Friday, January 1, 2016

Resolutions

1st January 2016

Bliadhna Mhath Ùr - Happy New Year!

Time for those damned resolutions again.
Resolutions for writers should be no different from any other resolutions. What makes us human also makes us good authors.
Here are 3 New Year's resolutions for better living that will carry over into the writing life:

1. Be Yourself:

We live in a cult-ish cult-ure. Especially in the USA. The need to belong is almost as strong as the need to survive. Sometimes stronger, when you take Jonestown into consideration. But it is a persistent human trait: from the outside, what mormons and other cults have to believe seems bizarre; from the inside it is a life rope. But you can't be yourself that way. You can't be Prince Ali trying to impress Princess Jasmine if Aladdin is to survive. You can't be a writer trying to impress yourself. Spend a moment watching your cat: it doesn't have any need to impress. It is. Period.

2. Don't lose touch with the ground:



Listen. Be aware. Get perspective: Don't take yourself too seriously. Did I say Listen? Perhaps the path you are pursuing is not the one that will take you where  you need to go. Put your ear to the ground, take in all the subtle sounds. The rabbit sitting in a foot of snow on my stone wall is alert in every fiber. It will only take the suggestion of a dog out there for it to move. Be in tune. It will help with the other two resolutions.

3. Have courage


I say this to myself most of all at the turning point of the year. I need to take bold steps this year, and I need not to look down at the drop, because the drop will always stop you before you even start.  The dash between your birth date and your day of demise is just a punctuation mark, so make it a good one. Make it count.

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