October 11th, 2021

Go For Grit
​
       Happy October, and I hope that you’re having a wonderful fall! It occurred to me that on my writing website, I have yet to muse about writing. So, let’s do something about that! My creative journey began about six years ago when I started drafting my first novel instead of just dreaming about it. I have learned so many lessons since then, but today I want to focus on three of the most important ones.  

      Number one would have to be: It’s the journey, not the destination. That sounds like a cliché, but it happens to be true when it comes to publishing. When I started writing, I had just become a single mom of four children. I was inspired to start fresh and dream big, but at the same time I felt the weight of supporting my kids fall squarely on my shoulders. I fantasized about writing THAT NOVEL- you know, the kind of book that an agent would fall in love with and then sell right away, maybe even at auction! And since I’ve had quite the imagination since birth, I couldn’t see any reason why my book wouldn’t quickly become a movie or a Netflix series as well. And then reality set in. This writing gig was a marathon, not a sprint, and I had to be in it for the long game. I joined the writing community on Twitter, and for the first time in my life I found my tribe. I started to learn and make friends and enjoy the process and the writing journey. I still dream about the day I become a published author, but writing every day just for the sense of peace it brings me is what I love. So, if you are beginning your writing journey or slogging along in the query trenches, try your best not to get discouraged. Settle into your journey and find joy in it along the way. Make some good writer friends if you can and cheer each other on. Read, read, read, because there’s no better way to improve your craft and have fun while you’re doing it. And please try not to be discouraged when everything doesn’t go according to plan. Which leads me to the second lesson I have learned... 

       Number two is: Lower your expectations. That sounds contrary to common motivational jargon about reaching for the stars and dreaming big, I know. It’s not about doubting yourself or settling for second best, though. It’s more about taking some of the pressure off yourself and hoping for the best while realizing that everything won’t happen RIGHT AWAY. You may put a lot of pressure on yourself to fly through the publishing process. You will expect the first draft of your book to be ready to query, to acquire an agent right away, and for your agent to find a home for your book pronto. When those things don’t happen immediately, you will open the door of your heart and let discouragement and doubts about yourself begin to creep in. Would you believe it if I told you that I sent the first draft of my very first novel to a dream agent, and then kept checking my email waiting for a full request and then an offer of representation? Wow, did I have so much to learn. Published authors much wiser and more experienced than I was almost invariably warned that the publishing journey was going to be long and hard. They were right, of course. Once again, this isn’t meant to be discouraging, but rather it is meant to give you hope. You will have to query for a long time, and you will have to deal with rejections. Sometimes you won’t receive a rejection, you will just never hear from the agent you submitted to, as if your heart and soul weren’t in that manuscript and it just didn’t matter. But it does matter, and in time you will start to make progress and connect with the right agent who is meant to be on your team. My very favorite saying by those who walked this publishing mountain trail before us is: It only takes one yes. I am moving forward believing this to be true, and I want you to believe it too. Query with abandon and while you do, write your next novel and then your next. Both of my full requests happened when I least expected them. It was a sweet surprise, and you will have those exciting moments on your climb too- those moments that feel like someone is reaching back and saying, “Here, take my hand.” Lower your expectations, but DEFINITELY keep climbing. Which leads us to the third and most important lesson of all...  
       
       Never give up. My Grandad taught me this lesson. One of his favorite movies was an old one starring John Wayne called “True Grit.” Grit means courage and determination, and Grandad wanted me to have those qualities. He knew it was a hard world. Once, when I was around ten, we went horseback riding together. The ground was muddy from a recent rain, and my horse slipped. I landed on the ground hard, and it affected my vision and hearing. Grandad told me to sit with my head down between my knees, something that he did in the army when he got hurt boxing. A few minutes later, he told me to get back up in the saddle and ride. So I did. And there have been countless times in my life when I’ve been thankful to have learned that lesson when I might have given up or given in otherwise. I’ve definitely put it into practice with my writing, and I hope you will, too. You must hang tough and go for grit. Did you get a rejection? Send out another query! Revise your manuscript again if you feel like you can make it better. If you love writing, if being published is one of your goals, then keep going. Write another novel, and then another, until you hold your published book in your hands. When you fall hard, get back up in the saddle and ride. I believe in you. I believe in us, because we’re all in this together. We’re a great big family of writers rooting for each other, and we have faith and perseverance. And grit.  

​                                                                                                  Love, 
                                                                                                  Stac