Play it All

One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now.

~ Annie Dillard

Many of us hesitate, procrastinate (that's my specialty; I own it), worry, and berate ourselves when it comes to our writing. We can't do that. We must be brave. Tom Romano says writing is an act of faith and that our nerve must not fail.

We write because we love to write. Most of us are also dreamers, hoping to become "authors" (like Shannon and Beth!) with agents and book deals and validation for what we do. For that, we must be passionate. We have to believe the impossible can and will be made possible through our efforts and talents and tenacity.

So what's my point? Harness your passion for writing and put it to work. Don't avoid your WIP or your revisions. Pour yourself into them. Like Annie said, "spend it all, shoot it, play it..." Buy books to help strengthen your areas of weakness, like Stephen King's On Writing, Les Edgerton's Hooked, Scott Bell's The Art of War for Writers, Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones, or Donald Maass's Writing the Breakout Novel.

And then what? Send out those query letters!

What helps you harness your passion and face your fears?