First, to the right: another piece of my artistic cross-training, the dabbling I do in visual arts and crafts to refresh my writing mind. This crazy quilt in our guest-room is hand-stitched, took months of reflective evenings: so it's a crazy project in more ways than one.
THE BREAKING NEWS: a gathering took place last night of the artists from my area who are alums from the nationally-offered Creative Capital seminars on strategic career planning for artists.
There were 7 of us: 5 visual artists, one writer/visual artist (our host Carrie Knowles), and novelist-me. Also two spouses and a 15 year-old son.
The energy and excitement were as inspiring as at the original seminar, which teaches artists of all kinds HOW TO MAKE MORE MONEY AND MANAGE THE BUSINESS SIDE OF AN ARTS CAREER.
Bryant Holsenbeck, a mixed-media sculptor, asked everyone to announce their goal for 2006. These included: get a six-figure book deal (two wanted that), settle down in one place, get work acquired by a museum, increase annual income by $15,000, become 50% less irritable, solve the health insurance problem, get Queen Latifah to play the heroine in the film, and become fluent in Hebrew.
At the very least, the question and the answers were quite a good party ice-breaker. (Not that there was a lot of ice.) But it was more than that: I'd bet that we're all seriously committed to these goals we've declared and are taking steps today to get there.
It's hard, of course, to figure the steps to a $100,000 contract. But one useful one is to FINISH THE NOVEL.
So I'm about to hit "Publish Post" and start on today's work on mine: without berating myself that it's already past 4 o'clock in the afternoon.
One way or another, time always seems to be an issue: getting it, using it, reaching a goal by a deadline, etc.
For me, the dinner was a double reminder: yesterday was my 57th birthday. My time, it's now clear to me, is not infinite. If this is true for you as well, feel free to join me in getting moving NOW on the NUMBER ONE PROJECT, and get a bit more done on it TODAY.
6 comments:
Happy Birthday Peggy!
Here is my bold goal for the year: publish a book of my poetry. I have been trying to publish indiividual poems, and looking into chapbook contests. But then I said thought - wait - I have over 60 poems I have been toiling over. I want them to be together in ONE book. So I'm querying, then I'm going to enter into a slew of contests, then I'm going to publish it myself. Moving onto the next step only if the previous does not succeed. I'm actually excited about the prospect of publishing it myself - having more control - and possibly working with a friend from high school to do the cover art and/or illustrate. I feel like I need to do this to move on artistically, eventhough I'm being so bold as to skip a couple of big steps. So thanks for the inspiration here, it helps me to do more than dream.
Julia
Happy birthday!!
What a lovely guest room. I'm inspired, as we have our first houseguests (since moving) on the way at the end of this month.
My bold goal: a giganto 3-book deal for enough money to pay for some things that need paying, some more things I'd LIKE to pay for, and enough left over to give me plenty of time to work on book number 4. :)
Yay! I love hearing these goals for the year! I feel like they've already come true.
So: Billie's going to have a gigantic 3 book deal, and Julia is going to publish a book of poetry.
I have one suggestion, Billie, if you're open to that sort of thing. Come up with a specific amount of for that deal. First work out what you need to cover what you want. As I suspect you already know: the more specifically visualized the target is, the more likely we are to get exactly what we want.
I have a mock-up of an award-winning COBALT BLUE. I designed and made a cover out of luminous blue paper (wrapped it around a highly successful Amy Tan novel) and put seals on it to indicate that it has won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer, and become a Number One New York Times bestseller. It hasn't come true yet, but it's going to.
Glad you like our cute little guest room under the eaves.
Peggy,
I love the idea of artistic cross-training. I believe that what truely makes a person artistic is the way that they SEE things (not just in visual arts). Are you familiar with the book "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain"? In that book, the author has a way to make you really "see", by having you turn the object you are drawing upside down. Since our brain has a tendency to remember objects it has seen before, we react automatically to objects in our everyday environment. Just like one would say, "Nice quilt", unless you have actually made one. Then, your mind really gets turning. You can actually see things more clearly when you look at them in a different light/manner.
The cross-training may open up a new way to see an old idea and it can help keep your brain active when it needs a break from routine (cosmic constipation!).
Hi California K, I agree: Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is a terrific book. I loved drawing Stravinsky upside down; it like almost like a photocopy of the drawing I was copying. Thrilling! Peggy
I write and talk a lot about dreams, primarily because I know we serve an awesome and amazing god, who gave us dreams for an awesome and amazing reason.
Link to this site: inspiration peak
http://www.inspirational-faq.info/
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