"All of my life, I’ve jumped off the cliff and built my wings. It works every single time. It never fails."
(Reported variation of the famous quote attributed to Ray Bradbury.)
Don’t back off from the hard stuff.
This can mean a variety of things in the life of an author. But what I’m talking about today is confronting raw emotion in your writing. Vulnerability. The stories or messages that put you on the fence, arguing with yourself about whether or not to include them in your book.
This lesson applies no matter what type of book you’re writing – don’t shy away from the uncomfortable moments. As I’ve learned through practicing yoga and the aerial arts - "get comfortable being uncomfortable."
- Putting your characters through hell.
- Revealing how it felt when you went through hell in your own life.
- Digging deep into raw emotions and scars, sometimes ones that are still healing (and maybe will always be).
- Being brutally honest, with yourself and your readers.
Too many authors tend to run, sometimes sprint, right up to the edge of the cliff. But then, at the last minute, toes grazing the edge, they get cold feet. They don’t jump. They hold back. And their readers know it, even subconsciously. They know they’ve just missed out on something big and important and real.
In the paraphrased words of Ray Bradbury – jump and build your wings on the way down. In this case, your writing wings. It might be daunting, take practice, and be a writing exploration unto itself – but do it anyway. That’s the good writing stuff that helps you grow. That’s the light beam that shines down on a book and lets people know - "Something special happened in these pages. Something you need to see for yourself."
Go there.
PS: Need help building your writing wings? Reply to this email, let’s talk. Writing a book is an act of bravery and nobody expects you to do it alone. I’ve got you.
