Out of The Silent Planet

Life for this writer, as I suspect for many others has been a roller coaster as of late. Some of the dips have been to some amazing depths. But there have been rises and peaks, promises of more thrills to be had.

Do I still write?

Are you kidding? Yes, I do. I haven't written short stories or posted as often as I like, but I continue to write my novel and hit goals.

Tonight, I submitted to my writing group the first 20K+ words of my work in progress. I would never have felt it was ready if I chose to be casual so I'm grateful for a deadline, for me they are necessary. As much as I want perfection in my execution, I get lost in my quest to reach it. As I reviewed the copies I later passed to the group, I saw flaws that made me flinch and want to scream, "I know better than that!" or "I should have caught this!" etc. Yet there are other parts that I feel are fantastic and interesting. Fun.

So here I am countering attacks by switchblade-bearing butterflies, dodging waves of anxiety, and running from storms of doubt. What keeps me standing in the eye of all of these forces? My belief:

My stories are written for the joy and need to write. I want to question, explore, provoke and have fun. They are meant to be shared and enjoyed with others.

So, if I don't give them to respected individuals to review and share constructive feedback as they develop, how will my stories ever become as great as I believe they can be? How will I ever grow and improve?

So that's it. Now there's nothing more for me to do except to wait and see.

And keep writing, of course.