An Earned Advantage

I'm sitting at my dining room table reading an article. My wife is leaning on the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee in her hands. It's Saturday. We have the day off. There is a man crawling around our attic installing a new central air conditioner.

I share my thoughts on the article with my wife and she tells me I am a smart cookie. I'm not sure I agree. I have an advantage over many people, though. I know how to read. I earned that advantage. It's not like being born tall and good-looking. I don't have those unearned advantages. My parents made sure I can read. That I enjoy reading and devote significant time to it, may be something I earned, or may be something I was born with.

Because I am a man who will look for any advantage he can get, I tell my wife that the only real proof of my intelligence is that I married her. She smiles, walks over and kisses me. I steal her coffee. What do you know about that? I am smart!

I never finished high school. I got my GED at 24 and took some classes at the community college. No degree. But I read every day. I read books, magazines, newspapers, anything I can get my hands on. This has been my advantage. I learned what I wanted to learn, what I felt would be useful; not what a college administrator wanted me to learn. I'm better for it. And... no debt!

If you're taking the time to read this, you may share that same earned advantage. In which case, good for you, and thanks for stopping by!

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published ten books, which you can find here.

Something About A Horse

If you’ve never ridden a horse, you probably should try it. The younger you are, the better. It’s hard on the knees and the hips. It’s also tough to know that your life is in the hands of an animal that can throw you off and trample you in a heartbeat. If it was so inclined.

As I write this, I can feel the pain in my knees subsiding. I spent three hours on a horse this morning. I am in Montana, one of my favorite and least favorite places in the world. I love it here because it is beautiful and it’s where my daughter lives. I hate it here because the beauty and nature of the place makes me forget that guys with knees as bad as mine probably shouldn’t ride horses up in the mountains for three hours.

Not that I won’t do it again. I will do it until the pain gets to be too much or until the wranglers sit me down and tell me that this particular horse has gone to pasture. I did not grow up around horses. I went on my first horse ride two years ago. I am not sure if I’ll be back. 

But you should definitely give it a try. It’s fun and it’s a nice, relaxing way to give up control for a while. It’s nice to be a passenger and not a driver. I am not speaking for experienced horsemen and women when I say this, but you are never really in control when riding a horse. You are driving in the rain at night in  a car with bald tires. You might get through it in one piece but no one would be shocked if you come home with a busted collarbone. You can kick the horse to make it move. You can pull the reins to stop it or pull them left or right to steer the horse. But these are just suggestions. If the horse doesn’t want to cooperate, it won’t. I don’t know about you, but I don’t kick that hard.

Of course, if you do get through it, if you are able to relax enough to enjoy being a passenger, if you are able to live in that particular moment, listen to the birds, admire the trees and feel the breeze in your face, you might come away with a different perspective. You might find something you didn’t know you were looking for.

 

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published ten books, which you can find here.

My Rules: Part One

 I'm exhausted. I just got into Bozeman, Montana at about midnight. I was too tired to go directly to sleep. I was up at six AM because my body is still on Florida time. Jet lag is a real thing. I am in Montana this time because my eldest daughter will be starting at Montana State University in a week. We're moving her in. I'll be heading back alone to an empty house. Even the dogs are with a sitter so they won't be there to greet me. Careful what you wish for. I do enjoy my alone time, but I'm no different than anyone else in that I want everything on my own terms. My daughter finishing high school a year early and moving far from home is something to be proud of. I just wish I could rearrange the terms. I'd like her to stay home until shes ninety. Just kidding. There I go not being careful what I wish for.

I am sitting at the little desk in the room. My laptop is open. The familiarity ends there. The desk is cluttered with all kinds of stuff. An ice bucket, a small coffee pot, my backpack, a purse, a hat. I look up from my screen to see me staring back at me. If I was prettier, that may be a perk, but mirrors distract me as I am as conceited as anyone else. I wonder if I look good for my age. The light of the screen isn't flattering, and I don't. I look old. Maybe I'm tired. Maybe I'm a little sad. Maybe I should avert my eyes lest I depress myself further.

