It all started when I was invited to a writing group in Stockton, Ca. I had no idea what I was getting into when I entered the sunroom where a couch and several chairs were formed in a sem-circle.
Gathering our coffee and water and pages of unfinished books we started to read.
Out loud.
Sweat dripped down my chest and face and the back of my neck. For years my stories stayed in my heart or in my journals. Not in front of other people. Especially- gulp- writers.
Before that, I considered myself a freelance writer. I had a handful of clients and I wrote different stuff like newsletters for an optometry practice, promotions for a cross fit practice, a script for an audio book on finance and investing, an ebook for wedding planners and a variety of other things.
Safe stuff. I wrote about safe stuff.
I wrote stories when I was a child, but the practical part of me overruled a lot of my creativity in my twenties.
Anyways, I'm invited to this writing group in Stockton with an infectious group of women who were and are-some of the most encouraging people ever.
Part of the thing about a writing group- you gotta have something to read every month! So I wrote- I was not going to be THAT girl who didn't have anything to share. On and on it went. I was only in the group for about a year before I moved to Boston.
But the fiction bug had bit.
I was hooked. I love writing stories, especially when I can weave themes and life lessons into a story that I wish someone had shared with me when I was younger. Really, what is more fun: a nonfiction book or a story? Even the best nonfiction books are the ones with stories.
We love stories. We remember stories. And it turns out, I love writing them.
The history of Melody
Oh, this girl's gone through a lot of changes.
Melody has now gone through three major rewrites. Or is it four. I'm not even going to share how frustrated I get sometimes.
The first Melody is in a pink binder buried in a plastic bin in my room. Then, she was deleted in a major computer crash last summer. Not that it mattered too much, because I rewrote her. I think the rewrite was lost in the computer crash too. (Yep, I didn't have it backed up. Lesson Learned).
Then, I decided Melody needed friends. She was lonely.
Maybe I was lonely. No matter, I wrote in some friends- a fun spunky one who doesn't have a ahem- filter. A sweet, conscious friend with a bit of a bristly side. A fashionista (because we all need one of these) who comes through in a pinch and gives out too much advice.
The four friends have been friends for a long time, all with problems and quirks and oddities, and hysterical moments.
Now, in the current day, they meet to cook together a few times a month. Just like in all things, when people cook and talk together and eat together, these good friends become the best of friends.
And they tend to get into each other's lives, especially with personalities like these women. Savannah is outgoing, friendly, full of great ideas, bold, and...tends to lack a (ahhem) filter for what she says.
Jillian is thoughtful , steady, and pretty insightful. She is often the "voice of reason" when Melody wants to do something wild and impulsive (Melody doesn't always listen, but that's another story).
The girls live life, laugh, and cook together. And they
Takeaways for You
Honestly, I'm not sure why I didn't give up on Melody a long time ago. It's been four years.
Four
Stinking
Years.
This is what I do know. I'd have major regrets if I gave up fiction writing without seeing it through to some sort of finish.
Just like I'd have major regrets if I gave up blogging for LYCL without doing the things I wanted to do with it: encouraging creatives to take action, sharing my own blunders and small wins in the artpreneur journey, sharing and creating tools and encouragement to help you on your artisan journey.
I'm not expecting Melody to be a full time income producer for me. Fiction writing is a side hustle. The beauty of having a day job is that it allows me to work on creative side hustles.
And while four years is way longer than I'd actually recommend, it's o.k. And the finish is getting closer all the time.
The road tends to be covered with more weeds than we'd imagined and it's harder to clear them out than we ever dreamed it would be.
But I believe it's worth it in the end.
So, how about you?
What's your creative journey, your side hustle, that you are working on?
The post Meet Melody (and Savannah, Kristi & Jillian) appeared first on Launch Your Creative Life.