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Yes, You Can

Yes You Can: this image was collaged from random images, using the free collage App at Freemix.com

AUDIO ONE:

To read the transcript of the audio, please scroll down

Do not allow your doubts to hold you back.

Trust in your abilities, and know that your enthusiasm for anything is your sign, that this is indeed for you, and that this is indeed possible for you.

Transcript slightly edited – for easier reading!

TRANSCRIPT:

So, another one-card reading, and it is . . .

I think I called this one, Yes You Can. And it shows a girl who’s looking upward, but she’s holding a book, she’s reading a book. And she might even be lying on the grass. And there are white birds flying near her, and a rather dreamy-looking face, that seems to be made of – the features seem to be made of some kind of greenery, like grass or hedge, or something like that.

Behind her is a still lake, and a blue sky, and I can see a mountain in the distance. And there’s a woolly goat, a white woolly goat, and the goat is standing on rock.

Then there’s a man who is bent over a large book, or possibly – it looks almost like an artist’s portfolio. He seems to be drawing. Yes, so he’s drawing what looks like a face, the beginnings of a face, but it could be anything, to be honest. He’s hunched over that, and very involved in what he’s doing.

The girl seems to be either dreaming, or looking upwards for inspiration, or has an idea. Yes, she’s almost like been interrupted – her book, in the reading of her book, with these thoughts that she’s had.

The mountain goat reminds me of an image I saw, a photograph, where this goat was – it seemed to be on this tiny little piece of a mountain – this pinnacle, that wouldn’t even hold one human foot. It (the pinnacle on which the goat was balanced) was very thin and almost like – you’d think it would need wings to fly, or arms to balance, to stay on this pinnacle.

But it was so balanced and it was so sure-footed, and it was like, possibly . . . about to leap onto another part of the mountain, or find a foot-hold, that we wouldn’t even think was a proper foot-hold.

So, it’s like, something that we think is impossible. It’s almost like this card is saying, ‘Yes, it is possible. Yes, you can.’

And, the fact that the white birds – now they might be seagulls, but it’s almost like messages (or messengers?) from some kind of spiritual source. And they’re flying in. They’re flying in, almost about to fly on to the book that the girl is – she has her hand on the pages and she’s turning the pages.

As I say, the man, who is obviously drawing something, he’s an artist. So, you’ve got The Writer, and/or The Reader, and you’ve got The Artist. And whatever ‘it’ is, that they are dreaming about, or thinking about, it’s saying, ‘Yes, you can.’

And I’m pretty sure that’s the name I gave the card (‘Yes You Can’) and if not, I’ll note that. So, quite a hopeful card, if you’re considering doing something and you’re not sure whether you have the capability. Or whether it’s going to be too much of a challenge, or – all the reasons that we have, for stopping ourselves from doing what we want to do!

So, Yes You Can. And I’m going to leave that there.

I then thought I’d ask for my soul’s input. Had I missed anything? Was there another message from this card?

When I do this, ‘I’ ask my soul the question, and ‘I’ answer it.

I call it, ‘communing with my soul and soul family’.

Call it dialoguing, call it role play, call it channelling, call it anything you like. But I usually get something extra when I do this, and always, more clarity.

AUDIO TWO:

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT (unedited):

So, dear soul, is there a further message for me, around this card?

(Longish pause.)

We say, this card can symbolise your inspiration from reading a book, or looking at another’s art, or hearing another’s words, in some form. And, being inspired to then take action, and either create your own book, or painting, or poem. Or perhaps, some other creative venture, or should we say, even, adventure!

It is a card that speaks of hearing your soul’s voice, hearing the calling of your inner being, receiving the messages from Spirit, as symbolised by the birds who are flying in, and drawing you to the book, the painting, or the poem.

And, new thoughts come to you, of new ways, that you can take what you have seen or heard, and make something of your own with that.

And many have looked to others and said to themselves, I could never do what this one has done.

But we say, when you are inspired by another and their work, it is because you do indeed have the ability to create similar.

You resonate with their material, and have thoughts and ideas, for your own.

What you create will always be unique. Even if it is in some ways similar to what has inspired you.

You have the ability to balance (*) and traverse places that you believe you cannot safely climb, as this mountain goat demonstrates.

