Keep Watering Your Seeds

The life of a writer isn’t fun and games 24/7. The dream of becoming a published author is a daunting thingamajig that takes knowledge, patience, hard as f@&% work, and a certain amount of talent. We all have our own style and hope our voice shines through and resonates with agents, publishers, and one day, readers.

Dream big. You want to write a novel and become a published author? Write a sentence, then two, then a scene, and a chapter, then three. Next research and learn the craft. Edits follow because you must drill down on grammar and the ins and outs of writing mechanics. Voila, you’ve planted some seeds and you’re on the road to realizing that dream. These are excellent accomplishments. If you’ve joined a writing or critique group, hooray, add it to the list. Water the s#%t out of those seeds and hopefully soon those seeds will blossom, and you’ll be typing the end on the last page of your manuscript. Wine glasses up. Cheers to the small and big and all the in between because these are all writing seeds.

We crave that end goal, our masterpiece of a novel, complete with a cherry on top. Ta-da!

Wait, we can’t go from zero to sixty in a second. There’s a ton of stuff in between initial idea and completed novel in hand. Veggie garden aficionados know you reap what you sow. You can’t plant tomatoes and never water them; you’ll end up with substandard fruit or dead plants. It’s the same with writing. We must keep watering the writing seeds we plant so they can blossom into something spectacular. That means combatting snags and struggles that creep in too.

Enter, super-rotten feelings of rejection, doubt, and the horrendous idea of wanting to give up. Trust me, surrendering to failure is easy. Continuing in the face of adversity is true courage. Carry on I say. Grab your watering can and douse those seeds. Recognize and celebrate all your accomplishments so far. You’ve come a long way, maybe further than you think. Create a written inventory of your achievements and pin that badass list to a board near your desk or wherever it is you do your best work. Use it as motivation to keep going, to keep writing, to keep your dream alive.

You’ve planted the seeds you need to succeed. Keep watering them. Write every day if you can. Nail that opening sentence to lure readers in. Keep it going with superior prose and amazeballs dialogue that keeps readers enthralled. Brainstorm ideas that turn into scenes and chapters. Dream up unusual and diverse characters to walk the pages of your novel. Give them something unique and memorable. Devise winning chapter titles if that’s your jam. Create a kickass title that makes perspective readers excited to see what your book is all about.

Be the sprinkler for the writing seeds you’ve planted and watch your novel grow and succeed!