On doing hard things...

in your writing work.

Recently, I took on a new content assignment. I was excited - I need the work. Anyway, this assignment came with extensive directions, and I mostly remained patient and positive throughout the process. I nearly threw in the towel only once.

I had to do new and scary things to get this assignment done, and I did actually get scared once. Mind you, I took this task on during the summer with my preteen son, who decided to continually interrupt my scary phone interview. That a boy, son; good looking out.

But after I finally finished my edits and learned how to do this one thing I couldn’t quite figure out, I was so glad I had stuck with it. It felt good to complete something I didn’t think I was going to be able to pull off. It was like achieving something physical, like when the push-up gets easier.

I strengthened my writing muscle; I almost didn’t finish the workout, and that made it feel so much better when I did.

Something I wrote…

I got to write another Florida article for Insider. Anytime I can sing Florida’s praises… but it was also about embracing the small town ways of life and finding inspiration in my surroundings.

Reading/Watching/Listening

Reading: I read Rape Story by Joyce Carol Oates and the entire book felt like a study in writing. In addition to just being a story that will remain with me forever, she did so many things in her writing that I’ve revised in my own writing, thinking I wasn’t “allowed” to do that. This book as a college course would be “Everything They Never Told You to Write” or “Writing From as Many Angles as a Prism”…amazing. Just amazing.

Watching: I’ve been looking forward to And Just Like That every Thursday. I know it’s not Sex and the City, but I’m not in my 20s anymore either. I experience both the nostalgia of SATC and the relatability of where I am now. So Thursdays at 9pm this summer, that’s where I’ll be.

Listening: I am listening to… Morrison Hotel by The Doors. It was released 55 years ago this year, but it feels as relevant and summer moody to me as ever.

And a writing opportunity…

Off Assignment is looking for the following prompts: “Letter to a Stranger,” addressed to a stranger…; “No Equivalent,” about a word, phrase, or concept that doesn’t translate; “Under the Influence,” on art and place, “Witching Hour,” portraits of place portraits at a specific time, and “What I Didn’t Say,” the writing that you felt out of the final piece. Talk about inspiration!! If this pitch call doesn’t get you out of a writing dry spell…

Write on,

Ashley

P.S. I went to place a hold at the library on Women Who Run With the Wolves, and three of the five copies were checked out; I thought that was so amazing.