I used to love going to the barn dances at the end of the harvest season. Everyone had worked hard to harvest the crops. The cattle had been driven to market and the year was coming to an end. The nip in the air signaled the end of one very long, back-breaking season. It was time to let our hair down and enjoy the fruits of our labor. A country music band (sorry, I’m from Texas) played Cotton Eyed Joe while we did the Texas Two Step. We laughed and retold stories of comedy and calamity the year had brought. We rekindled relationships that had flickered during the season, separated by miles of cattle country. All too soon for any of us, the night came to an end. We’d literally […]
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Dealing with the Conference Blues
Today I’m going to talk about something that may seem a bit odd: The conference blues. “Oh, Tiff. You mean the post-conference letdown?” No. I don’t mean that at all. What I’m talking about is the deep sense of intimidation or “not belonging” that I’ve both seen in others and experienced myself at various writer’s conferences. This is something that I was completely unprepared for when I attended my first national writing conference in September 2006. I was so excited…so prepared…so overwhelmed. I remember when I got there I’d already been published in two national print publications [Today’s Christian and Charisma Magazine] and I’d also been a regular columnist for a local newspaper. Yet, as I walked around the group of about 300 people a voice in my head kept […]
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A Love Affair with Your Dream, Part One: Once is Not Enough
I once heard a story of a woman who felt her husband of thirty years no longer loved her. For weeks she worked up the courage to confront her mate. Finally she broached the subject. When she accused him of failing love, her husband’s eyes flew open wide and his jaw dropped. “I told you I loved you when we got married,” he defended. “If I ever change my mind, I’ll let you know.” That might work in some remote corner of the universe, but definitely not in our galaxy, and especially not in the Valentine’s Day month. In order for the flame of love to stay alive, you must nurture it. Fan the flame. Tell your lover and show them in tangible ways every day that they are in […]
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Commitment: Your Key to Success Part Four: Believe in Yourself
What’s belief got to do with commitment? In a word, EVERYTHING! God designed our heart and mind to only commit to that which we believe in. If we believe in our ability as a writer, we’ll commit to it. If not, we’ll run from it. Simple as that. Here’s the truth. If you were not a writer, you would not be reading this article. It doesn’t contain jaw dropping, heart stopping, gotta-turn-the-page material. It’s not a New York Times best seller. Its literary magnificence can’t be the reason you’ve made it these hundred words. No, you’re hoping to gain insight to help you reach your goals as a writer. I believe in you. I believe in your dream. But I’m not the one who’s under the gun in your dream. […]
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