Every since I can remember I have wanted to write a book. \u00a0 I guess that’s not an uncommon\u00a0goal for us humans. In my daytime career, I read and write a great deal, but it does not satisfy my creative needs. I imagine it\u2019s a bit like trying to scratch the travel itch by just reading about a place; it just doesn\u2019t do the job \u2013 the sounds, smells, and experience can only be gained by going there.<\/p>\n
A few years ago I moved into a smaller office to cut overhead (it was 2008). I moved into a closet with another attorney \u2013 our desks were literally 18 inches from one another. Luckily, he is a criminal defense attorney meaning that he spends more time at the courthouse than he does in the office. So, the place was practically mine. And then I added a paralegal to the closet . . . but that\u2019s another story.<\/p>\n
My new friend was \/ is a storyteller. One day, at my request\u00a0for a good one, he wove a tale about a man that he represented who was wrongfully accused and almost convicted for a murder he didn\u2019t commit. There are so many amazing and quirky parts to this story that I immediately thought, \u201cThis would make a great book, and I need to write it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, I didn\u2019t get to work on this idea immediately. As an attorney, I am blessed to stay fairly busy with work and my spare time is precious. Plus, while I have always wanted to write a book, I have a lot of self-doubt about whether I have what it takes to actually do it. Would my time be better spent doing something else? What if I spend all this time researching (which makes me salivate) and then get to writing a book that sucks? We only have so much time on the planet, should I \u201cwaste\u201d it by working on this book, or any book for that matter?<\/p>\n
Finally, after months (ok, a year or two) of mental masturbation, I said enough! Insert conversation with the universe: Ok. You have delivered this idea to me. I keep thinking about it so it hasn\u2019t deserted me. I am going to do this \u2013 research, organize, write, and write. I\u2019m going to leave the results up to you and see what happens. If nobody ever reads this book or it never gets published, that\u2019s ok. My job is to get it down and bring it to life no matter what kind of life it has (a hermetic one in my computer, or a life of wanderlust travelling the globe).<\/p>\n
Once I put this out there, a few \u201ccoincidences\u201d occurred, and I started taking some action. (I don\u2019t believe in coincidence by the way. In my world, EVERYTHING happens for a reason.) The biggest aha was a quote I read from Anne Lamott:<\/p>\n
“Oh my God, what if you wake up some day, and you\u2019re 65, or 75, and you never got your memoir or novel written; or you didn\u2019t go swimming in warm pools and oceans all those years because your thighs were jiggly and you had a nice big comfortable tummy; or you were just so strung out on perfectionism and people-pleasing that you forgot to have a big juicy creative life, of imagination and radical silliness and staring off into space like when you were a kid? It\u2019s going to break your heart. Don\u2019t let this happen.”<\/p>\n
Enough said, my friend. The criminal case file has been ordered from storage and will be here next week. Happy researching!<\/p>\n
XO,\u00a0B<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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I imagine it\u2019s a bit like trying to scratch the travel itch by just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[12,44],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hz1R-1W","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":191,"url":"http:\/\/www.navigationmaven.com\/index.php\/2016\/09\/24\/get-some-zs\/","url_meta":{"origin":120,"position":0},"title":"Get Some Z's","date":"September 24, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It really is amazing the things that keep me up at night. As a light sleeper, I am woken up fairly easily and can usually go back to bed quickly. 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