Longshots and Inspiration

This last week has brought me some major inspiration on two fronts (and boy, did I need it!)

First of all, there was an absolutely fascinating, mesmerizing interview with JK Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter phenom, on Oprah Winfrey. This famous author's road to success was not a rocket launch, it was a two-track as rocky and doubt-strewn as any other writer's and one that left her totally unprepared for being thrust into the white hot spotlight of success. If you missed the episode you can see it again on YouTube in several parts. Well worth the time investment to hear the heartfelt words of the most successful author in history. Here's the opening:



That was Monday. On Saturday, I was lucky to snag a couple of tickets to the sneak peek of Secretariat. As a lifelong fan of the horse and the former owner of several of his direct descendents, I admit it would have been hard for me not to like it. Like was an understatement, I was blown away. I wasn't alone. At the end of movie, the theatre erupted in enthusiastic applause. It's been a long time since I've seen that happen.

This film isn't really about the horse, or horseracing, or the history of an exceptional athlete, it's about a woman who went after an impossible dream regardless of ridicule, doubt, roadblocks, and cost to her personal esteem. I read the novel this movie is based on and thought I knew everything about Penny Chenery-Tweedy and her quest. I was so wrong. I think any writer will completely connect to this tale and the emotional toll that often comes before success. Here's the trailer:



So hats off to two very inspiring stories at a time when a little encouragement meant everything to me.  I hope you have time to view one or both!  :)

Longshots and Inspiration

I'm giving Fax and Benna the day off to tell a little tale about inspiration and enthusiasm. In this case, the source of my inspiration has nothing to do with writing...it has to do with my other love, Thoroughbreds.

Something truly amazing happened over the weekend and unless you've been in orbit you probably know what I'm talking about. A 50-1 "nobody" won the Kentucky Derby...and he won it by the second largest margin since 1946. The horse was from my home state of New Mexico (unheard of!) and trained by a small town trainer who personally drove his horse to Kentucky in a horse trailer. He was laughed at and ridiculed by many and his horse was pretty much overlooked by all the pre-race hype as an automatic also ran. But the "horse that didn't belong" proved not only did he belong, he was the better by far.

OK, so what does it have to do with me and my writing?

Let me back up a week. Last Monday, I received a letter in the mail. It was a bittersweet moment because we've decided to close our Thoroughbred breeding business and this letter contained the registration papers of the last foal of our last crop, a filly sired by a stallion named Bay Head King. Who is owned by Dr. Leonard Blach. Who is one of the co-owners of Mine That Bird. Yes, we know Mine That Bird's owner, and that's why this astounding story has hit us so very, very close to home.

OK, so what does this have to do with writing and SFR?

Here's the thing. Many said Mine That Bird was a "nobody from nowhere" who shouldn't have been on the same racetrack with other famous, million dollar horses. But the facts are that Mine That Bird had been preparing for this race from the beginning of his career. He won three stakes races in Canada and was named the Canadian 2YO champion male. But after that he'd run in the Breeder's Cup Juvenile and finished dead last, then lost two races in New Mexico. His record was disheartening, but his owners and trainer believed he had a shot. They believed their horse could win. They believed that sometimes the odds mean nothing.

And most of all, they believed you have to be in the race to win it.

And that's what his has to do with writing.

Sometimes the odds seem overwhelming against writers, too. You hear the 10,000-to-1 chance of getting a manuscript published. You hear the trials and tribulations of fellow writers. You may even, like me, be baffled and discouraged over a few "good writing, interesting story, no thanks" rejections. But you can't win the prize if you don't enter the race. If you know you've put in the prep work, if you know you've paid your dues, if you know your story is market ready and it's good enough to take on the "big guys," then enter it in that horserace.

You can't win if you aren't in the race. Take it from Mine That Bird.