As I child I stared at the moon, marveling at the various shapes which illuminated the night sky. The full round globe and the shiny sliver of a crescent, the shape-shifting planet held my attention. I could not fathom how the sphere projected it’s varying forms. Then something extraordinary happened. A teacher created a demonstration using a basketball, a tennis ball, and a flashlight.  Mind blown, my relationship with that celestial body changed forever.

It led me to question everything in my life. Which of my perceptions were wrong? Which were keeping secrets?  How had I been so blind? The crisis hit me hard, and I had to do, something. I decided I would work on developing my observation skills and I examined my world. I read books, essays, and journals, then I asked questions and questioned the answers.

Even now, I still question conclusions others declare as facts and read voraciously across countless subjects. I expose myself to alternate hypotheses and compare them to my assumptions. I stare at the moon, marveling at the vastness of our universe.

What has stretched your mind?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

There are farmers in my family. I have walked plowed fields, maneuver through rows of corn, and when I was a child, I cried when I hoed weeds. I still tend a garden, and while I no longer cry when I weed, it is work. The tasks are basic, prepare the soil, plant the seed at the correct depth, water and wait.

These next steps require patience. The dirt must be moist. Not too wet. Not too dry. Check daily, watch and wait. Seed germination times vary and their environment affects them. Is the ground warm enough? What is the air temperature? Depending on the seed variety, they can take a few days to several weeks to sprout. It is exciting when the cotyledon appears. Or is it another weed?  So, you wait for the first true leaves to appear, and you water. Water, weed, work the land. Pestilence may threaten your crops, sending cutworms, Japanese beetles, powdery mildew, blossom end rot, and weeds. Don’t forget to water.

It is a lengthy process with no guarantee of success.

Same goes for any goal you pursue. I check my garden every day, and I work my goals daily, trusting my efforts will have a delicious payoff.

What bounty will you reap?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

I recently came across a reference to “close reading”. Timothy Shanahan defines close reading as “intensive analysis of a text in order to come to terms with what it says, how it says it, and what it means.” Intrigued, I began a little research which led me down a rabbit hole of New Criticism, literary theory, American literary criticism, and reader-response theory.  It got me to thinking, which is what I believe is the point of reading, and by extension, writing solidifies thinking.

The concepts seemed natural as if someone had trained me in the processes while I was unaware. Reading more, I recalled my fifth-grade teacher instructing us on how to read for comprehension. In high school, an AP English teacher had us parse entire poems. We dissected each stanza into its components, identified them grammatically and wrote papers to explain the inflections and syntactical relationships used by the poet. Once finished, we wrote more papers on the same poems describing how they made us feel. It embedded those works in my memory.

When I read, I hear the author’s voice echoing in my head. Their thoughts and feelings expand my universe and touch my heart, forever changing who I am.

Does your reading change your perspective?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Writer Joseph Epstein is quoted as saying, “81 percent of Americans feel that they have a book in them — and should write it.” UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) estimates 2.2 million new titles are published worldwide each year. Nielsen BookScan reported in 2004 that of 1.2 million books tracked, only 25,000 — barely 2 percent — sold over 5,000 copies. Add the fact that writing a book is difficult.

Instead of deterring me, those facts are motivation. If it was easy, everyone would do it. I am far from complacent. I am determined to learn everything I can; I practice and create every day. I edit, re-write, entertain criticism, and re-write again. With each piece, I strive to get a little better. With the odds stacked against me, I use it as the fuel for my daily writing sessions. As I compose each story, more of my competition falls away. In my book, Steven Wright has made more progress than most of that 81% of wannabe writers. At least he got the page numbers done.

What odds will you beat?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Human beings, by nature, are cautious and judgmental toward people who live, think, act, and behave differently. We decide without thinking. Others are too thin, too heavy, too rich, or too poor, too quiet or way too friendly to be trusted. Judged as too smart, too slow, always right, but never wrong, it is a survival instinct rooted deep in our brains.

It is a reality we cannot change. When we realized each person has their unique perspective. We understand how others might misunderstand us.  Instead of holding a grudge, we learn to accept the facts and move forward with our life. There is a quote by James Blanchard Cisneros: “Once you awaken, you will have no interest in judging those who sleep.”

