My brother gave me a framed photo of that inspirational quote years ago for Christmas. Not going to lie, it brought me to tears.
Running has been part of my life since I was just a kid. I haven’t always been consistent with my training; this summer, for example, I’ve barely touched my running shoes. But I know it’s only a matter of time before I get back on track, sign up for a race and restart my running program. For me, it’s not about running every single day. It’s about being doggedly persistent in my pursuit of my goals and ambitions.
The same is true for writing. I’ve read blog posts from writers who insist that in order to be successful, one must write every. Single. Day. I’m going to respectfully disagree. In fact, I find I’m more inspired and productive when I take a bit of time off from plugging away at my keyboard.
This summer has been an insanely busy one around here. (Which probably accounts for the infrequent posts these past few months!) Between my part-time and freelance work, my girls’ ridiculously busy schedules, vacations/holidays and just life, something had to be set aside for a bit. Unfortunately, I decided that would be my fiction writing.
Or maybe that’s not unfortunate at all.
I don’t regret one second I spent away from my laptop this summer. And my family and I have spent time together and bonded in a way we couldn’t do if I was half-focused on them, but with my mind really still on my writing. We’ve gone through a bit of a family transitional period this summer with our oldest being away at Marine boot camp, and looking back I did the right thing in putting my works of fiction aside temporarily. But all that will change once September rolls around.
Being successful at anything requires patience, practice and persistence, I believe. Whether you want to learn a new language, pick up a new instrument or write The Great American Novel, there is no avoiding these three P’s. But that doesn’t equate to slaving away, day in and day out. Especially in creative fields such as writing, taking a break to clear the cobwebs and start fresh can be a welcome break for anyone.