It's a cold, foggy, and dreary Sunday afternoon, and I'm sitting in an East Nashville coffee shop, sipping the strongest hazelnut latte one could possibly imagine while getting my money's worth with the free broadband. Usually, the background noise works wonders for generating content at the keyboard, but today I'm drawing a blank.
I woke up early this morning, having fallen asleep a couple of hours earlier than usual last night. I put on a pot of coffee and cranked out about three or four pages of what I hope is the Foreword of my first book.
Having taken a break for a few hours and then looking at it again in the cold light of day, I'm just not satisfied. But I'm down here at the Portland Brew East, getting ready to attend a Memoirs meetup with the Nashville Writers Group, and I'm hoping somebody with more experience and talent will not only give some welcome critique, but maybe point me in the right direction, too. It's not that I'm lost, but I don't want to waste my time writing junk. I know where I want to go, I'm just not sure how to get there.
Writing is hard.
Don't let anyone tell you differently. I admire the hell out of these people that can crank out novel after novel, you know, the guys like Grisham and Baldacci who make millions selling paperbacks at Hudson News in airport terminals around the world. While I have no aspirations to take a shot at writing the Great American Novel, I'd really like to get a couple of memoirs done. And while everyone talks about how awesome it is to take that first step in journey of a thousand miles by deciding to actually write a book, nobody says shiat about that second step where you have to actually, you know, get something done and create something worth reading. Deciding to do something is easy. Actually doing it can be a real pain in the ass.
So here I sit, drinking my overpriced hazelnut-flavored motor oil, hoping that somebody I haven't met yet can steer me in the right direction.
More in a bit...
Mikey
3 comments:
I think you should quit waiting for everyone else s approval and write the book. People can critique and give suggestions, but it all has to come from you. A writer is a very lonely job until his work is done. You should write a chapter a month and self publish. If it is bad, write another one. You crashed riding your bike the first time right?
ISE
I'm not waiting for anyone else's approval, just looking for a little guidance. It's like a guy who's been building birdhouses for the last decade who decides to remodel the basement. A little word of advice from the experts isn't too much to ask before you start the demolition.
As Ronald Reagan would say..."There you go again". You keep cutting yourself short. I have been reading your material since 2005. You are way above birdhouse material. You have the foundation dug, materials for the walls and shingles for the roof already there. You simply need someone to help you pick out the color of the paint.
ISE
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