Shortcuts to Success

Imagine yourself running late for an important meeting. You're racing down the road when you stop at a screeching halt because of an oncoming train going across the railroad tracks. Like the driver before you did, you're tempted to drive across the tracks before the train comes; but you consider the consequences of trying to take the shortcut. To your dismay, the train along with its cargo takes about 10 minutes to complete it's trek.

Angry and frustrated, you start your car and proceed across the tracks to see the car that went across the tracks. You see a pool of ambulance workers, firefighters, and policemen trying to rescue the lives of the driver and his three passengers. They're trying to rescue one person with the jaws of life. Wow! What a tragedy.

Sometimes, we as writers become discouraged when we look at the success of other writers. We get intimidated and discouraged, so we take a shortcut to success. We wish we had the notoriety of Stephen King, Kendra Norman-Bellamy, or anyone else who we deem successful in the writing world. However, we don't know what these individuals endured in order to "make it."

Waiting can be hard, but it can save you from a lot of heartache and restarts. While waiting for your opportunity to shine as a writer is not the easiest thing, you can do some things during this time:

• Read books on writing and marketing
• Create a marketing plan for your book or other writing project(s)
• Write book reviews
• Keep a writing journal and jot down ideas for future projects
  

Your success will hinge on what you do as you wait. With this in mind, exercise your patience and enjoy your slow season because your "big break" will be here before you know it!