(*) I chuckled, as an image of a goat popped into my mind – balanced, in a seemingly impossible place, for even a mountain goat to be!)

But you are sure-footed in your own way, and you can climb many mountains that you believe you cannot.

Do not allow your doubts to hold you back. Trust in your abilities, and know that your enthusiasm for anything is your sign, that this is indeed for you, and that this is indeed possible for you.

And with that, we send you our love, as always.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

As you view the card, or listen to the audios, the words spoken or images on the card may bring something to your mind, something that is significant to you now.

You might allow your mind to explore your own possible meanings, as you let your thoughts flow.

For example, for me, the mountain goat symbolises an ability to scale rocky heights and narrow ledges with ease, (or certainly with dexterity).

Which then makes me think of mountains to be climbed – pinnacles, or goals to be reached, or projects to start and finish.

The still lake, reminds me of a still and quiet mind, that is open to new ideas and inspiration.

The blue sky, signifies to me, ‘good weather’ or perhaps, that it is a good time to ‘go out into the world.’ So, for me, this could mean it’s the right time to share my oracle cards online and share how I use them.

I identify with the depictions of Writer, Reader, and Artist, so that all feels relevant to me. I love writing but I also love reading. I love making art, but I also love enjoying art created by others.

I am always inspired by the creations of others, especially those creations and those others I am drawn to, and resonate with. But sometimes, what doesn’t resonate can often inspire!

Art to me, is any way we (uniquely) express ourselves (and we are all unique). Our art then, in many ways, is how we live our life and who we are. It’s in the words we speak, which doesn’t have to be poetry. And perhaps, it’s even in the thoughts we think, as they too go out into the world, on an energetic level.

Our Art can be how, and what we contribute and share with others (our time, our energy, ourselves). We can do our art in small ways or in big ways. It all matters. And I believe it all has an impact on the Whole.

I’m getting a little whimsical now. So, I think that will do, for this particular card, today.

I just hope I remember this card’s key message, whenever I feel doubt or apprehension. Whenever I think, Ooh, maybe I’d better keep this particular thing to myself.

Such as the apprehension I felt around sharing my soul’s audio message today, as I haven’t shared such messages online before. I wanted to, yet felt a little unsure (to put it mildly).

But, having had the idea to share it, how could I not do it? Particularly when the key message of this card is:

Yes, You Can.

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The Midas Touch

The transcription of the audio is below, please scroll down.

I created The Midas Touch oracle card using the free collage app, on Freemix.com.

It’s your choice, what you do, and don’t do.

Bloom in your own way

And that, is more than enough.

MP3 TRANSCRIPTION:

Just a simple, ‘What’s the message for today?’

So, I’ve drawn one card and it is . . .

Oh, it’s this one again.

It’s called, The Midas Touch. And it shows one woman who’s reaching out, in order to be touched, and another woman who looks as though she’s quite withdrawn and within herself. And although she is authentic – as shown by her nakedness – and she’s sitting within a blooming flower, she’s very inward focussed, seemingly inward focussed.

So, she’s not reaching out, she’s very much in her own world . . . It’s almost like she’s keeping the flower to herself. So, she’s keeping whatever she has that is ‘blooming’ she’s keeping it to herself.

Whereas the woman to the left, who is actually reaching out for the Midas Touch, she has a big yellow sunflower-looking flower above her. Almost like a sun. Almost like rays of the sun. And there are lots of seeds that you can see within that flower, also, so there is potential for thousands more flowers to bloom.

So, it’s like a conscious thing, it’s of having to take action, reach out, do something. You have to do something. You can’t just wait.

I mean, it appears to me that he (‘Midas’) is actually touching her as well. So, it’s almost as though, eventually . . .  yeah, it almost seems to be saying, whether you reach out, or whether you don’t reach out, if it’s your destiny, then you’re going to be touched by The Gold, you’re going to be touched by the blessings, one way or another.

So, this might be a card about doing it in a way that is comfortable to you. Doing it in a way that feels right to you, which is a big – something I’m talking about all the time, being such an independent spirit!

Yeah, I’m very much one for doing it my way, and not being influenced by how others are doing it. I can be inspired! But there is no right way, there’s only the way that’s right for you.

So yeah, I think that’s all I can really say, for the moment, about this card. And maybe that will do for now. Yeah, okay.