This has me thinking of my personal rules for writing. I've never articulated them. I do have them, I know I do, but they're ingrained in me. They don't require review. I don't need to check them before writing like a pilot reviews a checklist before takeoff. I just do. So, here goes:

1. Eliminate distractions. Seems pretty simple, right. I'm not just talking about barking dogs and screaming kids. If you're an insecure narcissist like me, don't have a mirror. If you're a news junkie, or a social media junkie, disable your internet and leave your phone in another room. It's not that it becomes impossible to focus, it's just that focusing in an environment littered with distractions takes energy. This energy is better applied to your writing, or painting or crocheting, or whatever. By the way, Cafes aren't the best place to write, but they are a good place to be seen, which can be a helluva distraction.

2. Make yourself comfortable. If you're chair is too low or too high or the light is too bright or too dim or the room is too cold, you're not going to be at your best. Set yourself up for success, not disappointment.

3. Schedule your workday. Writing, or any artistic or entrepreneurial endeavor that you're pursuing on spec, should have a time dedicated to it. I am a morning person. I usually wake up around five and start writing around six and go until just before nine. Sometimes I put in a little overtime. Sometimes I run out of steam early. Sometimes, I don't follow rule number one and I end up wasting two hours reading news or making sure my coffee is just right or telling my dogs how much I love them. If you don't devote time to your craft, or to any goal, it's just a wish, and a dream, and this is the real world. This ain't no fairy tale.

4. The work matters more than the title. I've met plenty of would-be writers who love saying they are writers. They love wearing turtlenecks and slurring their words a la Gore Vidal or acting uncomfortable in social situations like David Foster Wallace. They should all try to be a little more like J.D. Salinger. No one is impressed by you saying you're a writer. I could say I'm a doctor but I promise you don't want me removing your gall bladder. I wouldn't trust me to cut your fingernails. The doctor is the person who did the work. They went to med school, they did their residency and rotations and all that jazz. They've earned the title. Why would writing be any different?

I'm sure there will be more to this. Consider this essay, like its author, a work in progress. But this is just me. Write your own rules, and don't break them. Shatter them! But only if you find they are holding you back.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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Counting Down

In five days, my daughter will be going away to college. I am dying. I knew this day would come. In fact, I always encouraged her to look for schools in other states. I told her being away from home is a legit part of the college - learning - growing up experience. The one time the kid listens to her father!

I am happy for her and I am proud. She applied to one school and was accepted. She is the only one of her graduating class that is going to be attending college away from home. She'll be nearly two thousand miles and two time zones away. I've never lived that far from her or even from my own parents. It's scary and it's exciting. And I'm sad that she won't be here every day. I'm sad that this place, which has been her home since before her first birthday, will seem  a little emptier without her. Okay, a lot emptier. She took her first steps here. She was potty trained here. She is an enormous part of what makes this a home.

So, I'm a little depressed and I am hating the march of time this week. I want my little girl to stay forever, but I know this simply cannot be. She will always be my little girl, even when she is far away. I have to accept it, but I sure as hell don't have to like it.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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What's easy not to do

I've been thinking of creating a new website. I've also been looking to team up with an editor who could work closely with me. I've been looking for a web designer, too. 

In this day and age there is no reason for me to be thinking about these things and not getting them done so I put out a feeler on Facebook, asking for my creative peeps to reach out. They did.

Now begins a new chapter in my life.

Follow me to Apresterra!

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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Swimmin' Without Women

It's Tuesday morning. It's cold in my house. Not because of anything having to do with the climate or the environment. The A/C is blasting as it will all summer. It's actually pretty warm outside although it's not even 8:00 AM. 

I sit down at my computer to write as I do most mornings and I am a little more awake than I might otherwise be. It's not the coffee. It's the pool. I took a little swim this morning. I was letting out the dogs (I guess I've answered that Baja Men question - sorry, it had to be done!) and I decided to do something a little different. I stripped out of my boxers, stepped into my trunks, and went for a dip. I would have preferred to go in my birthday suit but I don't have that level of privacy in my yard, unfortunately. Time to build a taller fence.

