Aspiration

We all have dreams, right? For many of you, that dream might be to finish a book, see your work in print, sign with a publisher or agent, be a bestselling author. These dreams are good. As Abdul Kalam said, "You have to dream before your dreams can come true." So, this is all great news. Keep on dreaming and don't give up on it. But there are a few things we need to do to help with this:

1. Remember, it is never too late. 
    Your dream might be to be a successfully published teenage author (it's one of mine!). But, perhaps  that doesn't happen. It might be a little setback, but really, I've already achieved half of this. I am a teenage author. I might not be published yet and I may have to wait a while, but I am a writer. That is fabulous. Even if I (or you) get to 100 without picking up a traditional contract, there are still other opportunities. We might have successfully self-published by then. We might have achieved other aspects of our dreams. And even at 100, it's not too late. So never give up.

2. Remember to live
    Ambition is not a bad thing. Unhealthy ambition on the other hand is... well, unhealthy. This is when it takes up all your time and thoughts. You don't care about anything but getting to where you are headed. Now, a little bit of that is okay, but really, if this is you, calm down. There are, amazing though it may seem, things bigger than our writing dreams. To be a writer, you need to have a life from which to draw experience. To be a successful published author, you need to network and have friends and connections. So breathe. Yes, write, write, write, market your book, send it off to agents, publishers, editors, booksellers, blog about it.... but live as well. Otherwise, you will get burnt out. Sorry, but it's true.

3. Don't just dream - do!


    Dreams are all well and good, but if they're nothing more than wishful thinking, you need to change that. And can change that. So start writing. Start researching. Get down to business. Stop procrastinating. Trust me, when you get to where you want to be, you'll look back and be so happy you actually did the necessary work.

I struggle with some of these. Often I get so caught up in the writing and planning and the publishing industry that I forget to have a social life. And I am known to be a little bit of a procrastinator. So, I should probably stop all that now and write.

Good luck!
Zoe