four awesome writers (Angela Hunt, Kathy Mackel, Nancy Rue, and Jim Bell) had all kinds of wonderful things to say to us at Glen Eyrie-- advice on writing, on being a writer, on being inspired, on continuing to work on our novels...
out of all that good advice and instruction, one thing has stuck with me after two weeks of being home. it's something Jim Bell said, and he said it in the context of obstacles to writing, one of them being criticism.
his advice: "Let it hurt for 15 minutes and then move on."
good advice. difficult to follow.
it's easy to be hurt by what others say about our writing, or what they say about us in general. but staying hurt can be debilitating. it keeps us stuck in the past and then we can't move forward. i know. i've been there many times.
i've realized that his advice can apply to all kinds of things in life. it's easy for me to feel guilty for some of the choices i've made in the past. to feel bad about something i said to one of my kids. to worry about the future. to nurse the pain of a bad conversation. to think that i have no business being a writer.
in the future, i'm going to try to follow Mr. Bell's advice. i'll let it be painful for 15 minutes and then move on.
now that i'm thinking more about it, 2 hours after posting this, maybe it's better to let it hurt a little, then give it to God and ask for his peace instead of the hurt. that way when the hurt comes back, as C.H. mentioned in her comment, i can leave it with him and listen to him tell me the truth about it.
3 comments:
Great advice. If only it would be painful for only fifteen minutes, and not keep plaguing me in the middle of the night.
yep it is that good truth that is so very freeing of all the hurt
See you tomarrow
It's difficult to separate the critique of our work from critique of ourselves. I like the 15 minute rule - and I'll try it :)
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