Christina M. Ward

It’s not for the faint of heart or the weak of resolve

My father always told me:

To be a success you either need to do something no one else wants to do, or do something everyone else wants to do and do it better than everyone else.

–My Dad

Yikes. Take one look at the picture above and literally everyone gets a fuzzy, heart-happy, nostalgic, dreamers-dream of sitting at a wooden desk at a clickety-click typewriter with a simmering cup of hot coffee sitting next to them, and long leisurely days of plinking out a finely-crafted novel.

OK so not literally everyone, but damned close to it.

Well, as I have just finished plinking out my first draft of my first novel, let me tell you, the nostalgia is malarkey. You may quote me on that.

The nostalgia is malarkey

–Me.

Let me tell you what it is…

*It is a lot of saying to your family, “I am working.”
*It is being harassed 24/7 by the characters living, talking, acting out various scenarios–in your head.
*It is late nights and back aches. Neck aches and headaches.
*It is stressing over whether or not you can tell the story that will honor the characters.
*It is worry that your audience will not love the characters as much as you do.

*It is hoping your readers will be just that–READERS.

*It is a LOT of typing. A LOT.
*It is a LOT of research…and sometimes of VERY weird things. God help, I hope my laptop never gets confiscated.
*It is a dedication you can only tap from within.
*It is a daily commitment, even if you feel tapped out.
*It is EXHILARATING.
*It can give you quite the God-complex.
*It is an honor to tell the story of characters you love.
*It is isolating and somewhat lonely.
*It is an emotional journey.
*It will make you question every aspect of your intelligence, your talent, and your skill.
*It will teach you new things
*You do it knowing the chances are HIGH that you will never be published.

And it is worth every every second.

When I was a child I knew 2 things: I loved nature and all the awesome things in it. And, I wanted to WRITE SOMETHING.
Today: I love nature and all the awesome things in it. And, I want to WRITE SOMETHING.

–Christina Ward

So to those of you who share my dream of becoming a published author, I encourage you to consider this: are you a creator/collector of ideas but lack the stick-it-to-itiveness to follow through on the very hard work of fleshing out, editing and publishing a novel? Hire a ghost writer. Your ideas may have great merit and are still of value even if you’ve started writing 10 times and just can’t get to the finish line. If you are truly committed to the writing process, and love every step your novel takes, even if that wasn’t the plan,

…then GO FOR IT.

Don’t let the dust settle on your dreams. Brush away the cobwebs and the fear, the insecurities and the excuses, and….. apply hope like a verb.

–Christina Ward (Author of a book that WILL be coming to a store near you.)
–stay tuned…