Tim Birchard
For years... decades, actually, I've been walking around asking other people, "So when are you going to write a book?!" Instead of taking responsibility for my own need, desire, drive, and talent, I kept projecting it outward, onto those around me.
Then one Monday evening in December of 2014, while sitting in circle with my men's group (mankindproject.org), someone asked all of us, "What's the one 'crazy' thing you've been meaning to do in your life but have not yet done-- that you will do in 2015?"
Without even thinking, I blurted out, "write a book!" And then I made a plan, right then and there, to write two pages of SOMETHING every day, for 180 days. According to that plan, by May 31, 2015 at midnight, I would theoretically have 300 pages of grist for the mill. And at that point, I would begin the curating process to determine any recurring themes that could be developed.
The first 100 pages were simply me complaining about the past, the present... the weather. But around page 100, something else began to come through. I would close my eyes and let my fingers fly across the keyboard, simply typing the phrases and sentences that appeared before my mind's eye. As if I were taking dictation.
I reached 300 pages two months early and started the editing process, slashing and burning anything that was simply my ego-based rantings. I left a lot on the cutting room floor. Still, somehow, the book was released on May 1, 2015, self-published by Booklocker.com, Inc. I never would have guessed that it could happen so quickly!
The key for me was to write even when my eyes were closing and I was yawning... even when I was staring blankly at the screen before me... even when it came down to writing sentences like, "I have no clue what to write about right now!", just to get the hands moving and the thoughts flowing. Consistency was the key. And two pages a day, rain or shine. I was not perfect in meeting this goal, but I crossed the finish line nonetheless. And I'm very proud of that.
Then one Monday evening in December of 2014, while sitting in circle with my men's group (mankindproject.org), someone asked all of us, "What's the one 'crazy' thing you've been meaning to do in your life but have not yet done-- that you will do in 2015?"
Without even thinking, I blurted out, "write a book!" And then I made a plan, right then and there, to write two pages of SOMETHING every day, for 180 days. According to that plan, by May 31, 2015 at midnight, I would theoretically have 300 pages of grist for the mill. And at that point, I would begin the curating process to determine any recurring themes that could be developed.
The first 100 pages were simply me complaining about the past, the present... the weather. But around page 100, something else began to come through. I would close my eyes and let my fingers fly across the keyboard, simply typing the phrases and sentences that appeared before my mind's eye. As if I were taking dictation.
I reached 300 pages two months early and started the editing process, slashing and burning anything that was simply my ego-based rantings. I left a lot on the cutting room floor. Still, somehow, the book was released on May 1, 2015, self-published by Booklocker.com, Inc. I never would have guessed that it could happen so quickly!
The key for me was to write even when my eyes were closing and I was yawning... even when I was staring blankly at the screen before me... even when it came down to writing sentences like, "I have no clue what to write about right now!", just to get the hands moving and the thoughts flowing. Consistency was the key. And two pages a day, rain or shine. I was not perfect in meeting this goal, but I crossed the finish line nonetheless. And I'm very proud of that.
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