Here is the story behind the title for this blog.
Several years ago the “perfect job” I’d had for more than a decade morphed into a nightmare. I’ve never been divorced, but I liken it to that experience. I knew the exact moment the party was over, but I stuck around for a year, first convinced I could make it work, and then terrified that I was going to have to make a change and I didn’t know what was on the other side.
In the end I jumped, and I lived. Things worked out and I’m better for it.
Not to too long afterwards one of my sons gave me a coffee cup for Christmas. “Here, Dad,” he said. “This reminds me of you.” It reads What Would You Attempt if You Knew You Could Not Fail? That coffee cup has become my mantra. It represents how I think about challenges, including writing. The key is to believe in my abilities and keep trying. What would I attempt if I knew I could not fail?
I liken writing to cold call selling. The thought of picking up a phone and calling someone you’ve never met terrifies many people. Me, not so much. The worst thing that can happen is that someone I’ve never met is going to say, “No.” They’re not going to take me out in the alley and shoot me. I might also make the sale. I can guarantee you one thing, though. If you don’t call, you will not make that sale. There is no chance. How many opportunities have we passed up because we thought we’d fail?
Writing is much the same. If I don’t write that novel, there is a 100% chance that it will not sell. If I don’t write the query letter to an agent, there is a 100% chance that I will not find one? If I never submit it to a publisher, it will never, ever get published.
What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?
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