Jeff Russell's Blog: A Wrunner's Blog

My latest story - THE GIRL WHO WATCHED OVER DREAMS - is now out there in the ebook ether and available for free for anyone willing to offer a review. If you enjoyed THE DREAM SHELF then I'm sure you'll enjoy this one as well.

Cheers,
Jeff
The Girl Who Watched Over Dreams

Runners will sometimes ‘hit the wall.’ Often this occurs around the twenty mile mark of a marathon when the muscles run out of energy. The brain says go but the legs say no, forcing a choice between dropping out and trudging on. Dropping out means a Did Not Finish on the official record and on the soul. Trudging on means a slow crawl to the next water stop for rest, rehydration and replenishment before getting back in the race.

Writers can also hit the wall. Often this occurs deep in their novel when the plot runs off-course, goals becomes unclear and the characters fail to come alive. At that point the spirit runs out of inspiration, forcing a choice between quitting and trudging on. Quitting means an unfinished manuscript lurking in a desk drawer and in the soul. Trudging on means stepping back and watching from a distance, giving your plot, goals and characters a chance to redefine and renew.

Refresh, renew and trudge on. Embrace these challenges, for they make boundless the joy of rounding that final turn to see the finish line ahead.

I could have gotten any agent I pleased … I just never pleased any of them. :-(

One day, in a moment sublime
I started devoting my time
while on my way home, to writing a poem
but I couldn’t come up with a rhyme.
My lines were a little too dense
my verse a little too tense.
I dabbled in wit and some of it fit
but none of it made any sense.
I added and padded whatever it took
to give my creation the grandiose look
of elegant prose but all that arose
were measures of rambling gobbledygook.
Week upon week I continued the quest.
A daunting challenge! Who would have guessed?
But the going got rough and enough was enough.
I reluctantly gave it a rest.
Inhibited by inspirational drought
poetic potential a serious doubt
I swallowed my pride, looked deep inside
and finally figured it out.
If crafting verse is an art
then ideas must flow from the heart
born of talent and fashion and patience and passion
and clearly I’m just not that smart :-(
So now I’m allowing each day
to evolve in a lyrical way.
And my urge to create will just have to wait.
But … who needs a silly rhyme, anyway?

I am a wrunner, which is to say that I’m a writer and a runner. I’ve logged many miles and taken home some age-group trophies but don’t ever expect to be first across the finish line. And that’s okay, because I love the sport and enjoy being part of the running community. I am also a writer. I’ve completed a few novels and received some gratifying reviews but don’t ever expect to have a best-seller. And that’s okay also because I love the creative process and enjoy being part of the writing community. Life has taught me that one of the greatest rewards of any endeavor is the people I meet along the way.