So I’ve been really busy lately and wasn’t feeling a spark about the blog, because it’s another thing to get done, and then someone posted a really fantastic comment that made me feel good about the work and what I’m trying to do here. It lit it up.
That comment turned into an email exchange about all kinds of fun writing stuff – we were debating the merits or inside/out vs. outside/in writing, if one offers more than the other, if there is any way to integrate the two. We email-discussed all kinds of stuff. He had me in hysterics. And now, magically, I’m feeling excited about the blog again.
I realized more than ever we don’t always have the spark ourself all the time. Sometimes we need a hand up.
I was thinking about one of the guests we had at AFI, Paula Wagner. Hearing Paula Wagner speak at AFI was transformational for me, because she’s at herself, charming, feminine – but make no mistake, she doesn’t miss a beat and is a very savvy business woman. Paula was asked a question about the glass ceiling for women in this business. She laughed and said something to the effect that whenever she feels like she hits the glass ceiling, she knocks, and when the hatch opens, she says, ‘Do you mind holding my heels and giving me a boost?’
Sometimes we need to actually discuss ideas with a close friend, a distant friend, someone who loves some of the same things we do, someone who loves ideas. Sometimes just the love of ideas is enough to give you a boost through that hatch and up beyond the glass ceiling to that next level – whether that’s for a personal issue, a writing problem, a story concept.
Sometimes we all need a boost. And, to be honest, most of the time we’re not going to get one unless we ask for it. If I’m off, like my uber-reclusive writerly self (read: working), agonizing over how I’m not making my fucking story work, then I’m going to be off agonizing by myself, probably dragging out the process. But, if I call a friend and brainstorm out some possible options, it will likely get me excited again about the project and light it up, thus enabling me to take it to the next level and, in essence, open that hatch and climb the fuck through.
Don’t be afraid to cultivate a Team You. There are people out there who will get what you’re trying to do and why, and on the off days, they’ll be willing to give you hand if you stumble. And, then, once you’re feeling better, you can help somebody else through that hatch when they need a boost.
Sometimes I believe there’s a special place in the next life (no matter if you call it heaven or by another term) for those who give a needed boost. 🙂
Team Me. I never realized that I could put one of those together… first thing to teach Team Me: hourly neck massages are MANDATORY.
Seriously, I get so lost in what I’m doing, I start insulating myself from other creative people. NOT GOOD. This blog is a tremendous aide in my getting my spirits/creativity/persistence back on track. If only New Mexico were closer to Europe, I’d take you out for coffee and pedicures, Monica. In the meantime, I’ll drag the cat lady downstairs to the Starbucks and make her tell me a story. YES! First member of Team Me! WOOHOO!