Friday Feature: How to be a Writer

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Last week, J. K. Rowling had Twitter, along with most news outlets, all abuzz when she shared two rejection letters she'd received to queries she'd sent out under her pen name, Robert Galbraith. That's after Harry Potter fame, folks. And yes, some of the same people rejected her. Twice.

Authors are amazingly generous, sharing everything from rejection letters to markets to support. About a week before this, I'd read a great article by Warren Adler, author of The War of the Roses, called How to be a Writer at Any Age. Not only do I agree with all of his points, but I also aspire to be the oldest working writer people know :-)

How about you? Have you ever wanted to write? If so, take a look at Adler's tips. They're uplifting and practical, shared freely by a working writer. Or maybe you want to read Rowling's tweets and her rejection letters, also shared freely by a working writer -- one who knows what she's talking about.

Free advice that's worth much more. How can you pass it up?

Friday Freebie: What I'm Reading in Ten Minutes or Less

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I'm trying something new with my Friday Freebie this week. One of the things I like about Twitter is running across posts and news articles that I might not otherwise find, and so I've been toying with ways to share them. Since I don't have an author interview to feature this week, I'm sharing a post from an author whose work I've found edifying.

I'm not sure how I first came across Michael Hyatt's blog, but I read it pretty voraciously when I was studying up on platform-building, and when his book came out, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Though I don't read his blog as often as I once did, I find that his posts still resonate for me me.

This particular post ("3 Reasons to Keep Your Laptop Closed this Weekend") was especially relevant for me this week after I spent a day at play, visiting places that had been significant to me years ago and continue to hold a special place in my heart. And while I'm not sure I'll be able to keep my laptop shut all weekend, I'm sure that after reading Michael's blog, I'll hear his advice in the back of my mind whenever I open it up.

Enjoy your weekend! And if you successfully stepped away from your computer all weekend long (or even for a portion of it), tell me about it in the comments!

Twitter Truths

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Scrolling through the Twittersphere this morning, I had to chuckle at this tweet from Sarah Reinhard:

"What is this "biting off more than you can chew" thing people ask me about? Huh? #Igetitalldone #99percentontime"

And, of course, I had to retweet, not just because of Sarah's characteristically funny hashtags, but because the sentiment is oh-so-familiar.

I thought that when I retired, life would slow down. Though I knew I wasn't finished working, I also knew that whatever jobs I took on in this next season of my life were likely to be part-time, giving me
more control over my schedule and therefore more time to do all the things I enjoy doing.

As it turns out, that list is long, and retired or not, I still have only 24 hours in a day. In addition, the "jobs" -- as in the plural form -- which have replaced the single job I left behind two years ago --sometimes seem as though they require the energy of a much younger person.

Fortunately, these jobs add much to my life -- pleasure, satisfaction, creative and intellectual fulfillment. The one thing they don't add is time (in fact, they subtract it, sometimes exponentially).

But there's not a single one I'd relinquish. Some days, I feel as though my head is spinning, and other days, I simply curl up and take a nap in sheer self-defense, but overall, to quote Sarah's hashtags, "I get it all done, 99% on time."And on a good day, the energy I expend seems to create more energy in the process.

The truth is, I don't know how to be any other way. I've always approached life with an "all in" attitude; I'm just not capable of passing up the opportunity to do something I love. And when I pause and think about the things I might not have done if I'd been more practical with the expenditure of my time, I'm even more certain that saying yes -- within reason -- is right for me.

But it helps to know someone like Sarah is on the same crazy ride because let's face it -- life's better when you have company for the journey.

Word Count Wednesday: 5245 :-)