No plan B

I was talking to a friend last night about making one's living from one's art. In her case, painting. She has been painting full time, and supporting herself entirely from her artwork since she was 22, so I thought she might be a good person to ask for tips on how to get there. Her answer was simple. So simple that I thought to myself: there must be more to this. But no, there wasn't. She said:

"No plan B." 

Yeah. Right.

But really, if I think about it, when I have no other option, I always manage to make things work in life. It's just that I have always done so many different types of things that there always have been other options. There has always been something else I could do if what I was doing was not working out the way I had hoped.

"No plan B" sounds good, but in reality it means a lot of hard work, and pushing through lots of mistakes that feel like huge pothole failures while they are happening. Just this morning when I woke up I had an email from someone I have been writing for explaining that my writing was still too poetic, and that she had cut a good deal out of work I had recently done for her and hoped that I would not be offended. This particular job is coming to an end, and I have a feeling that one of the reasons is that despite trying my hardest to conform to the style that this company was looking for, my writing was still too descriptive. I am not at all offended. Of course I want her to be happy, so whatever it takes to get there is what I will do, but it can be hard sometimes to not be too hard on myself for not getting it right. I have been doing some work for a food company recently also, and working with a new editor who has also been rather generous with the editorial changes. I recognize that I am just getting started, and that any good writer has to edit a good deal, which means that I would have to edit far more than a good deal given that I am just getting started, and have a lot to learn. Most writers also inevitably go through the phase of feeling as though nothing they write is ever going to be good enough, and clearly the only way to get better is to keep working away at it, but some days the feedback is easier to receive than others. I want all my clients to be happy with the result, so that is my priority, and if it means that I have to deal with more criticism for a while then I guess this is all part of the process.  

Deciding to commit to my writing is easy. Continuing to write when the feedback is anything but complimentary is really hard some days. Today is one such day. I am still trying to find my niche as a writer. Perhaps writing about food is just not my thing, and the only way I will learn that is by giving it a try, which is what I am doing. Or maybe I just need to keep working away at it even on the days when it is not really enjoyable -- maybe if I keep trying I will just eventually reach the point where I can hit the right tone right off the bat without losing my own voice in the process. The truth is that I most enjoy writing that is descriptive and poetic, and that I hope I will eventually find a market for this kind of writing. Where I can still hear my voice in the piece after it has been edited.

I went out into the garden a while ago, looking for something beautiful. I do this on days that are tough. Being in a relatively new community is teaching me to find little tricks to cheer myself up because most of my close friends here have young children, and are not available for a chat or an "i'll be there in 10 minutes for tea" date. Taking myself outside and away from my computer in search of something beautiful is one of my tricks. Today I found my tomato plant. Even though I had not watered it for a few days, I found six ripe cherry tomatoes on it. The smell of the tomato plant, the colour of the tomatoes, and the spray when I turned on the hose to water it all reminded me that life is not so bad. That I do have a green thumb, and I did plant these tomatoes, and they are still growing and producing fruit. That nobody actually has told me my writing is awful, and "how could I NOT have a plan B?" That committing to something that is as close to me as writing is and dealing with the criticism is all part of the process of becoming a better writer. That is it Friday and I do not have to face any more editors all weekend long. That I am going to an awesome devotional gathering this evening with a great group of friends. That I will be doing yoga in a park with over 200 people tomorrow morning. And that I get to go celebrate my dad's birthday (which is actually today) with him tomorrow evening, and one of my best friend's birthday with her on Sunday evening. In truth, things are really very good. 

I'm telling you, tricks work. :-)

Despite the challenges of having to push through the potholes that are inevitable with "No plan B," I am still liking the idea of it. It has a certain ring to it, don't you think? I think I am going to keep moving forward with it as my new motto. What do you think? Do you have a plan B, or are you completely invested in one thing work-wise?

Whether you are a plan B and C person, or a "no plan B" advocate, I hope your weekend is full of the beauty of Fall, and the company of loads of awesome folks! Have a great weekend friends!