/end of transcription

Those were my initial thoughts on the card, Midas Touch. Of course, whenever I listen back to a card reading, or type up the transcript, I usually receive further insights. So . . .

Perhaps the card is saying that we are all blessed, all gifted, all touched by The Gold. That we’re all given The Gold. We can choose to keep it to ourselves, or we can share it with others.

The Gold is our unique self with our unique gifts – gifts that we often take for granted and sometimes don’t even view as gifts, or even as something valuable.

We can be insular, or we can reach out. And perhaps this card is saying that through sharing our Gold or our ‘blooms’ and ‘blooming’ with others, we have the potential to seed so much more.

Perhaps through sharing our seeds, blooms and blooming (ideas, creations, growth) it’s not just about one seed or one bloom, it is about potentially thousands of seeds and blooms.

I had a vision once, of one book being written. It was read by a number of readers, and a percentage of those readers were inspired to write their own book. Those (many) subsequent books were read by many others, some of whom then wrote their own books. I did work this all out in a complicated sum, but I think you get the idea. In effect, from one book, hundreds more readers were inspired and thousands more books were written.

But inspiring ‘books’ are just one example. Anyone, who shares anything they’re enthusiastic about, can inspire others – who then inspire others. How we share may be online or it may be with a small group of offline friends (whatever feels right to us).

Maybe you won’t (and don’t want to) reach hundreds or millions of people with your positive messages, your encouragement, service or product.

But maybe you will touch one person, and maybe that one person will reach millions.

And anyone who has seen the film, It’s a Wonderful Life, and loved it, knows that we don’t have to write a book or share anything publicly, in order to touch the lives of many.

So, perhaps that is also what the card is saying:

It’s your choice, what you do, and don’t do.

Bloom in your own way

And that, is more than enough.
 

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Singing Wishes into Being

To read the transcript of the audio, please scroll down.

AUDIO

I do hope this oracle card resonates with you, in some way, today. Wishing you a lovely day!

Use what talent you possess:

the woods would be very silent

if no birds sang

except those who sang best

Quotation source: website

Singing Wishes into Being: this image was created by collaging random images from the free collage website, Freemix.com. Another good resource for creating collage art is Canva.com.

TRANSCRIPT:

So, I’m choosing a card for the day, or a card for now. I’ll just see what comes up. It’s (chosen from) The Firewalker deck. And it is . . .

Ah! This is the one about – it’s called, Singing Wishes into Being. And there’s a bird, who is singing, in the centre of the card. And a lovely, big, sunlit daisy, which for me symbolises my Higher Self.

There are a couple more blooming flowers, and then what looks like a tablet of stone, and lots of words carved on that, as a kind of background. So, it could be, like, someone with a background in words.

And I’m thinking, myself, of all the journals, the diaries that I’ve written, over the years. Since I was, I think, eleven or twelve. And, I have kept writing, all my life, and I am now coming up to retirement (age), so . . . (That’s quite a long time!)

Then there’s a little baby in there, who seems to be reaching out to the bird, with the kind of exploration and wonder that babies embody. It reminds me a little bit of me, as a baby – I’ve seen pictures of myself and it looks a little bit like how I looked then.

There’s a girl who is blowing a dandelion clock and making her wishes – something I used to love doing as a child, as all kids did. Also, catching – if you saw, either a leaf, or one of those helicopter seed pods that fall down from the trees, and you catch them, and then you can make a wish.

That’s what we used to believe, (as children), that we could make a wish that would come true, if we caught a leaf (as it fell from the tree).

The background beyond that is like one of outer space and stars.

So, in order to sing my wishes into being, I need to use my voice. Voice what those wishes are. Or, at least, have in my mind what those wishes are.

The blowing of the dandelion clock, to me, is like sending those wishes out, sending them out into the universe, and letting them go. Letting them fly off in the wind, and manifest in whatever way they manifest.

You can be precise about what you want. But, ultimately, you don’t know exactly what that’s going to look like. So, it’s ‘trusting’ and surrendering to whatever that will look like.

(And, being open to the possibility that your wishes and dreams may manifest in even more beautiful ways than you could ever imagine!)

Today, this card makes me think of how I have been intending to use my website again, and share my oracle cards, and how that wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be.

