The new year is almost upon us.
2012.
The year some say the world ends.
Others say 2012 will be the year of the writer.
I prefer to believe the latter.
Most writers write because they have stories in them yearning to get out – stories to be expressed, and shared, and maybe even loved.
Inspiration is an important fuel for the fires of writing.
Sometimes the inspiration comes in the form of a dream or in a sudden flash sparked by an image or a song. Other times it arrives in the words of another writer.
Several writers have written words lately that inspire me to write and keep writing. These are not words from a story. They are words of experience and encouragement, words explaining that my fears related to writing and publishing are normal, and that all writers have to move past their fears if they want to make a living on what they write.
Dean Wesley Smith has 30 years in the industry as a writer, editor, and publisher, and is someone whose words I follow. I may not always do exactly what he says when he says it, but once the words have sunk in, I find his advice fits the path I’m on perfectly.
Last Friday he wrote a blog post titled New World of Publishing: Failure is an Option. Quitting is Not.
A quote from Dean’s post:
“To become a professional fiction writer, you must become a major risk-taker without fear of failure or a care in the world what anyone else thinks of you or your writing.”
Dean regularly writes words that I find inspirational. And the right ones always seem to come along just when I need them.
Another inspirational writer I follow is Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Kris is a no-nonsense successful writer whose 30+ years in the industry include editing and publishing. She’s also Dean’s wife.
Kris wrote a post not too long ago that really struck home. It came at a time when I was feeling a bit discouraged. The post was called Freelancer’s Survival Guide: Giving Up On Yourself.
In the second half of the post, Kris lists six steps to keep from giving up on yourself. Below are the six-step titles. Please go read the entire post – my summary does not do it justice.
1. Believe in yourself.
2. Stop the negative self-talk.
3. Perform a daily gut check.
4. Watch out for that evil phrase, “I can live with that.”
5. Watch out for “good enough.”
6. Be tenacious.
Kris’s closing words:
“Cling to your dream. Work for your goal. If you step off the path, climb back on the moment you realize you’ve veered in the wrong direction.
You will make mistakes. You will take the wrong path. The key is to come back to yourself, and come back to the right road for you.
I can’t tell you if you’re giving up on yourself. Only you can know that.
Dean has one other question, and it’s a big one: when you’re on your deathbed, what will you regret?
Will you regret not striving hard enough for your dream? Will you regret lost years while you were succeeding in a profession other than the one you love? Will you regret being “good enough?”
Only you can answer those questions.
And you should. Daily. To keep yourself on track.
To keep yourself from giving up.”
.
Now that’s inspirational.
