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Fierceness of intent
by Beth Barany
Author's Note: This month I have been fiercely focused on my novel. That is why this article is short and to the point. Enjoy!
The sky is filled by stars, invisible by day.
-- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
How Fierce is Your Intent?
When you want something badly enough you can have it, provided you are willing to do what it takes.
What does it take? It takes time and focus, desire and a dream. Specifically for writing and all art, it takes a sacrifice, specifically sacrificing inaction and excuses. This is the reality. To live your dream, liberate yourself from the burden of excuses.
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How?
How do you bring something into being if you don’t know how? This is the all important question, though often we start with, “I don’t know how to do X.”And leave it at that.
At that point, learn to shift your thinking and ask, “Well, then, how do I do X?”
This does apply to writing, so bear with me. And yes, of course, this does apply to life too. Because we write within the context of our lives, of living, not outside it. Art and life are intertwined.
The how I’m talking about is the inner steps you can take to make space in your mind and in your life for writing. I can talk your ear off about the how and why of plot, characterization, structure, voice, etc., but in the end what really matters in the inner you, not all that technique.
Don’t get me wrong. All that technique is what shapes good writing, good storytelling. What I’m trying to get at here is that to become good writers -- because if you’re writing even a few lines a day, you are a writer -- we need to cultivate our intent.
How? By showing up for your writing daily.
Here’s a to help you do that. I wrote this for myself, and carry it around with me in my journal.
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Beth Barany, c. 2007
I will show up.
I will write.
I will let myself shine.
I will honor the story and allow the words to serve the story.
I write in the present because writing happens now.
We reinforce our intent by our actions. Showing up for ourselves reinforces our commitment. By our very actions, we are stronger. It is not for us to critique our art at this point. That time will come later. We nurture our creative inner life by doing our art. And we affirm our creative soul. We are artists.
Congratulations for showing up for yourself today.
c. 2007 Beth Barany
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"I say write only for yourself, for your highest and humblest self, for the integral you whose world view is as solid as Gilbraltar, and whose faith and idealism -- when it comes to art, anyway -- knows no bounds."
-- Peter Selgin, By Cunning & Craft: sound advice and practical wisdom for fiction writers
"Try very hard to love your work as you do it. ...in your first draft, be as gentle and as accepting as you can be. Be very kind to yourself. It's risky, what you're doing. It's brave. It's good. Reward yourself with a pat on the head before you say you feel like putting a gun to it."
-- Elizabeth Berg, Escaping into the open: the art of writing true
"The novelist is one who, according to Flaubert, seeks to disappear behind his work."
-- Milan Kundera, The Art of the Novel
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