“Don’t throw it all away, our love, our love.
Don’t throw it all away, our love.” ~ The Bee Gees
The wonderful thing about good advice is that it’s usually applicable to more than one thing. Yesterday I was reading a great post called 23 Tips from Famous Writers for New and Aspiring Authors.
One tip in particular stood out for me. This one:
“Imagine that you are dying. If you had a terminal disease would you finish this book? Why not? The thing that annoys this 10-weeks-to-live self is the thing that is wrong with the book. So change it. Stop arguing with yourself. Change it. See? Easy. And no one had to die.” ~ Anne Enright
I thought about a particular manuscript languishing in my bottom draw. You know, it’s a rotten feeling having written an entire book, only to stuff it in a bottom draw because it just doesn’t work for you. There’s two years of my life in that drawer but I’ve never been able to work out how to fix it.
So I applied Anne Enright’s advice. What is wrong with this book? What’s annoying me so much?
It’s the ending. I can’t stand the ending and the neat way I tie everything up. Life isn’t like that. Life has ragged edges.
Thanks Anne! I now have a project for November, (NaNoWRiMo) my writing month.
Anne’s advice was so useful that I decided to apply it to some non-writing situations; just a little experiment to see what might happen.
You know what? It works. Her technique helped me spend a lazy Sunday afternoon in bed work-shopping my business, a renovation project and a troublesome relationship.
Have you reached a standstill with something in your own life? Are you stuck and don’t know what to do next?
Ask yourself what’s bothering you about it. Even an “I don’t know how to…” shows you your next move.
Sometimes we don’t even need to fix it ourselves. We can ask for help, or get an expert to do it for us.
Wishing you a week full of revelations, insights and progress!
Much love to you, ♥ Nicole xoxo
Great advice! and I love your leading photo and quote. My parents were married 63 years had 7 kids…lost one…my dad was out of work with 5 kids for a year….and they would have said the same thing. Problems just need fixing!
Can’t wait to read your book!
Awesome advice. Thanks for those links, am checking them out now
I sympathise with your writing problem, I’m sitting on a similar problem myself and am very interested to have a look at that link of advice. It’s great that you took something from it and are now feeling inspired again, it’s so difficult with writing when you want to change something because you’re so close to it and can feel very blinkered by the avenue you’ve chosen to go down. I do think that leaving it aside for a while can help, although it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll magically find a solution when you look at it again, but the November project is a good idea. I might do the same thing with mine. Here’s wishing you a clear vision of how to change the ending – you’ll feel great when you come up with the solution, I’m sure.
Yesterday I had decided that I wasn’t meant to write – despite my 7-year-old self being 100% sure it was what I was meant to do. The reading you gave me about 18 months ago agreed with childhood me. But my manuscript has not be working.
So yesterday I sat on the deck trying to think of what I could possibly do other than write…I came up with nothing…well nothing I was remotely interested in.
But not once did I actually think of fixing the manuscript…doey hey?
Thankyou so much for posting this – I’ll give it a go – NOW!
E
Hooray!!!! I have so much faith in you. Keep going. And let us know how you get on.
Much, much love to you,
Nicole
xx
This is kinda gold 🙂 xoxo
I reckon!!! 😀 xoxo
Wonderful timing as always, Nicole. Am (frustratingly slowly) losing my brain fog and starting to have glimmers of all the things I want to tackle. Will apply this to literally writing as well as other life “stuff”! xo
What marvellous news – to know that the ol’ brain fog is departing! Much love to you, Nicole xx
What great synchronicities can flow from this. I love it. It allows a fresh approach to the niggly parts if the problem without feeling you have to toss it all out and start gain.
Full Moon magical solutions wherever they are needed.
Be well Nicole. Hope this week is kinder to you.
Susan ❤
Hope you’re travelling okay too, beautiful soul.
{{{HUGS}}} xoxo
Just what I need…woke up thinking…I’ll redo Nicole’s 6wk “Re-Routing” my life program….well that’s what I call it…but this time I’ll ‘pull’ my own Tarot Cards one for the beginning of the week..and one midweek…sending you oodles of love & healing hugs…X
Oooh, sounds like a plan. And I was just thinking… You know, I think I need to create another program for my blog. *snap* soul sista xoxo
Thanks Luvvy…. very helpful…have a beautiful day xxxx
LOL! You too, Marilyn 😀 xx
What a great idea!
It is, isn’t it! I hope you get some great breakthroughs too, Jan. Much love to you xoxo