I didn't go into the pool with any kind of agenda. I didn't tell myself I'd swim ten laps or do that aqua-aerobics stuff they do at the YMCA pool. I just floated around and listened to the world waking up. I heard the sounds of cars on the road. I heard road construction a couple of blocks away. It was just me and my ears. 

It's a good thing to go out once in a while and just be. You don't need music or even a companion. My dogs were living their own lives, not worrying about me. My family is inside asleep. There is nothing but me and the water and that is all I need. It's a nice transition from asleep to the hectic action that follows on any given day. 

I tried to guide my thoughts toward projects I'm currently working on but nothing doing. I let it go, It was too early and the water was too calm and too warm for anything structured. I let my thoughts go where the wind and the leaves and the noise of the world led them. And that was all right. I'll be out there again tomorrow. Maybe without my bathing suit... maybe not.

Find your quiet spot. Enjoy it. Soak it up a while. 

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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Day Drinking

I work at home. Most writers do. I traveled last week and my homes was a cabin in the mountains of West Yellowstone, Montana. The view from the window in front of my little writing desk was spectacular, if a bit distracting.

See, I live in South Florida. What's a mountain? We complain about speed bumps. We are at sea level. Standing on a box can make your ears pop. Need I go on? Good.

So now I'm home. It's a thousand degrees in the shade. I have to work and since I am home, the bar beckons. I look up recipes. I stare at the bar. The bar stares at me. I dream of a Long Island Iced Tea, or an old fashioned or even a beer.

But I hold back. I am no Don Draper. When the drinking starts, the working stops. So I don't drink until I am done with work. I'm not telling you what to do and I don't judge, but I'm going to stick to what works for me. You do you, baby!

I'm blessed not to have an addictive personality, by which I mean I don't have addictions. Many have been addicted to me... shut up. It's my blog and I'll lie if I want to. Still, I don't want to take the chance of making drinking or drugs a crutch. Not for writing, not for life, not for any reason at all. So... I drink after I work.

There's a quote attributed (wrongly) to Ernest Hemingway: Write Drunk, Edit Sober. I would rather do the whole process sober. There'll be time to drink when the writing's done.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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Gathering Information

I just came back from a week in West Yellowstone, Montana. It is, without a doubt, one of my favorite places in the world. I stayed in a cabin on a ranch. I rode horses and went whitewater rafting. I went to Yellowstone National Park and to Mesa Falls in Idaho. It was a great, badly-needed vacation. As much as I love my home, my bed, my pillow and my dogs, I hated coming back.

This was my second visit to West Yellowstone. I came back from my first trip very inspired and immediately began writing a novel about the place. I hit the wall at about a hundred pages. So, I went up this year thinking I would find the spark and get the story written finally!

I skipped one of the horse rides we had scheduled so I could get to work on my story. I wrote about a thousand words. A whole new story about the same place. That was a week ago. I've given up... for now!

I think the problem is that I'm trying to force the book to happen. It never works that way. These things come when they want to come. It's not that I haven't been writing. I've been working every day and I've been editing. The story needs a little more time to percolate. Or maybe it needs to marinate. Whatever it is, it doesn't need to be forced. That's a great way to kill what could be a great story.

Gather the facts, breathe the air, feel the breeze, see the sights. Listen to the people talk and learn their stories. Their stories become yours. These people become the characters in your stories. You are not stealing from them, you are immortalizing them. Nobody wants to live forever, but nobody wants to die. And certainly no one wants to be forgotten.

So take notes and bide your time. The story will come when it's ready.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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The Every Day

So... how's your quarantine going?

Ready to go outside?

Oh... riots.

So... how are you passing the time? I hope you're not binge-watching bad TV shows that you've already watched. I hope you're taking at least a little time to improve yourself. Maybe you're reading a book. Maybe you're fixing up your house. Maybe you've taken up watercolors. Are you writing that book you've been dreaming about writing? Get to it.

The pandemic has pushed us out of our comfort zone by locking us in the most comfortable of places: our homes. Home is great when you have the opportunity to leave at will. Otherwise, it's a prison. Some great stories were written about prisons. Stories like Papillon, Escape from Alcatraz, The Count of Monte Cristo, and others. Any of those stories would help you appreciate how comfy your "prison" is.

