it really is so huge that you achieved that item from your list—that you had a goal for that long and stuck with it! and i relate to so much of this, especially the part about racing time. thank you for writing it 💜
Did it ever occur to you...to make a new list? And to apply the lesson learned from getting your first book published (CONGRATULATIONS, btw--so very many don't get that far!) and take one of the items on your list and break it down into bite-size steps?
In the nineties, I'd just managed to publish a couple of books, and I was on list of potential authors for a media tie-in deal. But I'd JUST fired my first agent, and I was terrified that the studio would call her and she'd trash my opportunity. And then a friend said, "why don't you just call the studio and let them know?"
I was aghast. I couldn't CALL A MAJOR HOLLYWOOD STUDIO and, and, and...
And my friend said, very sensibl6, "Why not? Which part is impossible? Picking up the phone? Dialling a number? You do that every day!"
"But I don't HAVE the number!"
"So call your editor and ask her. She's the one who put you on the short list."
So, hands shaking, I did.
And bottom line, I got the deal. (It was a dreadful contract, incidentally. I really needed a better agent.) I did five books, and it led to a dozen more.
So I read that you're in your 30s, and I'm in my 70s, and it seems like every writer I know has dozens (and a few have well over a hundred) books out. But not one of them has written MY books, and none of those people you're competing with can write yours, either. Your thirties are your best decade, all the way until you hit your forties, usw. Don't bother trying to compete. Just write your books, one sentence at a time. Bite size. New list. Bite size. Be happy. Nobody else in the whole world can do what you do.
for some reason, those to-dos took on a megalithic status in my mind, and i just didn't consider that they could be broken down into bite-size. i have thought about making another list, but i just don't think it would hold the same significance as that list written by the younger me. anyway, thank you for sharing your experience. my own writing journey has barely started, so i'm sure there's much more learning ahead.
it really is so huge that you achieved that item from your list—that you had a goal for that long and stuck with it! and i relate to so much of this, especially the part about racing time. thank you for writing it 💜
thank you for reading! <3
Did it ever occur to you...to make a new list? And to apply the lesson learned from getting your first book published (CONGRATULATIONS, btw--so very many don't get that far!) and take one of the items on your list and break it down into bite-size steps?
In the nineties, I'd just managed to publish a couple of books, and I was on list of potential authors for a media tie-in deal. But I'd JUST fired my first agent, and I was terrified that the studio would call her and she'd trash my opportunity. And then a friend said, "why don't you just call the studio and let them know?"
I was aghast. I couldn't CALL A MAJOR HOLLYWOOD STUDIO and, and, and...
And my friend said, very sensibl6, "Why not? Which part is impossible? Picking up the phone? Dialling a number? You do that every day!"
"But I don't HAVE the number!"
"So call your editor and ask her. She's the one who put you on the short list."
So, hands shaking, I did.
And bottom line, I got the deal. (It was a dreadful contract, incidentally. I really needed a better agent.) I did five books, and it led to a dozen more.
So I read that you're in your 30s, and I'm in my 70s, and it seems like every writer I know has dozens (and a few have well over a hundred) books out. But not one of them has written MY books, and none of those people you're competing with can write yours, either. Your thirties are your best decade, all the way until you hit your forties, usw. Don't bother trying to compete. Just write your books, one sentence at a time. Bite size. New list. Bite size. Be happy. Nobody else in the whole world can do what you do.
for some reason, those to-dos took on a megalithic status in my mind, and i just didn't consider that they could be broken down into bite-size. i have thought about making another list, but i just don't think it would hold the same significance as that list written by the younger me. anyway, thank you for sharing your experience. my own writing journey has barely started, so i'm sure there's much more learning ahead.