Pep Talk

I’m probably not the best hype man this side of the Fox River, but I will still shoot my shot.

So here we go.?

This is hard. I mean hard hard.?

The owner's manual did not specify that there would be this much residual backup. Someone said to buy foreign, but did we listen?

Writing on different platforms is tough. It’s the ideas, the proper prose, the algorithm, the audience, and not to mention the competition.?

Writers are a pharmaceutical company's dream come true.

Pop a couple of Prozac and you are on your way.??

If I didn’t have an aversion to prescription meds, I would be already drooling from the mouth while I write this.?

Don’t let this dissuade you from checking all the boxes. You are already here, so it’s important to remind yourself that you’ve taken the first step. Where you go is anyone’s guess.?

Creativity is chaos. There is no simpler way to put it. Pound a nail with the handle grip of a screwdriver and that sums up the creative process. The only solution is to embrace the crazy.?

You are crazy for attempting to do what millions before you have tried and failed at. What you might have going for you is that you want it more than they did.?

Use that as your strength.

Some of the craziest sons of bitches out there have changed the way we look and feel about certain things.?

Twain, Hemingway, Shakespeare, Neil Gaiman. Those are some crazy ass people. Each one has penned a piece of amazing work. You will too.?

Just get your head out of your ass and use your unhinged mind to make some magic.?

Accept that there will be days when the only response you will get will be crickets. Even then it's more contempt at your writing than actual applause. Screw them. What do they know?

They’re bugs.?

Some days you will be in the zone, and fly high. You will dot every i and cross every t. People will come out to like and comment on your piece.?

Your follower count will grow, and so will the unease of expectations that you set the bar pretty high.

Accept that now, so that when the anxiety of the next piece you write flops, you can shrug it off and continue writing. You have more work to share.?

Sometimes you are ahead, but most of the time you are behind.?

And that is ok. You knew that when you decided to pick up a pen and write yourself into existence. Every time you show up, you are one more day closer to getting better.?

There is an unnatural fear of a blank page. Or the dreaded “writer's block”. I call bullshit. I can say that every blank Word Document is the ignition to your engine.?

You are the key. Get out of your way, and shut up and drive.?

The adventure is just waiting for you to put it down. So go ahead and give us what we want.

Enough romanticizing that a writer will have moments where our creative muse is stuck. No, it’s not. That damn thing is being paid by the hour. Put it to work. Call HR.?

A million creative muses are looking for employment. That damn thing is not sitting in the passenger seat with the map for nothing. If you have to, turn the car around.?

Just don’t forget. Writer's block is a made-up concept that someone somewhere along the way told themselves because they thought they had run out of things to say.?

That is not you. I guess you are the type of person who can’t shut up. So keep talking.??

Don’t make it any more difficult than it needs to be.?

You are a superhero of words. Now stop that meteorite from destroying planet Earth. Suite up and save the world.

Dom! Dom! Dom! Dommmm!?

In the end, this is tough. No one said it wouldn’t be. You will fail multiple times, and hopefully, you will get back up. There is a reason you find comfort in this craft.?

It’s because a part of you was chosen to lead. Something had decided to open your eyes, your ears, your heart, and your soul to the worlds and wisdom of the universe.?

It is up to you to hone in on this skill as a writer and share your thoughts.

Once you accept this, and revel in the fact that you are still standing, take comfort in knowing that you are not alone. There are many of us just like you trying to make sense of this all.?

The rest of us will probably still talk shit about you behind your back, but fuck’em. What do we know? You are the one holding the pencil.??

So don’t stop. Keep writing like your life depends on it. Because the truth, it does.?

Nothing is more heartbreaking than a writer who isn’t writing, and a story that can not be shared.

Come to think about it, this little diddy isn’t just for the stewards with a pen. This is for anyone who is putting themselves out there.?

I am not sure if anyone needs to hear this, let alone wants to, but if you’ve made it this far in your journey, you are already on your way to success.?

Your copywriting skills, editing, advocacy, and just about every interest of study have you to thank for committing. The humdrum of the world doesn’t seem as loud with you in it.?

Take a moment to congratulate yourself. Just don’t do it too much, or you might run the risk of losing what makes you unique in the first place.?

Remember, it’s people like you who make the color red red. Blue blue. Green Green. And so on.

And to quote the infamous music icon Wolfcat from her 2019 album Nightmare on Grape Street.

"Don't Stop. Get it! Get it!"