I realize this is coming late. I've been a little caught up with other things and I have been ignoring this blog. I've been doing a lot of work for The Liberty Drip, which is a political blog I contribute to, I've also completed a novella, the completion of the Man In The Gray Sky trilogy scheduled to be released in the summer; and a new novel, which I hope to release in the fall.

I also took care of some home improvement projects including an above-ground pool and a nice area to enjoy my backyard. Just in time for the rainy season! Hooray!

So, don't let the lockdown get you down. Don't become a victim of your circumstances. Instead, make the most of the time you have and create something beautiful.

Keep doing what you do!

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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A Poem Because Why Not

I normally reserve these pages for reflections on writing or my life, but today,
I decided to share a poem from my book, Scorpions for Breakfast, which was
released this week. I hope you enjoy it.

TRIPPING THROUGH THE GARDEN

We go tripping though life

Socks covered in thistles

Bug bites on exposed skin

Sun coming down

Heat coming up

Here comes the rain

Here comes the night

Here comes the snow

Tripping through another day

Every minute a trek

A lost moment

A dandelion

Pistils

Petals

Pedestrians

Petunias

Peonies

And we go tripping through the flowers

We romp through roses

We gather among gardenias

We hibernate in the hibiscus

We ogle at oleander

We trip through the garden

We snort the pollen

We eat the seeds

And kill the future of the garden

We let it rain and watch it grow

Lay in the sun and let it burn

We are the wicked gardeners

Tripping through sacred gardens

Sleeping on the lawn

Tripping on a blade of grass

Tripping after dawn

We are the landscapers

Cutting trees

Killing them to make them pretty

Beauty in death is the only beauty for those who kill

Tripping on beauty after dawn

Tripping on broken limbs

Of trees

Of men

Of women

Of children

Tripping on one another as we dash

To kill the trees

Tripping on the carcases of trees we killed

Tripping on roots

We wait for the flowers to bloom

We wait for the fruit to rot

We wait for the seed to sprout

We wait for the trip to begin

We wish for the trip to end

We are tripping through the garden

We are tripping through the world

We are tripping on each other

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He has published eight books. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He published four books in 2019, which you can find here.

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Self-Imposed Deadlines

Settling into a new routine can be hard. I recently left the office life and I am working from home. It's not an easy transition Because I don't have to shower and shave and get out the door in the morning, I have lost my sense of urgency. I take my time. I write, then I walk the dog, then I come home and have breakfast and then get some work done.

Life was easier when I was racing against the clock.




Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which you can find here. 

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Listening

I love books. Even before I realized I wanted to be a writer, I was always a reader. I have owned, lost, and donated thousands of books. I have borrowed and lent books. I have read books and I have listened to books. Books have made me laugh, made me cry, and pissed me off. Many have put me to sleep and many have kept me up.

I read every morning and every night. Sometimes, if my schedule permits, I read in between those times. I also listen to audio books. I don't spend hours on news, TV, radio, or print. I get the headlines, read a couple of stories that interest me, and I move on. I don't need or want that kind of negativity in my life!

I work from home so I no longer have a commute, unless you count the ten steps from my bedroom to my office. So, I listen to books while I walk my dog. I get through an extra book every week or two this way. I also listen in the shower, and when I'm alone doing things at home. Why waste the time when I can spend it absorbing some of the great art in the world?

But today, when I was walking Max, I felt an urge to shut off my book, remove my earbuds, and listen to the world. There was so much to hear. There were so many sounds of life happening all around me, not far from where I sleep at night. I heard stories and I heard voices and I felt life.

So don't be afraid to turn off the radio or the TV and just listen. The world has secrets to tell you.




Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which you can find here. 

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Easy Like Sunday Morning?

I like Lionel Richie. I also like teasing Mr. Richie about the whole Sunday mornings being easy thing. I woke early and sat down to write.  I still have Christmas lights to take down and Christmas stuff to put up in the attic. I've been busy and haven't had a day off in two weeks.

But I feel good on this not-so-easy Sunday morning because I got my writing done.