How, at one time, I can make an mp3 like this and think, ‘Oh yeah, that’s great, I’ll send that out, that’s fabulous.’

And then I listen to it again and think, ‘um, yeah, yeah,’ and then I transcribe it and that’s fine.

And then, maybe I look at it again and think, ‘Oh, actually, I’m not really sure this is quite what I want to put out in the world! It’s not quite right’.

And then, I don’t put anything out.

So, I thought I would do something quite simple, and brief, like a one-card reading, which is what this is. And then, see what it suggests to me.

And obviously, the goal, in putting it out online, is that it might resonate with somebody else.

So, it (today’s card) almost embodies what I’m trying to do; my intention, for the website:

To encourage, both myself(!), and hopefully, through sharing what I’m doing, to encourage others to also share their voice, share their gifts, share their creations.
 
 So that’s quite an apt card to draw.

Okay, I shall leave that there. For now!

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Hearing your Soul’s Call

This blog is for writers and artists, like me, who have been wanting to publish a book, start a blog, or share their arty creations, for many years, perhaps even decades. 

You have a deep desire to share your writing or art, alongside doubts and fears about putting your work out into the world. This has created a push-pull effect of getting nowhere fast.

Several times you have thought about giving up and may have tried.  But the desire to create and share your creations won’t go away. By now, you probably realise that this desire will never go away, because . . . it’s the Call of your Soul.

The Call

Through this website I’ll share my own emotional and practical, writer-artist and, most important, soul-connecting journey.  My aim is to be upbeat and optimistic, courageously sharing (yes, courage is needed) my creations, my process, and how I overcome any obstacles fears, (let’s call a spade a spade), along the way.  

I hope, through sharing my process and progress, it will help you too, to finish and share your creations, and yourself, with the world.

There are lots of quiet, gentle souls, silently creating beautiful things. Many have great and numerous ideas, but they would rather not draw attention to themselves, so they don’t share. They’re usually pretty good though at connecting with their soul and following their heart. But they don’t often talk about it.

Well, this quiet one has decided to talk about it! I will be sharing my favourite way of connecting with my soul and hearing my soul’s messages: through creating my own oracle card decks, and reading the cards to gain messages, answers and insights.

I love creating these cards. It’s a fabulous tool for connecting easily to my soul’s loving wisdom. And I’m looking forward to sharing exactly how I do that, through making, naming, and reading the cards. So, welcome aboard!

Lastly, a loving little message from my soul, not just for me, but perhaps for whoever has landed on this page today and read this far (thank you):

As you share your creations, you are also sharing your unique and beautiful self.

Divinely Held

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2 writing quotes, to help, to keep you writing

ONE:

ELIZABETH GILBERT: Writing is not like dancing or modelling. It’s not something where, if you missed it by age 19, you’re finished. It’s never too late. Your writing will only get better as you get older and wiser. If you write something beautiful and important, and the right person somehow discovers it, they will clear room for you on the bookshelves of the world – at any age. At least try.

TWO:

ANNE RICE: If you want to be a writer, write. Write and write and write. If you stop, start again. Save everything that you write. If you feel blocked, write through it, until you feel your creative juices flowing again. Write. Writing is what makes a writer, nothing more and nothing less.

And one last one:

Write. Just Write.

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Sharing Diaries – and your naked self

Why have I been so quiet? It’s not that I haven’t been writing anything. Just not a recent blog post. Perhaps I didn’t think I had anything of (huge enough) interest to report?

Yet, even if I’d shared ‘I don’t feel I’ve anything of interest to report’, it would have been something. I’m supposed to be documenting my writing journey – and I haven’t been.

I asked myself why I wasn’t blogging: ‘What’s happening here, don’t you want to share your writing journey?’

‘Not always’, was the honest answer. Sometimes it feels too personal. I don’t always feel like putting my feelings, and naked vulnerability, out into internet-land. Conversely, there are also times when I want to share everything with the world!

Anyway, as you may have noticed, I’ve been going through a bit of a hermit-phase (as one friend so beautifully put it). But I haven’t stopped writing.

Where have I been writing? Mostly in my journal. Writing in my journal has been (pretty much) a daily practice since I was twelve.

Fast forward forty-eight years to the present day.

Apart from journaling, I have been busy transcribing thirteen year old Claire’s earliest diary, with a view to it going into the book.

The question is, how much of my actual diary do I feature? All of it? Or just snippets? Do I add my current-day comments to what I find there? Or do I let the diary speak for itself? I’m still puzzling over those questions.

I know there are people out there who like reading (published!) diaries. I’m one of them. Diaries are so real and raw. So . . . human. And we are all human.

I like the kind of diaries that are free, honest and open, with a fair amount of soul-searching (and not too much complaining). Diaries that ponder the deeper meaning of life, not just record the daily trivia (although that too can be interesting, or amusing, at times). I hope my diaries are like that.

Some diaries are deathly boring. I hope my diaries are not like that.

I’m still figuring everything out and trying to answer the many book-related questions, buzzing around in my head. I’m confident I will figure it all out. In the meantime, I’m continuing to journal every day and to transcribe my oldest diaries.

I had an idea to feature my current diary alongside my earliest diary. After all, as I transcribe them, I’m also writing about the old diaries in my current journal, as things occur to me. I’m filling in some of the memories I didn’t write down – largely because, at age thirteen, I discovered my Dad had been reading my diary. Shock-horror. It took me a while to relax and write freely again.

If I publish the oldest, and the most current diary, alongside each other, it could be quite an interesting contrast. What I write in my journal now is very different to what I wrote at thirteen. I’d also like to think my writing has improved since then (wink).

Another question: Is my diary only interesting to me, or will it be interesting to others?

There is only one way to find out. Share it.

“But it isn’t ready to share yet!” I hurriedly cry. Just in case anyone rushes to volunteer as a beta reader. Rest assured, when that time comes, I will put the call out to a few friends, including (gulp) those interested folks who have signed up to this blog. (No pressure to actually be a beta reader though!)

I must say, sharing my diaries is not at all frightening to me, all the while I’m not sharing them. Once I come to share them – through my book or this blog, it may be a completely different story. (Cue opening bars of Beethoven’s 5th ).

Okay, time to end now, I think I have updated where I’m currently ‘at’. I’m sorry I was blog-absent for so many weeks. I am considering doing a blog post update, once a month. Please let me know if you’d like to hear from me more often. Thanks for sticking with me so far, I really appreciate it.

Happy writing 🙂

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Building a book, one twig at a time

I took my breakfast out into the garden and chose a spot under the magnolia tree, in the shade.  I gazed all around, munching my cornflakes, enjoying the garden.

A wood pigeon was busy, hunting for single twigs on our lawn. She’d find one then fly up, almost vertically, to the evergreen tree.  A quick look around to make sure no one was watching, then she sidled along the branch and disappeared into the foliage.  

This procedure was repeated over and over, as she built her nest, twig by twig.  Once, she landed on a branch and realised that this branch was not the one that led to her nest. She tilted her head, shifted her gaze, and quickly identified the correct branch and flew to it.  I can’t imagine she would ever be lost or confused, for long.  

I want to be that pigeon. I want to know immediately if I am on the wrong branch and to speedily identify where my correct branch is. And I think I’m beginning to do that now.  I’m making a point of reviewing as I go.

It’s important to track our dream’s progress and where we are on our path to it.  Not in the way of impatiently asking, ‘How much longer is this going to take?’  

Now, for me, it’s more about being clear on what I’m doing and how I’m doing it.  I’m asking myself questions, almost daily, as a reminder to keep myself on track.  Questions like:

What book am I writing? 

Why am I writing it?  

Why do I want to publish it?

Am I still taking the appropriate action to progress the book?

What’s the next step?

I’m doing this because I don’t want to waste any more time.  It takes not just time, but sustained effort, to gather all these twigs to build a nest.  I want to make sure I’m always on the right branch, building the right nest.

One twig seems like nothing, yet if you keep at it, collecting and carefully placing those twigs, the nest will eventually be built.  

I watched that pigeon for a long time.  She was relentless in her work and yet she was not hurrying or panicking.  I’m pretty sure she wasn’t worrying about how long it was taking her.  She simply did what she needed to do, slowly and methodically, certain the nest would be ready, in time for her eggs.

Like Mrs Pigeon, I am working with my diaries, editing and re-writing, one day at a time and one month at a time. Slowly but surely, I’m building my book.  I hope, if I continue to focus and take it steady, my book will one day be ready. Completed, in perfect time.

