Share it to begin making it come true.

Kermit the Frog, Jim Henson and Me

It’s not easy being green. Kermit the Frog

Can you imagine being Kermit, especially around all this metaphorical talk about Eat That Frog? I’m quick to point out I never intended Jim Henson’s most famous Muppet to end up a meal, anymore than I’d invite you to sit down to a plateful of Bambi or Shari Lewis’ Lamb Chop. Kermit the Frog is a favorite of mine.

In fact, I’ve always said, “Some of my best friends are cartoon characters.”

Don’t believe me? This is the crowd I hang with, at least on Google images.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – Keeping in mind (big) birds of a feather flock together and you are who you hang out with and you’re as good as the people around you, I think I’m in pretty good company.

On the side: Only thing I can’t figure out is when I Google Image me as S. Kim Henson, Jim and the Muppets show up. So,  when I Google Image Jim Henson, why don’t I come up? Any ideas?

Eat That Frog! part 2

Eat a small toad in the morning, and it will be the worse thing you do all day. Art Fettig

What better way to celebrate leap year than a story about eating frogs? The original post Eat That Frog! explains the concept behind the book Eat That Frog! (watch on YouTube). The reader is strongly encouraged to begin his or her day by doing that one thing he/she would prefer to procrastinate over. The practice of frog-eating, unpleasant but usually necessary to making days as productive as can be, is a positive change in attitude and action, overall freeing the rest of the day for desserts. I just made that up. Author Brian Tracy is not advocating sugar, but he is saying to eat that frog makes for a sweeter rest of the day for the doer.

But how much sweeter still is justification? When I listened to a friend talk about procrastinating and finding all sorts of additional creative projects besides making wine lights, which she sells at art and home shows for her livelihood, I thought, “If my frog was wine lights, I’d have no problem getting to work.”

Oh, really? “Woe is me” that my frog is writing? I’ll want to address why (when I figure it out) we choose procrastination over our dreams but for now, we’re making our diet plan.

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – When I eat that frog first thing in the morning, it works. “Works” for me means my minutes and hours seem longer, I feel accomplished as well as liberated, and the remainder of my day (after the frog) I relax into projects that are more start-and-finish friendly. I’m an advocate that we begin now, since it’s leap day and we have extra time. Are you with me?

Faith, Hope and Love

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13

At our mountain house, we have three words (well, four if you count “and”) spray-painted on an old screen window hanging as decoration in our living room. When we stopover at night, even before lights are turned on, the screen is the first thing I notice when we open the front door. The reflection from the streetlight by our driveway keeps the message lit at night, like a beacon.

Lots of times I wonder about each word, think about which I’d choose if I could only pick one. I like the game “Which is your favorite?” Being a visual learner, the symbols are especially meaningful as well. If you could only choose one, which would it be?

Faith   + [cross]
Hope  o–) [anchor]
Love   ♥  [heart]

Write wHere I’m supposed to be – I smiled big the first time it occurred to me the chapter and verse for faith, hope and love is 13:13, our lucky number. I don’t just play with words. I’m also pretty crazy about numbers.

Just In Case

Every time you let go of something limiting, you create space for something better. Stephen C. Paul

I was born a Girl Scout. Living by the organization’s motto “Be prepared” was second nature. Having a Plan B and C and D, planning a backup plan to the backup plan, making sure i’s were dotted and t’s crossed, being anticipatory instead of impulsive. I made responsible decisions as far back as I can remember.

That’s why I ignored recurring thoughts about canceling my certification as a Zumba Fitness Instructor because, you got it … it’s my backup moneymaking plan, just in case I need it. I keep paying the monthly fee for certification, just in case. Just like in the past when I turned in job applications to places I didn’t want to work, just in case I didn’t get the job I did want. And I stored furniture and kept clothing I wanted to give away, just in case I couldn’t afford to buy new. I can list example after example of times I was too afraid to let go but masqueraded the behavior as dependability.

When the place I taught Zumba Fitness closed its doors, I knew I didn’t want to teach any longer. Instead of regarding that, I spent hours and days inquiring about the half a dozen Zumba Fitness opportunities in my inbox. I sent emails, dropped off applications, and interviewed at a couple of fitness centers. I was afraid to let go of my fallback attitude. I was afraid to admit I only wanted one plan, to write full time.

It took a while, however, eight months ago I stopped turning in job applications other than ones for writing. I finally gave away all the furniture in storage, and for the first time in my life, the only clothes in my closet are ones I love and wear. That leaves cancelling my certification, which I’m following through on this week because I’m tired of saying, “Just in case God isn’t trustworthy, just in case I don’t deserve it, just in case the dream He and I came up with together doesn’t work out …”

WRite wHere I’m supposed to be – Long ago, when I started on this writing path, I asked an artist friend for the best advice she could give. She said, “Don’t compromise and give into the belief that writing may not work out. Work at it like it is all you’ve got, like it has to work, and it will.”