If we know ourselves, and we are and happy, we need not worry about others. Being “weird” can free us, letting us embrace the person we are. Who knows? We might find someone who loves biscuits and gravy as much as we do.

How will you stay true to who you are?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

It’s the weekend, and I am tired. There’s a difference between being lazy and being tired. We declare we are lazy when we are dead-dog tired. But are we tired from the right business? Are we filling our days with insignificant activity or are we making strides towards reaching our goals?

It is a balancing act. We push too hard to move towards attaining our goals, become a workaholic and find yourselves in peril of burnout. They say we increase productivity when we rest and recharge our batteries. Rest can lead to inertia, a break in our routine can derail our previous efforts. It’s difficult deciding what we need to do. I think I will write two hundred words and take a nap.

How do you decide when to push and when to rest?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer ©

I believe Santa Claus is real, true love exists, people are basically good, and that magic is everywhere around us. I believe Kevin Costner’s “I believe” speech from Bull Durham is a classic movie moment. I believe we are living at an amazing point in history, that dreams are to be nurtured, not dismissed and I believe human beings have not yet realized their full potential.

There are huge benefits to having a strong belief system. It helps you remain positive, dispel negative thoughts and allows you to build an unshakeable self-confidence. A strong sense of self lets criticism feel less personal, less critical and you can consider the merits from an unbiased view.

Being able to separate emotions from facts lets you take calculated risks while realizing failing is part of the process. The ability to access risk makes you open to change, inspires you to act, and makes you more productive. Taking action means you are more likely to win, succeed and achieve your goals. By making your dreams come true you just might inspire others.

What do you believe in?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

I have a ritual I invoke at the beginning of each month. I evaluate my progress, review my accomplishments, and congratulate myself on what worked. That’s the easy part. Next, I determine where I fell short and devise ways to fix underperforming areas. Then I sweep it away.

Turning the calendar means a clean slate, and an opportunity to start again. But a do-over isn’t a free pass. I hold myself accountable and reschedule unfinished tasks. By letting my failures guide me, I have learned valuable lessons. My mistakes point out miscalculations. Dissecting the errors allows me to make course corrections, adjust my workflow, and I get another chance to be better. The one thing I keep in mind as I establish my new schedule is: my past performance is not an indicator of future outcomes. Instead, I set myself up to outperform last month’s wins.

How do you approach a new month?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

It’s easy to view successful people, entrepreneurs, star athletes, and envy their fame and fortune. They live a dream life, the existence we want for ourselves and our families. We wonder what makes them special and why our desires have not materialized. We don’t consider their path to greatness. Their road may have required sacrifices, no parties, missed movies, waking early, strict diets and forsaking staying out late. They have spent hours, days, weeks and years relentlessly pursuing their vision.

To advance toward our goals, we must make difficult decisions. Focusing on a single target means letting something else go.  In a world where they coach us to “never give up” we can find ourselves forced into a life of contradiction, tension, and lack of progress. We race through an endless list of activities. Exhausted and discouraged we try harder without focus, sporadically work longer hours and condemn ourselves to tread water.

By shutting a door we open opportunities behind other doors. How many times have you heard someone who has experienced a major failure say it was the best thing that ever happened to them? They had to quit one situation to reconsider their beliefs and free their minds to alternative possibilities. The truth is, only you can decide what is worth giving up.

What are you willing to let fall away to achieve your goals?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Contemplating a new project is exhilarating. Excitement runs high as we envision the joy and satisfaction we expect from a completed task. The pros far outweigh the cons, there is no question we should proceed. So why do we become experts at delaying? We know what it requires, the essential steps, but we procrastinate, we wait, we opt to pursue less productive activities.

Whether we fear failure, dread increased responsibility based on our success, or find ourselves paralyzed by the desire for perfection, we need an answer. We must tap into our passion. Procrastination lives in our heads and the fastest way is to move. Exercise, take a walk, spend time with optimistic people, get your blood flowing, feel the enthusiasm coursing through your body, then start work.

How do you find your magic?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer