I usually find things through a random series of events; a trail that I lose as soon as I start.
But when I found this stellar piece of advice from Elizabeth Gilbert, I knew I had found the equivalent of my own personalized Serenity Prayer. Granted, it could be a little snappier. I think if I was going to take just one little chunk of her text, I would steal this:
I’ve decided I should probably read it several times a day…or at least as many times as needed to stop me from jumping from our balcony. (Probably I don’t have to mention that I’m struggling a wee bit with chapter seven?)
I can add in the original serenity prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr for good measure.
God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
And quite obviously, none of this has to be specific to writing. Miz Gilbert could just as easily be talking about life. The key seems to be to just try to do your best; not to attain perfection, because clearly, that is impossible, but to just keep showing up and trying. That’s all.
Use whatever you can; Mantras. Prayers. Rituals. Super-sharp Pencils. Encouraging Friends. Walking. Reading…
Whatever it takes. Just show up. Again and again. Don’t give up.
Good choice of quotes, Colleen. Of course, we all know you’re a great writer, as is evidenced by Travelling Light, which I enjoyed reading last week. I’ve been meaning to send you an e-mail to say that I found it heartening that you wrote about small things. I keep feeling like I need to have epic solo adventures in order to have anything worth writing about. It’s good to know that my adventures can be small, group and even routine and still be worthy of my writing time. No matter what we write, putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) is an act of practice and improves us.
Sharry, thanks so much for your kind comments about my Traveling Light ebook. I think you’ve just inspired my blog post for today. I think travel, just like the rest of our lives, is all about the details, the little moments. Whatever catches your notice, is by that very act, worthy of attention and therefore ripe for writing. I think a good travel story is about paying attention to the little moments.
Hey Colleen,
Great quote. I have a question…are you stuck on/in chapter 7? I might suggest you skip it, as though you are walking along a path and you see a big hole. Jump over the hole, carry on along the path, and when you know how to fill the hole, go back and do so. I think sometimes you need to go beyond, and then the past/hindsight will make help you fill in the blanks. Or maybe I am full of baloney. I’m not sure. Bon voyage.
Dear Baloney Girl aka Mary 🙂
I love that visual of jumping over the hole in the path. It’s a damned fine idea and one I’ve used in the past and had completely forgotten about; sort of what I do with most of my major insights and epiphanies for some reason. Thanks for the timely reminder.
I love that Elizabeth Gilbert talk, and you’ve chosen a great clip from it. Julia Cameron says much the same thing: the key to writing is to show up at the keyboard or the page, put your head down, and do the work. We have to trust the process. A few years ago, I read an article quoting W D Valgardson’s writing affirmations, like: “Writing is fun and easy for me.” Some days, for me, that translates to: “Just write.” Some days that’s all I really need. Good luck with the writing!
Hello Marie, Thanks for your comments. “We have to trust the process.” That line encompasses everything. It’s the trusting part that gets me over and over. My default wiring takes me straight to doubt 🙂
I love that quote from Gilbert. It’s comforting to say to your manuscript, “Here I am.”
Hi Angie. Yes, she really has some great lines in there. It’s so interesting that I have to relearn this daily, if not hourly.
Yes. “Here I am. Ready or not.”
In my case? Usually not, but if I just show up, it starts to happen somehow…
Good advice. Because Doubt can waylay you from your creativity. Just write and keep going.
Absolutely. I think Doubt is the killer lurking in the weeds 🙂
Yes. My favourite part?
“We need more creation, not more destruction. We need our artists more than ever, and we need them to be stable, steadfast, honorable and brave.”
Also, it’s never too late to dance. 😉
Yes to dancing and more creation and less destruction. I am still working on the ‘stable’ part 🙂