Whatever you are pursuing. You must prioritize whatever you are doing to improve yourself or to improve the lives of others. If you're not getting better, you're getting worse. It's a cliche but it's true. Work on you. Every Day. No exceptions.

Keep on truckin'!




Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which you can find here. 

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Breadcrumbs

It's been a crazy few days. My wife came home sick as a dog on Monday. Vomiting, passing out, incoherent. Sure, it sounds like just another Friday night in Casa Jimenez, but I assure you, this was something else.  We ended up in the ER. She's okay now, at home, recovering from kidney stones and dehydration. It was scary.

This morning was the first time I've written since Monday. I am a believer in writing every day, whether for an hour or five hours. The important thing is to do the work. Do it every day. This is important, particularly if you want your story to feel like one smooth piece, instead of jagged pieces forced together. Who doesn't want smooth instead of jagged crap?

Hemingway used to say that it's important to leave a little in the tank at the end of the day. In other words, don't write until you have nothing left. Stop while there is still something in your mind to write. This helps to keep the flow going. I did this on Monday morning, not knowing what the day and the two days that followed would bring me and I'm glad I did. This morning (Thursday) I picked up right where I left off. I'm back on track.

Don't work yourself to exhaustion. It doesn't help you. Save a little so you have the fuel to get rolling the next morning.

Now get back to work!



Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which you can find here. 

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The Business Part 4

This is the fourth part of a series on the business of writing. Click here to go to Part One.


I am not a full-time writer. I have a career and I own a business. All things being equal, though, I'd rather earn my living as a writer. What I am is prolific. I am a very productive writer. I put words to paper (or processor) every day of the week. Sometimes, they're good, sometimes they suck. The important thing is to do the things that must be done.


A DAY IN THE LIFE

Monday through Friday: I am usually awake by 5:00AM. This is not to say I am always out of bed by that time. My wife usually wakes up a little later. She and the girls are out the door by 6:30. I usually start working by 5:30, pausing to say goodbye to the family and make coffee. I usually put in anywhere from 1-3 hours of work in every weekday morning. I then shower and shave and go to work. I try not to think too much about what I'm working on when I'm not actually working on it but sometimes an idea pops in my head. When this happens, I usually write it down.

I sometimes have creative bursts throughout the day. I carry a pen and pad around for just such an occasion. If not, my iPhone has a nifty little notepad feature.

I rarely work on my main project at night. This time is usually reserved for reading, sleeping, and the making of the love.

I dedicate some time to social media but I am no expert. I am trying to learn how to promote myself. Once I master this, all bets are off.

See, writing is the hard part, because it is lonely and exhausting. When I tell people I write but don't make significant money from it (yet) they ask me why I bother. The truth is I do it for me. I do it because I love it. When it eventually becomes my living, all the better.

Follow me on this journey. It ought to be fun.



Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which you can check out here. 

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Who matters as much as Why - A Quickie Post.

Why are you writing?

Who are you writing for?

If you are writing for anyone other than yourself, you are writing for the wrong reason. You are the only person who will definitely read every word you write, so make sure they are words you love and can be proud of? Or, at the very least, make sure they are words you can live with.


Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida with his family.  He has published eight books, which can be seen here. 

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The Business Part 3

This is the third part of a series on the business of writing. Click here to go to Part One.


Too many wannabe writers are in love with the idea of being known as a writer. They are not in love with the lonely drudgery of writing. Singers and actors get on stage and are cheered and adored, or jeered and booed. But at least they are known. When Andy Warhol promised those fifteen minutes of fame, he excluded most writers.

My point is that you have to write if you want to be a writer. You have to put out a page a day. I don't care if it's a good page. Ernest Hemingway said the first draft of anything is shit. He was right. Sometimes it's better quality shit than other times, but it's still shit.

So you sit down and write a page a day. You do this for 200 days. You have a first draft. Guess what? It's shit! Let it go for a while. Put it out of your mind. Think of other things. Get drunk. Get stoned. Get laid. Definitely get laid if possible.

After you've done other things and taken your mind off the work, come back to it with fresh eyes. It's time to write. Remember that words are cheap. A word means little by itself. It's when we put it in the right place with other words that it starts to mean something. What I mean to tell you is that you shouldn't be afraid to delete a word. Or a sentence. Or a paragraph. Or even an entire chapter. Don't be afraid to replace words or move them around. Ditto sentences and paragraphs. Nothing is  sacred. Don't be a little pussy. Just edit it.

