If you’re a writer (or any kind of artist), the odds are you’ve struggled with doubt and I bet there have been days when it has been downright overwhelming, perhaps even enough to make you want to give in and give up.
Fear not, doubting one’s self is human nature, but (and this is a big BUT) it’s also part of human nature to overcome and triumph over one’s doubts.
YOU can do it! Yes, you can!
Today I am happy to announce the winner of the “Happy Every Day” Caption on an Image Contest, Jessica Peterson.
Jessica is an exciting young artist who aspires to make a living creating art. In the interview below Jessica shares with us her success using crowd funding via Kickstarter, how she’s overcoming her doubts and her plans for the future, plus much more.
I hope you enjoy the interview, and join me in congratulating Jessica! And thank you to all who entered the contest, you can view the entries on Pinterest.
Last week Jeff Goins (the dude who wrote the foreword for my book), posted something deceptively simple and quite thought provoking, “Why I Write”. In his post he talked about, you guessed it – Why he writes.
Jeff ended his post with an invitation to his readers to share why they write in the comments. I typed off an answer, but I soon realized there was so much more to it and suddenly I found myself going deep.
When the rest of my answer came to me, I was floored. I have a feeling that a lot of writers, and other creative types for that matter, will find themselves identifying with the rest of my answer.
As writers, we are by our very nature, critical thinkers, but for some reason we don’t think too much about the ramifications of our own counterintuitive self-talk.
All too often we allow doubt to rule over us and take command of our gift to write words that matter. We tend to think that the harder we are on ourselves the better we will become. We challenge ourselves and, unfortunately, to do this most of us are drawn to using reverse psychology. Hey, even some of the greats have advised it.
But what if reverse psychology is one of the many tools doubt uses to cause you to stall, and even, give up?
Thank you to everyone who participated in the “Happy Every Day” book description contest. The winners have been chosen.
Before I get to the winners I want to remind you that there is only one day left to enter the drawing for the blog entry contest. It’s super simple to enter and you can find out how to at this link.
Now, the winners…
Photo Taken from the top of the Arc de Triomphe, Paris by Bryan Hutchinson
If you have a commute longer than 15 minutes, you’ve probably dreamed about living within walking distance.
Maybe you’ve added up the hours you’d save in a week if you didn’t have to drive or take the subway. Maybe you’ve resented your job for demanding even more of your time that could otherwise be spent pursuing other interests. Maybe you’d prefer to be exercising, grocery shopping, or spending time with your children instead of commuting. We’ve all been there.
But did you know that there’s a silver lining to commuting?
Photo Credit: CC By Slightly Everything
As writers, it seems our reputations precede us when it comes to giving harsh criticism to fellow writers.
But is it true? Are we each other’s most brutal critics?
I’ve gotten bored with my book. A few years ago, I would’ve freaked out.
Oh no! I would’ve thought. Maybe my book sucks. Maybe the characters are totally flat. Maybe the plot is too simple. Maybe it’ll never get published and even if it does everyone will hate it because it’s too bland!
Now I’ve learned to calm down. The key to becoming excited about your book again is to chill. Don’t panic.
Write What You Love
There’s a common belief that we need the Midas touch to become a bestselling author like Stephen King, a famous TV host like Oprah, or even a successful producer like David Geffen.
But do we, really?
Today I’m going to shatter myths about the Midas touch and share with you what we all do have within us that is much, much better.
The Midas Touch
If you’ve published a book, or if you’re planning on publishing soon, you’ll want to know how to get reviews on Amazon. Lots of them.
You don’t have to wait months or years for reviews to start coming in, because if you follow the instructions in this post, you can get them in a matter of weeks! It doesn’t matter if you’re self-published or traditionally published.
Getting over 100 reviews doesn’t happen by accident.