Staying Focused by Lorrie Orr

 

I have so enjoyed all these posts this month on getting through the middle. It seems we all have much in common - projects abandoned for one reason or another. I could write about not listening to my inner critic, or creative strategies to push through, but I've chosen to focus on the ultimate reason to finish a project. 

In my late forties I began studying for a B. A. in French. My teaching credentials were way out of date after spending 21 years overseas, and I had to begin again if I wanted to teach in Canada. I started my course work (online) with enthusiasm and energy, but after a year, I quit. I decided it cost too much, and I wasn't certain that I wanted to teach. Other things called to me.

Over the next few years I stayed busy with children finishing their university degrees, leaving home, and all of them marrying. I volunteered in the church. I dedicated time to writing and had some moderate success, but hated the marketing and isolation. 

When our youngest daughter graduated and spent the summer in Scandinavia, the house felt very, very empty. I asked myself the question posed by Mary Oliver "What is it you want to do with your one wild and precious life?" The answer came quickly and definitively, in answer to prayer - teach! 

So I buckled down and finished that degree, and quickly found a job teaching French and Spanish. 

It was that final goal, the carrot of a teaching position because of the degree, that kept my focus on grammar and vocabulary during those years. 

My current project is writing a book about our years as a family in Ecuador, focusing on God's faithfulness. I probably would have never chosen to start this project, but my children have asked me to. My late mother-in-law saved every letter I wrote;  those letters, and my journals, are the basis for the book. 

Emotions run the gamut as I re-read the letters, and mentally re-live those years. There are often tears and sometimes laughter. Some things I would rather not write about. What keeps me going is the knowledge that my children and grandchildren will have my account of how God led and kept our family.

Making the goal close and personal helps me to keep going. I don't aspire to broad publication nor fame. If I did, my inner critic would whisper negative thoughts in my ear. Putting a time line on the goal helps me, too. My husband will retire in the spring and I want to have the book mostly finished by then. I'm aiming for a first draft by December 1. It's doable, and I get up in the morning excited to get to my desk. There's another project beginning to simmer in the background of my mind, but I'm keeping the end goal of the present one firmly in front of me.

Lorrie Orr writes from Vancouver Island where she enjoys boating and hiking with her husband. Gardening, sewing, reading, and spending time with her five grandchildren fill her days with happiness and contentment. She is newly retired from teaching high school Spanish. 

 

 

Help. I'm Stuck! By Carol Harrison

To be honest, I’ve been stuck so many times. Sometimes it’s happened in the middle of a project which is what our prompt is about this month. Yet there are times I can see the end in sight and inspiration fades, ideas hide, and I’m as stuck as when I’ve ended up with snow too deep for the car to continue moving forward. Once in a while, I’m stuck before I begin to put a great idea into practice, unable to move ahead. This often happens because of fear grabbing hold and walls of resistance rising up.

Right now, there’s a huge task called marketing demanding my attention. The thought scares me and I’d rather avoid it. But God recently reminded me that to be a good steward of the abilities He has given means not only writing the stories but also letting people know they exist. The self-promotion scares me to the point of inaction. At the Inscribe Conference in September, Grace Fox told us to quit worrying about building our platform and begin to think about feeding God’s sheep. This mindset adjustment focuses the attention off of me and onto God.

 

But how does that help me get unstuck from this need to market my books so readers will know they exist? How can I connect with them? I’ve begun to try a few things like having a booth at a craft or trade show and talking to people during the day. But there are other suggestions to consider such as starting a newsletter. I know it’s an idea which others have used. I receive some newsletters and enjoy getting to know the author through them. But to do one myself—I’m stuck.

 

I’m stuck in the muck of fear. When our cars get stuck, we rock back and forth as we attempt to resume our journey. Inches at a time we try and gain momentum. Sometimes that’s all it takes but at others we need some extra help. We need a push. It’s no different in our writing or marketing projects. Sometimes we just need someone to bounce ideas off of, glean knowledge from, or even get their expert help with technological issues.  

I’ve been rocking back and forth on the newsletter. Legitimate questions have been asked like how to even begin, what to include, and who to send it to. I admit I need help to get from idea of the newsletter to a trial run and finally building an email subscriber list. Help showed up as I spun my wheels and I’m grateful.  

Many questions now have answers. I’ve jotted ideas of what to include in my newsletter and a format for consistency in them. Those technological issues such as setting up Mail Chimp and learning how to use it have been taken care of. Everything is ready to proceed except me and my fear of beginning.  

A stronger push by a group of fellow writers to take that next step and do a mock up newsletter to send to myself happened this week. Encouraging words like, “You can do it. and just take one step at a time” means accountability. I don’t have to accomplish everything in marketing. I don’t even have to perfect a newsletter but I need to try.  

When the car is stuck and help has arrived to push as you rock the vehicle forward, you still need to keep your foot on the gas to gain that forward momentum and keep it going until you reach solid ground once again. I need to remember that analogy and keep taking the next steps, allowing the forward motion to propel me on to complete the next step and the next. It will bring a sense of accomplishment, quiet the negative voices playing in my mind, dispel the fear, and help me connect with others which is something I enjoy.  

No matter how stuck I am in a project, these steps of rest for a bit, rock back and forth with researching the answers to what has me stuck, and then accepting help to push me forward while keeping the momentum going will be what helps get unstuck.  

Now for the next step in this newsletter journey. If anyone is interested in receiving a monthly newsletter from me, just send me an email at carol@carolscorner.ca. Eventually I’ll get that technology of a subscribe button installed. But until then one step at a time.  

 

 

Carol Harrison often gets stuck and chooses to not follow what she knows has helped in the past but wiles away her time with reading or playing with her paper crafting both of which she enjoys and do help the creativity begin to flow again.