Days 101 & 102 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey: My 2016 Goal

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I don’t know about you, but I start each new calendar year resolved to be more focused, organized, healthier, and/or financially stable. I set lofty goals that I stop reaching for around mid-February. Then, I slip on the coat of guilt, shame, and embarrassment as penance for my lack of resolve and determination.

This past New Year’s Eve I decided that 2016 is my year of Pro-Action. I’m resolved to take action steps towards my goals (professional and personal) and to be proactive about reaching them. Waiting won’t get me anywhere but stuck, so today I take my first step by stating my goal:

In 2016, I will earn a living as a writer!

Writing goals to include any of the following:
A) Publish my YA Fantasy and/or New Adult novels
B) Submit articles to magazines, newspapers, and other publications
C) Write about the film, television, and theatre industries
D) Write for the film, television, or theatre industries
E) Teach workshops, seminars, or online courses as a writing mentor
F) ALL OF THE ABOVE

How will I achieve such a goal? I honestly don’t know, but that’s where the Pro-Action part of the goal declaration comes in. You see, in years prior I wouldn’t move forward because I couldn’t answer the question of “What do you really want?” My answer consistently changed because I considered what it should be and not what’s true.

A jumble of interests and talents (as you can see in the above list), I couldn’t sort out which one to focus on as a career path. I thought I had to pick one and stick with it, ultimately causing me to not choose and wait for a sign. What a ridiculous idea!

  • I am a talented writer.
  • I create beautiful pieces of jewelry.
  • I pen poems that lift people up instead of knocking them down.
  • I am a writer, a singer, a mentor, a nurturer of children, and a spiritual being.

I am an artistic spirit moving forward toward my goals one day at a time.

Artistic Spirit Pledge

*What are your 2016 goals and what steps are you taking to reach them?*

 

 

Days 95-97 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey: Motivational Monday Poem

HORIZON

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Lost, scared, 

 Alone, and unsure enter

Hope is on the horizon 

 

 Climbing mountains 

 Scaling walls 

 Actual or symbolic 

 

 Moving forward 

 Toward destinations unseen 

 Take resolute steps 

 Even when your feet only brush the earth.

Days 91 & 92 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey

Day 91 & 92: Wishful Journey

I want to see new places, meet new people, and be inspired. Oh, to see Vermont in the winter, New Orleans in the spring, San Francisco in the Summer, and Canada in the Fall. How my soul yearns to travel to the lands I know only in my dreams: the French and English countrysides, Italy’s cobblestoned pathways, and Japan’s enlightening gardens. I look forward to the time when I visit the homelands of my ancestors: Northern Ireland, Austria/Slovakia/Hungary, and Scotland.

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Ring of Kerry – 2004

I can imagine the artistic stimulation in each place as I experience my surroundings, allowing its essence to inspire new stories and poems. Taking this writer’s journey to entirely new level!

Days 88-90 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey: Motivational Monday

MOTIVATIONAL MONDAY POEM: Winter Solstice

Winter awakens from his slumber
Remnants of dreams falling in a flurry

Day and Evening take turns
Gracing us in moments of beauty

The Sun’s rebirth
Resets the clock of opportunity

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Days 84-87 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey

Days 84-87: Writing Through a Haze

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It’s finally Friday! And to make the day even better it’s a Friday before a holiday!!!!!  Ah, to relax, curl up in a blanket, and watch TV movies to which I can already guess the ending. The desire to do all of the aforementioned activities is amplified by the fact that I am under the weather right before Christmas week.

I have so much to do in preparation, including shopping and cleaning, but all I WANT to do is drink hot tea and rest. I can’t be sick for Christmas.  I won’t be sick for Christmas.  I will be taking it easy this weekend and drove home from work determined to start my slumber early tonight. However, I refused to go to bed until I’d written something.  Even it that ‘something’ was not particularly well written. “Keep writing,” I repeated.  “Let your fingers type whatever comes to mind.  You are a writer, so write!”

During the latter half of this week, I focused on numerous writing projects: my YA novel that’s lingering in post-post-post editing, drafting reviews for An Entertaining Idea, and the New Adult novel currently in the works.

This writer’s journey slowed slightly today, but didn’t halt. I kept trudging through a haze that dissipated with each resolute step forward.

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Keep moving forward, my fellow adventurers, even when the fog threatens to impede your journey!

Day 83 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey

DAY 83: Writing Prompt Wednesday

Use the image below as a source of creative inspiration. Draft a film noir story, poem, or write a flash fiction piece set in an alternate universe. Pick up those pens or pencils! Charge up your tablet! Ready? And….write!!!!!

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Day Eighty-Two of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey

Day 82: Motivational Monday poem

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MORNING’S DEW

The sun sleeps still

Resting from a day’s hard work

Stretching just a little

In preparation for another

 

Morning fog veils vision

Enough to keep us focused 

On the path in front of us 

Slowing the habitual rush 

 

 

Days 80 & 81 of the 111 Day Writer’s Journey

I’ve stated on numerous occasions that inspiration strikes in the most unlikely of moments. I’ll revise that statement slightly: Inspiration strikes in the quietest and simplest of moments. The past two days are examples of such a claim.

Day 80: DADDY LONG LEGS

Heartwarming, lovely, charming, elegantly told, and beautifully presented – that’s how I’d describe the Off-Broadway production of ‘Daddy Long Legs‘. I was all ready to watch my favorite TV shows Thursday evening when I recalled that a new musical (currently on stage in NYC) was being live streamed over the internet. “I can’t pass this up,” I declared. “I’ll watch it for a little bit and if I don’t like it, I’ll just turn it off.” Not ten minutes in, I had a smile so broad that my cheeks hurt. I sat the entire time, glued to my laptop and clapping as though I was in that theater. If I enjoyed it so much from a distance, I can’t wait to experience it in its home at the Davenport Theater.

While I draft a more in-depth review for my entertainment blog, visit the musical’s website to read more about this delightful piece of theatre.

Day 81: A Web of Lines

I connected with ‘Daddy Long Legs’ for many reasons, but mainly because written communication played a central character in the play. It combined two of my great loves: musical theatre and writing. I woke the next day excited to continue working on my novel(s). The words didn’t flow as effortlessly as I implored them to, but I jotted down story ideas that helped clarify the characters’ motivations. I wrote, and rewrote, climatic scene descriptions and asked myself some hard questions:

  • Do I love the story?
  • Can I summarize the novel in one page, one paragraph, one line?
  • Why did I write it in the first place?
  • What are my protagonist’s wants, needs, and obstacles to overcome?
  • Am I as passionate about it as I hope readers will be?

After months of hiding it away, I’m dusting the cobwebs off my manuscript and addressing the answers to all of the aforementioned questions.

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