It’s bitterly cold here in Michigan, the kind of cold that makes your toenails ache the second you walk out the door. I think the wind chill today was -15. At moments likes this, the hope of Spring seems next to impossible. It would be easy to think that life will stay like this for the rest of our lives. Ugh!
But seasons change, thankfully, and it takes one to appreciate the other.
I’ve always thought of Winter as a time for digging in deeper, getting real, staying home and getting ready to go out into the world, when the time is right.
I believe that is exactly what is happening with my writing. People ask me often, “How’s it going?” and my first response is usually “Slow.” I mean, some days I’m not sure if it is going anywhere at all. But still, I write. I finish one project and move on to another, none of which have been released into the world. I have yet to find an agent or publisher for my own stuff, but the ideas keep coming and my visions grow deeper and stronger, even during the cold spells when it seems like nothing is happening. Somehow, I still feel as if I’m on the right track, even if that track runs much slower than I would like.
My biggest goal for this year, outside of the above mentioned ‘finding and agent and publisher,’ is to launch my career as a motivational and inspirational speaker. Writing and speaking go hand in hand, and in order to find that publisher, I must prove my ability to reach my own audience.
I took a big step toward this goal last night. I competed in my first ever Speech Competition with Toastmasters. It went better than I expected, and I believe I was helped greatly by a couple of others going over on time limits, I won first place. This speech is something I envisioned giving over a year ago, and to finally deliver it and it be so well-received reinforced my desire to speak. In no way am I perfect, and I still have much to learn, but one step seems to lead to another.
In other news, the Spring is filling up with what looks like “Author Events,” and for this beginning author, I find that very exciting.
March 10 – Area Toastmaster Speech Competition
March 18 – Speak at A Day of Renewal Women’s Conference
April 2 – Present my book at a Local Author Fair at the Plymouth Library
The other day, I heard the birds singing outside my window. The sun shone brightly, blinding me with the reflection off the foot of snow that still taunts us from last week. But seasons change, and even the birds know there will be warmer days ahead.
I plan to be ready, when the time is right.
Thanks so much for joining me on this journey.
Janet
