Writing – a sentence at a time…

I am reading Julia Cameron‘s The Right to Write and feel like I’ve made a new friend who keeps urging me to write.  In her chapter titled “The Time Lie” she writes,

“If I had a year off, I’d write a novel,”
Maybe you would.  Maybe you wouldn’t.  Often the greased slide to writer’s block is a huge batch of time earmarked: “Now write.”  Making writing a big deal tends to make writing more difficult. Keeping writing casual tends to keep it possible.[1]

And literally she read my mind.  I had thought, “Maybe, I’ll write a novel… but I really don’t have time.  I’ll stick to poetry.”

Later in the chapter she writes,

The “if-I-had-time” lie is a convenient way to ignore the fact that novels require being written and that writing happens a sentence at a time.  Sentences can happen in a moment.  Enough stolen moments, enough stolen sentences, and a novel is born – without the luxury of time.[2]

So I decided to try it.  And the past couple of days I’ve been sick in bed so in between napping I’ve been writing down sentences shooting for a novel.  And it’s funny I’ll get going a little bit and then stop – not knowing where to go next.  And as soon as I stop I start thinking.  Oh no! Am I ever going to be able to finish this?? Is it going to be any good??

And I realized yesterday that all the art I’ve ever done has taken no more than a couple of hours.  I haven’t taken on projects that take weeks and months to finish.  I write a poem, I finish it, and I immediately decide whether it is any good. So this concept of writing something that will take weeks or months to finish is in some ways terrifying.  How will I know if it’s any good until I finish?  And how can I trust that it’s good enough to keep going?

So I’m heading into uncharted territories – and some parts of it are amazing as funny ideas spring out from no where. And the characters emerge from the page taking on quirks and heading in directions I hadn’t planned for them.  And other parts of it are scary.

And so I’m learning to lean into the discomfort of not knowing where it’s going and somehow when I am able to do that, is exactly when the characters surprise me in amazing ways.  And it’s kind of like life – I don’t really know where it’s going and the more I am okay with not knowing the more interesting opportunities emerge.

So slowly but surely – a sentence at a time – I am learning to live, and I am learning to write.

Author: Bryn Bamber

I work with big hearted people who want to make a positive impact in the world. The only problem is: -Your career isn’t working -You wake up some days and don’t want to get out of bed -You’re stressed about paying the bills Career Coaching in the Forest teaches you how to make small shifts that will free up tons of energy for the things you really love. A life where you wake up to feeling a sense of purpose and easily pay the bills. I teach you how to approach making a career change in a way that is fun, easy and gets results :). I have over a decade of experience in the field of education and during my four years at an educational non-profit I hired enough contract staff to know what employers want and DON’T WANT in the job application process. So why did I start this? When I was 24, I was overwhelmed by my job working with vulnerable youth and fell apart. I moved to a yoga centre for 2 years to put myself back together. There I figured out what I was messing up at work and became a yoga and meditation teacher. Career Coaching in the Forest will help you to see the mistakes you’re making without having to move to a yoga centre! And use meditative practices to help you see where you need to go. I know exactly what it feels when something’s not right in your career and now I love helping others to make changes so their lives can become full of meaning and purpose again and so that you can make lots money too ;). Start today: get my Free Resource: Land Your Dream Job Checklist here - tinyurl.com/dreamjobchecklist And above all else, please go for your dreams. Your life has meaning. You are here for reason. Find out what it is and when you do put all you that you got towards it! Talk soon! Bryn To learn more go to www.couragecompass.org View all posts by Bryn Bamber