For everything there is a sign

"O SON OF MAN! For everything there is a sign. The sign of love is fortitude under My decree and patience under My trials." Baha'u'llah, The Hidden Words

A friend read this Hidden Word to me on Tuesday. We were talking about how to move through periods of life that are challenging with grace, commitment, determination, faith and joy. Everyone who has ever tried to do anything that is the least bit risky in life has gone through periods of tests and challenges, but usually when we read about these moments they are within the context of a larger story that ends in triumph. A best-seller, a movie....you know what I mean. The stories that inspire us to keep going when life is throwing massive tests in our direction are usually the ones from people who have already pushed on through and come out triumphant. We do not so often come across stories of what life was like for these people when they were in the middle of those tough times, and I'm thinking that is because when they were there, very few of them were certain they would triumph in the end.

I was reading a blog entry today by Yaro Starak. The title of the entry was 'How to remain productive when you feel like giving up.' You can read it here. I thought this article was good because although Yaro has made a successful business out of his blogging and helping others to be successful bloggers, he very clearly went through some tough times getting there, and is very honest about how hard you have to work to succeed as an entrepreneur.

I am very definitely in the phase of developing my business (which is writing) where I feel discouraged a lot. Unlike a few months ago, it is not that I am not getting any writing jobs. It's that the number of writing jobs I am getting is not growing fast enough to support me yet. I say yet because despite feeling discouraged, I recognize deep down that I do not actually want to give up. That this is my passion and my gift, and that I have to keep trying. I believe that I will succeed. I just wish it would happen a little faster!!

Over the last few weeks I have gone from writing only for myself to writing a minimum of two travel articles a month, at least one tea description a month for a small tea company, and at least one or two other articles a month for various companies. Today my first printed piece was published in the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op quarterly paper. Yesterday one of my travel articles was published online at Bootsnall, and I was contacted by a company that markets handcrafted food products and is looking for writers a couple of days ago. Compared with two months ago, I am actually making a lot of progress. But it is slow going, and there is a steep learning curve. I know how to research, and I consider myself a relatively strong writer, but I have never had to write under time constraints. Researching and writing the quality of writing that I know I am capable of in a short period of time is a learned skill, and one that I am very much immersed in at the moment. Because I am working as a freelancer, I have to constantly be scoping out future article ideas and sending off pitches, which in itself is time-consuming. There is a lot to think about, and none of it is second-nature to me at this early point in my career.

There is a distinction for me between the idea of being patient, and the how one actually ACTIVELY practices patience, because while accepting that I need to be patient is one thing, coming up with practical ways to do this that do not involve just sitting back and waiting for something to magically happen is another thing entirely. When I am discouraged, it feels like the weight of the world is hanging over me, and motivating myself to get going can sometimes take a hell of a lot of energy. Coming up with practical things I can do when I hit that wall is helpful. I know I will get where I want to be eventually, but right now I am down here in the valley of hard work and struggle, with very little reward for all my hard work, so what I need is a what to do list for the days when the going gets tough.

One of the things in Yaro's article that stuck out to me was the question "what can you create today?" I like the idea of asking myself this question because when I am struggling to get past a threshold, taking on huge projects is hard. Putting this question in front of me is much more doable. It does not have to be big, but it has to be moving me towards my goal. Any small act of creativity will do to help get me over that blip in the road until I am speeding along again full-force.

I decided to put it into practice today. Despite all the great things that I have going on with my writing this week, today was a blip day. The reason for the blip was that most of my friends back in Canada are all hanging out at a very cool camp in the forest this weekend, and I would really, really like to be there with them. But since my salary is practically non-existent at the moment, I will probably not be traveling at all this summer, let alone taking to the skies to join friends in Canada. I was sitting at my desk this morning and thought to myself: OK. You have to do SOMETHING. Or, as Yaro would say, "What can I create today?"

What I created was a lovely description for the tea company I write for, and this blog entry. I had committed to researching and writing one tea description a week, and pulling myself together and creating this little description helped me to make my goal. I had also been meaning to re-commit myself to my blog as I have been noticing that as I write more and more for others, I seem to be doing less of it on my own blog. As I finish writing this entry my father arrives home all excited with the newly printed Co-Op Reporter. True to their word, they did indeed give me a full page article. And an email just came in from the National Holocaust Museum with some excellent news about contacts for the research I am doing for my novel. I'd say it is working. :-)

So word from the trenches is to keep slugging away troops. Get up. Get moving, and take a step forward, even if it is only an inch. I am starting an official list of ways to keep moving. I now have number one thanks to Yaro.

Happy Friday people. And if you are stuck, remember to ask yourself "What can I create today?" and go for it. Let me know how it goes. And if you have other suggestions for my list, please give me a holler.