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Commit to 10-minute Baby Steps – and get the First Book Written

In my last post I revealed how I’m trying a new process or habit, to help me write my book.  Simply, I’m committing to working on my book for a teeny tiny period of time each day. 

A tiny commitment

What time period did I choose to commit to?  Just 10 minutes. I know, it sounds ridiculous.  Ten minutes a day is nothing.  Exactly! The reason I chose such a tiny amount of time is because it is so easy to do.  

I set an alarm that goes off after 10 minutes of writing time – it has a lovely, uplifting chime. When I hear that chime, my writing work for the day is done.

Of course, after 10 minutes, I’m usually in the writing-flow and want to do another 10 minutes.  That is what happened on the first day.  I did 40 minutes of writing in total. 

A week of 10-minute commitments – summary: 

Tuesday: Wrote for 10 minutes. It was easy and it flowed, so I continued.  

Total writing time: 40 minutes

Wednesday:  Similar feeling of flow and wanting to continue.

Total writing time: 70 minutes.

Thursday: The writing flowed again.

Total writing time: 90 minutes

Friday:  It was a struggle to do 10 minutes.  I spent most of the time cutting out great swathes of stuff I’d written previously.

Total writing time: 10 minutes

Saturday: I wrote nothing.

Sunday: I didn’t feel like doing it.  I told myself I only had to write for 10 minutes, and anyone can do 10 minutes, so I did.  

Total writing time: 40 minutes.  

10-minute sessions add up

So far, I make that 25 slots of 10 minutes.  This equates to 250 minutes, or about four and a quarter hours of book-writing in a week – with little effort and no overwhelm.

Monday: After days of endless rain there was a dry-weather window, so I spent the afternoon at my allotment. Deeply satisfying.  

Later, instead of my book, I worked for several hours on this blog post (too long, methinks, but equally satisfying).  Then I left the blog post overnight to percolate.  

So, zero book writing time on Monday.

Today: I cut this blog post by three quarters, leaving a quarter remaining.  (I must get better at writing shorter blog posts).

So far today, I’ve spent 20 minutes working on my book and may do more writing later.  The thing is, I’ve achieved double my 10-minute commitment and that is a cause to celebrate and feel good about myself.  

Keep it going

I know it’s important to keep the energy going, of any project that’s dear to our hearts, to engage with it and give it our energy.  

I also know that starting a writing session, whether for blog or book, is the hardest part – hence the tiny 10-minute writing time commitment.  However, once started and the momentum is going, it’s easier to keep going.  

Once that happens, you can see progress and everything feels easier.  You feel like you’re getting somewhere and that you are in control of the process.  With that, comes a feeling of increased self-esteem, satisfaction and confidence.  

And don’t we all want that?

Take breaks and enjoy!

To sum up, I think this new practice is working for me.  The only mistake I made, was trying to increase my time commitment too soon – and I forgot to take short breaks.  This created a slump on Day 5.  Lesson learned.

So, enjoy your creative projects. May you have time for all of the things that give you joy, satisfaction, and increased self-esteem.  🙂

Note:  Thanks to Joseph Michael for his course, Writer’s Block Relief, and the ideas he outlined there.  Taking his course shifted my first-book-writing stumbling blocks.  The teeny tiny time-block commitments were just one idea in the course that I’m finding valuable – and liberating.

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Writer’s Block? No problem.

When your biggest and longest-held (lifelong) dream and goal has not come to fruition, but you’re still trying, how do you feel?

When you remember each morning that you still haven’t achieved your longest-held (lifelong) dream and goal, how do you feel?

I will tell you.  

Yucky.

Only, that is, if you allow yourself to get carried away on a wave of despair.  Some days you might feel despondent, scared, or worse, we all do. Don’t give up.  

I’ve been through a little stuck-patch, but I’m not allowing myself to go down that road of doom and gloom.  

We all feel scared at times and despondent.  The trick is, to nip it in the bud before it runs away with itself and takes you with it. 

On a Down Day, I always know an Up Day is on the horizon.  The new day will dawn, I’ll wake up, get out of bed and start again.  I will read what I’ve previously written (feeling pleased that it’s better than I remember) and continue writing and editing my book.  

