Usually I have something about how you have to dig deep in
yourself, or how this whole process can crush your heart and soul beneath the
cog of publishing, but I’ve been really slim on words of encouragement.
I’ll admit, I’m not that good at them. I feel awkward when I’m
trying to tell someone that I’m over the moon about their work. At DragonCon, I
got a book signed by the wonderful and lovely Beth Revis (she was so
awesome!) and the whole time I was thinking “be cool, Rena, don’t do the crazy
fan girl thing. Someday you’ll be in her shoes if you’re lucky. Freshmen who
freak at the seniors have a much harder time than the ones who just recognize
the world turns.”
And then we left, with me having barely said what I’d come
to say “I loved your books. Thanks for writing them!”
And that made me think about the words of encouragement I’ve
received. A tiny little sentence floated to the top.
Many of you may remember that I was sewing like crazy before
Dragon Con to get my costumes done. I was moaning about how there was so little
time left, and I hadn’t even started working on one of the costumes. The
fearless Ninja Captain commented something really simple, “I bet you finish.”
It was transformative for someone else to have faith in my
ability. And I was cutting things close (last seam at 11:30pm with a departure
at 6 am the next morning), but having someone say they thought I could do it
transported me from the anxious “OMG am I going to finish????” To, “I got this,
just a matter of time.”
Too often, I see people out there just killing it, and what
I should be saying to them is “Bet you can.” I know the writing community has
the whole support thing covered, but sometimes you just don’t know how much
simple words can change attitudes.
That’s all I’ve got people: say the words of support that
are on the tips of your fingers. The small effort on your part could be the
difference between a novel and yet another project trunked when the
going got tough.