So it's been a year since you started this book. You've done your first re-write. Are you ready to send it to the publisher? Hell no. Put it away. Get drunk. Get stoned. Get laid. The manuscript ain't going nowhere.

Come back to it a couple of weeks or even a month or two later. Rewrite it again. Be ruthless. Words mean nothing until they are put in the right order.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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The Business Part 2

If you'd like to read the first part of this blog series, click here.


I was talking about the difference or the contrast between writing and the business of writing. I am not good at the business side of writing. I know I can be and I have no doubt I will be, but at the moment, I suck at it.

I suck at it because I haven't learned how to do it. Once I learn it, look out world!

I have earned my living for the past several years in sales. I know how to sell. I make a fine living at it. I have just always found it easier to sell things, than it is to sell myself.

I wake up very early every morning. Usually before five AM. I start writing around six AM. Writing is the only thing I've ever been disciplined about.

I mention that because if you don't have the discipline to write, you're wasting your time reading this. Be gone!

I should also mention that this is being written for those who wish to go the self-publishing route.  If you are hoping to be published by a big house and they are going to throw big money into promoting your books, you are dismissed. I don't want you laughing at me. Be gone!

I submitted my work to agents and publishers many years ago and then stopped. I wrote for myself and never shared a word. Now, I'm back and I want to do it myself. Wish me luck!

Before you try to sell your writing, make sure you have something to sell. I stalk Facebook and Reddit "writer" groups where people spend a lot of time asking questions like, "What should I name my character?" and other nonsense. I have news for you: if you don't know what to name your character, which should be the easiest part of the process, there is nothing on any social media group that will help you. You are dismissed, follow the best sellers.

If you have written the book and it is ready for release into the wild, read on...

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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The Business

This is a confession.

Too late. You're here now. You must listen to my tale of woe. To do otherwise, to turn away, would be indecent. You are a decent person... aren't you?

There are two sides to being a writer. There is the hard part, which is the actual writing. Then there is the harder part, which is selling yourself. I like sharing my experiences. I really do. What I don't like is the business of selling those experiences once they are bound in a book or put in an e-book.

Don't get me wrong, I want to sell the books. I want to sell millions of copies of my books. In my other life,  I sell for a living. I understand the science and the art of sales. I've just never learned how to sell myself and my creations, and that is exactly what selling books is. It is an author selling bits of himself.

Every story I've written is personal, even if not autobiographical. They came from inside of me. It's easier to write about these things than it is to talk about them.

So, I've spent the greater part of the weekend, studying and creating a marketing plan. I am all over social media and I am compiling a list of independent bookstores and book clubs that I will be visiting. If you're reading this, and I am ever in your neighborhood, please stop by and say hello.

I think I may continue the theme I've started here. It ought to be fun. Who knows? I may end up not hating the business of selling my writing after all!

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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Is It Worth It?

What an odd question? Is it worth it? Without knowing what it is or what the other it is, the answer must be yes, it is worth it.

When you wake up in the morning, as I do, and sit at your desk and write, pouring your heart and soul and mind onto the page or into the word processor, you are not doing it for anyone else. You are doing it for yourself. Why? Because the words you write may never reach another soul. Sometimes you erase them. Other times you decide to let them die of neglect. Some make it, some don't.

There's also the risk of rejection. What if no one likes what you wrote? Is there anything worse? Of course there is. But for the purposes of this discussion, we'll pretend there is nothing worse than someone not liking your work. So what can you do?

Simple. Just keep doing it. Do it and do it again. And when you're done doing it, you guessed it, do it some more!

It's worth it. Not because people want to read your work and not because it can make you rich and famous. It's worth it for its own sake. There can be no other reason. Any other reason is wrong. Do it because it was what you were born to do.

If that's not reason enough, you're in the wrong business.

Adolfo Jimenez is an author, poet, and blogger. He lives in Hollywood, Florida. He has published eight books, which you can find here.

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