A Map of the Writing Journey
I think when many of us start writing, we think the path to success looks something like this:
Stop #1: Write a book.
Stop #2:Find an awesome editor
Stop #3: Rise to #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List
Stop #4: Fame and Fortune!
But...a lot of the time, the journey looks more like this:
Stop #1: Write a book.
Stop #2: Get married. Learn about...love!
Stop #3: Revise.
Stop #4: Have a baby. Learn about...life! (and love!)
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #5: Lose a friend to death. Learn about loss...and more about love.
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #6: Find a great critique group.
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #7: THEN find an awesome editor.
Stop #8: (Oh, yes. Revise again.)
Stop #9: Publish a book that will move hearts and change lives.
You can see that the second path is a lot more circuitous. But that really isn't a problem...unless you've got that darn map #1 in your head in the first place.
Good luck on your writing journey! (And a special thank you to everyone who is part of my Stop #6!) Remember:
"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost." --J.R.R. Tolkien
Stop #1: Write a book.
Stop #2:Find an awesome editor
Stop #3: Rise to #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List
Stop #4: Fame and Fortune!
But...a lot of the time, the journey looks more like this:
Stop #2: Get married. Learn about...love!
Stop #3: Revise.
Stop #4: Have a baby. Learn about...life! (and love!)
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #5: Lose a friend to death. Learn about loss...and more about love.
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #6: Find a great critique group.
RETURN TO STOP #3.
Stop #7: THEN find an awesome editor.
Stop #8: (Oh, yes. Revise again.)
Stop #9: Publish a book that will move hearts and change lives.
You can see that the second path is a lot more circuitous. But that really isn't a problem...unless you've got that darn map #1 in your head in the first place.
Good luck on your writing journey! (And a special thank you to everyone who is part of my Stop #6!) Remember:
"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost." --J.R.R. Tolkien
I appreciate the time you spent to draw this out for your followers. This is JUST awesome--and so true. We have our "wild" dreams, and then we experience life. The end product then turns out to be very sweet/truly satisfying. (All along it's about revising....)
ReplyDeleteAnn Best, Author of In the Mirror, A Memoir of Shattered Secrets
Faith, That's so true! I remember wanting to write when I was just out of college, but something told me I needed to live a little first, so I waited to get serious. Maybe that wasn't absolutely necessary ... maybe I could have written amazing things straight out of college, but what I've learned about life since has inspired my work of today. Maybe I wouldn't have had time to do all that living if I'd been a very, very serious writer. Who knows?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, love your last quote. Tolkien sums it up quite nicely. :)
Amy
Great post, Faith. I'm inspired. I'm at stop #6. Took twelve years to get there, but that's what it takes sometimes, right? Best of luck to the both of our journeys.
ReplyDeleteI gave you a shout-out on my blog today! :)
I love your illustrations! And so true. It's best if we never get that first map in our heads.
ReplyDeleteOh, it's hard to get rid of the stupid map, but you are so right! It can be very distracting in a bad way. And, life happens and disrupts. Great post. And I love the Tolkien quote.
ReplyDeleteAnd without love, it does not matter all the books we write. Great post.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! The one thing about your writing road map: you never know when you're going to get somewhere new! And you never know how fast or slow you're moving. I guess the important thing is to be patient and just keep at it.
ReplyDeleteAll I know is that the path is never the way anyone plans. I guess that's what makes the journey so interesting - to see what's around the next corner.
ReplyDeleteI'm a believer that if you go after your heart's desire - you will find it. Sometimes though, it may look a little different than your original image - but still your heart's desire in the end. :-)
Sending happy thoughts to you that your path leads to your heart's desire.