I keep my faith, my hope and my optimism going.  I trust myself and bolster my belief in my ability to complete the task.  The task I set myself; remembering, that no one else set it for me, this task of writing, finishing and publishing a book.  

Lately, it has been a little difficult. 

– I stopped working on my book.

– I stopped blogging about working on my book.

However:

– I continued to write daily in my journal, as I always love to do (and it’s always easy).

– I worked on other (easier) creative projects, to keep my spirits up.

– I bought a course on Writer’s Block.  

I must tell you, I do not have writer’s block and never have.  I can always write and do it every day.  

What I do have is first-book-writer’s-block. I also have blog-writer’s-block.  I’m hoping both of these are a thing of the past – since my Writer’s Block course, because I have new strategies.

The course I took is called Writer’s Block Relief, by Joseph Michael.  It gave me some new techniques, tips and tools to try. It also gave me renewed hope.

Using what I’ve learned in the course, I’ve decided to take a different tack: 

  • For the next week, I will work on my book and my blog, every day.  
  • Each day, I will focus on turning up for the process and will not focus on results. (Not yet anyway).
  • At the end of this week, I will then review my writing progress.  

I don’t think it’s fair to Joseph Michael to reveal everything I learned on his Writer’s Block Relief course. But I will say, that I’ve learned enough to feel a real shift. Wonder of Wonders, I am champing at the bit to get back to writing the book!

My main takeaway from the course means that I will approach my writing time differently. My commitment to writing both book and blog will be for a teeny, tiny period of time, each day. I will then celebrate and reward myself for that achievement, and my success in showing up.  If I want to spend more time working on my book or blog, (beyond the daily time period I’ve set and committed to) that is fine.

I’m choosing to focus on what I am getting done, what I am achieving and on the progress I am making. No longer am I focussing on what isn’t yet done (as I started to do at the beginning of this post).

Okay, so the book, the project, the life’s work isn’t yet completed. So what! If progress is being made and you’re enjoying the process – hoorah! Cheer yourself on.

Previously, my book and blog-writing pattern had been a hard slog, working over long, unbroken periods, followed by the need for a complete break from writing.  Working too long and hard without breaks, meant enthusiasm and inspiration faded, and the creative well ran dry.  

Not any longer!  

I’m starting my new (less is more) writing process today.  I’ll let you know after seven days of using this new tactic, how I get on.  It has to beat spending a whole day, sometimes two, trying to write one paltry blog post.  I will never write for long periods, without a break, ever again.  Unless I’m in effortless flow of course!

I realise that I will work better, incorporating scheduled breaks into my working week – at regular intervals throughout the day.  This will keep my energy fresh and my mind clear.  All I need to do then, is be open, receive the inspiration and write it down. 

It feels so good to be back on track.  I’ll let you know how I get on with this new way of working. Am hoping to prove, that in doing less, I will accomplish more.  

See you in a week!

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Book Progress: Feeling hopeful (again) and two types of plot

Regarding my book-writing progress, I wasn’t feeling hopeful at all these last ten days.  I also knew I was due to write a blog post but didn’t know what to write. I tried not to panic about not knowing, as five more days went by.

Gardening is one of the things that soothes my soul (makes the world brighter) and gets me back into balance. So I decided to stop worrying about writing today and visit my allotment plot.  

(For those who don’t know, a plot is an allotted piece of land rented from the local Council.  Its purpose is to grow vegetables and fruit, and some flowers, if you wish).  

I spent several hours working on my plot and felt so much better.  I dug in the dirt, weeded, hoed, stretched every muscle, erected bamboo cane supports and planted some runner bean seeds.  The seeds were very easy to push into the fine soil.  I patted them down lovingly and watered them in.  

When I got home I had a long soak in a bubble bath.  Then I read an old diary entry from last May, where I had written an outline plot for my book and sketched out the three acts. I was surprised by (and liked) what I’d written.  

“Hey, maybe this book of mine is okay after all?”  

I had started to feel more hopeful.

Then I sat down at my desk, turned on the fairy lights and wrote this blog post.

Having felt despondent for over a week, feeling I wasn’t getting anywhere fast – either at my allotment plot, or with my book writing, I realised my despondency was just a state of mind.

Gardening had eased my troubled mind. I’m doing fine after all – and so too (I think) are both plots. 😉