Why Is This So Difficult?
The question is rhetorical. I get it. People struggle to even identify their truths much less write or speak them. I just spoke at the Ancient City Chapter of the Florida Writers Association in St. Augustine. I fully expected some push-back in a couple areas which I knew my presentation would touch a nerve.
That’s a good thing. If I’m not touching nerves, I’m not doing what I believe. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t purpose to bring opposing opinions my way. I don’t stir up mess on purpose either. On the other hand, I will not circumvent MY truths and what I’ve learned about writing over the past 37 years. I feel my message needs to be heard and hopefully adopted by those whom this message helps.
So, the main push-back on writing your personal truth that interested me regarded “writing for market.” Just the phrase “writing for market” sets my fingers on edge on my keyboard. I abhor and reject writing for market as anything I desire. My philosophy and belief is that writers should write for only one person – themselves. Write your truth. Write it real. Write it without apology. Fiction or nonfiction. Does not matter.
I don’t say this, believe this, nor adopt this as personal philosophy in a willy-nilly manner. This positions has come to me over a couple decades of learning the writing life. I will not say “learning the writing business” because that will forever be an ongoing endeavor.
What I’ve discovered is this – powerful writing grows from an honest seed. When you write your passion and your soul and your truth in your first draft manuscript, your writing cannot fail being powerful…to someone. Not everyone. Those “someone’s” become your market. When you write for yourself, to yourself, your truth, your passion, you come out with dynamite. Anything else is writing someone else’s book.
I never expect everyone to agree with me. Even my mentor takes some issue with my stance. That’s ok. I know what I know what I know. Your most powerful work comes from deep within. You desire to connect with other humans, you’d better be able to connect with them in a powerful way if you desire your message to impact them in a powerful manner.
I thoroughly enjoyed my presentation in St. Augustine. The audience was quite attentive, they all gave me more than just polite applause, and a good number of them walked out of the session motivated. I know this because of how many came up to me afterward and told me so. That is the best feeling for a presenter. People getting fired up about what you said and desire to dive into their manuscripts.
The unfortunate truth, however, is most will fall back into the same routines. The routines which keep them from moving their books along at a healthy pace. I’ve found that five weeks of repeating my message yields tremendous results. People need help motivating themselves. Hell, I need help motivating myself. The beauty of public speaking is that when I motivate others, in return I get fired up. There are downward spirals in life, too many to enumerate. There are also upward spirals, not easy to achieve, but when you do, there is no better feeling!
Writing truth should be the cornerstone to any work of writing an author desires to have impact. I spend weeks encouraging writers out of their fear of their own truths into the gumption to step up to their truths and make them known. The wild thing for me is this – writing your truths is simply one facet of what I do in my coaching. There are so many aspects of writing people need to learn. I could coach solely on writing truth for weeks on end. There is so much more to writing, though. That’s what makes being a writing coach so dynamic and rewarding. When my writers “get it,” I can see it in their faces, their voices, and in the words they produce.
Now THAT is motivating and THAT is one of MY truths! If you need help with your writing, contact me. That’s what I’m here for!
The following link is the WONDERFUL press release the Ancient City Writers sent to the St. Augustine Record on my behalf…
Michael Ray King 