A little over three months ago, my friend and mentor got on my case because I dropped the ball.  Honestly, I did more than drop it.  I never caught it.  Sometime ago (the exact date isn’t important – LOL!) she asked me to pick two authors from my genre; describe how they’re alike and how they’re different; describe what I like about them; and describe how my style is similar and dissimilar.  Sounds easy, right? 

Well, as always, life happened, so I put my assignment on the back burner.  Considering what I was going through, it made sense to press pause.  However, I didn’t merely press pause.  I pressed stop, then I ejected the entire assignment.

At the end of June, I sat across from her at our mutual friend’s home.  At some point I mentioned how I used to blog, but hadn’t done it in years.  That’s when my mentor reminded me about this long overdue writing assignment that required little to no effort.

I had my excuses (“See, what had happened was…”), but I couldn’t justify why weeks turned into months.  Well, I could, but that would require a pity party and she’s not about that life.  From her perspective, I could’ve written a book, published it, and it could’ve been successful.

Her response got me thinking.  Actually, it lit a fire in me.  In spite of every unexpected twist and turn, I should’ve been practicing.  Instead I allowed my circumstances to dictate everything.  I was paralyzed while life moved on without me. 

The longer I went without writing, the sooner I would lose my talent.  That was the last thing I wanted.  So I finished the long overdue assignment, and then patted myself on the back.  But my awesome, fantastic friend wasn’t done with me yet. 

She followed up with another assignment.  I had to write about a woman who had just come home from a horrible date.  I had to resolve her internal conflict (whatever he made her feel) about what happened on the date.  At the end of the story, she gets asked out again and she says yes (or no).  It had to be 10,000 words and it was due in two weeks.

There aren’t enough emojis or gifs to express how I felt when she hurled that ball at me.  I thought to myself, “Wait, what?  You’ve got to be kidding me!” (I may have actually said that.)  My facial expressions ranged from disbelief to shock, and then terror.  I laughed a lot, but nothing was funny.  Everything in me screamed, “What did I just get myself into?!” (I may have said that too.)

I was faced with an exciting challenge.  If I was serious about this, then I needed to see it through.  I have a gift.  I can either waste it, or nurture it and share it with the world.  This assignment was taking me out of my genre.  Also, it was forcing me to find my voice.  More importantly, it was building my confidence.

Well, I met the challenge and got the assignment in on time.  It’s gone through a few revisions, but it’ll be done soon.  Once it passes inspection, those beautiful words are going up for all to read.  Also, after some brainstorming sessions with my friend, I’m turning this short story into four short stories.  All of which will be posted here.

So, lesson number one:  Always turn your assignments in on time.  LOL!  Honestly, if you’re serious about your craft, connect with someone who’s very passionate about it.  Lesson number two:  Believe in yourself, do the work, and don’t let anything deter you from your aspirations.