Strike that....

Writing a good story is hard work. It's not too difficult to put words on a page. Given the right incentive, almost anyone could sit down and type up 1,000 words a day to create some sort of story that some people may consider interesting enough to read. Crafting a story that doesn't have grammar, syntax, plot, character or other blatant flaws takes a little more practice. It also takes editing.

Sometimes that means ditching about 2200 words of progress so you can go back and re-write the chapter from another character's point of view. It can be painful, but it makes it worthwhile in the end to do something for the good of the story. It might not be easy, but it's likely the right thing to do.

Life has these editing moments as well. There are certain things about my story that I just cannot change. I have a slew of chronic issues, including asthma, allergies, IBS, GERD, migraines, idiopathic hypersomnolence, and chronic widespread pain. I can treat the symptoms, but I'm not really going to get rid of any of those things.

I can however, make changes that will help mitigate these conditions. I can eat better food, drink less soda, have daily exercise...you get the idea.

I think negativity is a big thing to edit out of your life - wherever possible. The first step starts at home, so examine your outlook. Try to look at things from a positive view. Not everyone can do it, but that's okay. Trying is key. Sometimes trying becomes doing, after a while. What might be a bigger help is looking at the company you keep. Are there negative people around you? People who don't support you, people who openly oppose you? Can you prevent yourself from spending time with them? This is important because we tend to act and react like the people around us. Surround yourself with negativity and people who tear you down, guess what happens?

I'm not saying any of these "Life Edits" are going to be easy, but if I've learned one thing over the past several years, it's that sometimes the hard choices are the right choices.

There are going to be some things that we can never change. I'm always going to be a bit of a klutz and my eyes are uneven and sometimes I laugh really loud. But I can work on being kinder, more patient, and more accepting of people, including myself.

Writing again (consistently, with purpose) is one of my Life Edits, along with daily activity (mostly walks) and a few other changes. At the end of July, I'm a few hundred words short of 24,000 words (thanks to some actual editing) and have every reason to believe I'll finish the month at 25,000. My goal is to have a pretty decent first draft by the time my birthday rolls around in September. We'll see if I have to edit that goal sometime next month.

Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings.
Stephen King, On Writing

Put down everything that comes into your head and then you're a writer. But an author is one who can judge his own stuff's worth, without pity, and destroy most of it.
Colette, Casual Chance