Day: July 29, 2019

MJ Monday: MJ’s Motivation-100 Words A Day

Back on December 1, I knew the busy holiday season would push aside my writing  if I let it. The key was not to let it. Easier said than done.

Then I decided I would writing at least 100 words a day every day in December. Only 100 words. Enough to keep me in my story, but not enough to consume huge chunks of time. I threw out a challenge to my local RWA chapter, and there were takers. The first thing I did every morning was get in those 100 words.

Success!

About a week and a half into January, I decided it was time to continue (I never stopped, but others may have). I issued a Happy Hundreds challenge to my chapter: 100 words a day for 100 days. We had many takers. Three of us succeed. Two of us kept going. Yes, there were days where I logged over 5000 words, but those words started out as my measly 100. My cohort says if not for the challenge, she wouldn’t have kept writing. It’s the accountability factor that motivates her.

I started another Happy Hundreds challenge on July 1. It’s going well. It’s astounding how quickly those 113-word days add up to chapters and novels.

 

MJ Monday: MJ’s Motivation–How Badly Do You Want It?

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How badly do you want it?

That’s the most important question you can ask yourself when you’re going after something. Because if you want something badly enough, you will work your tail off to obtain your goal.

I have written almost all of my life. I always considered myself “the Writer” of my elementary, junior, and senior high school class. Imagine my shock when I went to a class reunion and discovered that not one, but two classmates had published books. My high school class was small–I attended a rural school district. There were maybe 100, 110 of us.

TWO OF MY CLASSMATES PUBLISHED BEFORE I DID.

My entire identity was at risk.

Having my self-definition of who I was threatened made me reconsider what I wanted to do about my dream. Did I want to continue slogging along, trying to get another agent or a  contract with a Big Five publisher or did I want to be a published author regardless of the route? How badly did I want to retain my personal status of class scribe?

How badly did I want to  say, “I am a published author?”

Eight published books later, with contracts for three more, I confess: I wanted my identity bad enough to revise my dream to suit current publishing reality.

What’s your dream? How badly do you want it?

 

 

 

Dogs

Lately it seems as if dogs are taking over America. There are dog friendly restaurants, dog nights at the baseball stadium, people who advocate for Bring Your Dog to Work Day.

Not everyone loves dogs. I don’t hate dogs–we always had one when I was growing up–but I am wary of them.  If I go to your house, and you have a dog, it’s your dog’s home. I respect that. Two of my critique partners have dogs, and that’s cool. The woman who owns the Thistle Dew Retreat (where I go about once a month) has a dog. He’s very cool.

But I’m wary of dogs. You see, I was bitten by my grandmother’s dog. When I was about three. In the face. Yes, I have a scar, as well as the memory.

So when I go to check into my hotel and you and your dog are in the lobby, also checking in, don’t tell me your dog is friendly. I don’t care. Just keep it away from me.

#UpbeatAuthors: A Movie About Perseverance

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One of my favorite movies of all time is Galaxy Quest. I loved the original Star Trek series, so a movie spoofing the show is a sheer delight.

Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, and the incomparable Alan Rickman head an amazing cast. In a nutshell, the movie is about an TV program that has been off the air for a while, but which has a huge, obsessed fanbase. Tim Allen plays Jason Nesmith, who played Commander Taggart on the TV show, a Captain Kirk knock-off. The problem is the TV show is bouncing around in outer space (along with every other TV show) and one alien culture believes they are “historical documents.” And so the fun begins.

The script is filled with delightfully quotable quips.

Nothing is sacred: the actors, the scripts, the fans who attend conventions.

Why am I writing about a 19-year-old movie? Because the motto of the character played by Tim Allen’s character is “Never give up! Never surrender!”

It’s all about perseverance.

April is National Jazz Appreciation Month

I like jazz. I never played jazz when I was in high school band, but Y-Chromo did, from the time he was in sixth grade until the day he graduated from high school. He started middle school jazz ensemble when he was still in elementary school. Early rehearsals two mornings a week, plus one evening rehearsal. Every week. He also made the All-County Jazz Vocal ensemble.

When he was still in elementary school, I was listening to Van Morrison’s “Moondance,” and Y said: “This is jazz, isn’t it.”

One of my favorite memories is of his high school graduation day. The school’s jazz ensemble was on the stage playing for the audience before the ceremonies commenced. The musicians wore their caps and gowns, although the gowns weren’t closed in front. My son was wailing on his sax, while the double bass player was completely into what he was doing. The tassels on their caps swayed in time with the music.

Here’s a great fact about jazz: jazz triggers theta waves in the brain, which induce states of artistic and spiritual insight. This can assist in dealing with complex issue.

If you’ve never listened to jazz, this alone ought to make you try it. You might appreciate it.