I find it hard to be a beginner at things. And that’s precisely why I’ve taken up drawing. It encourages me to use parts of my brain that I don’t often use. It keeps me humble. In fact, sometimes I feel so humbled that I wonder why I’m doing this to myself … but, if I’ve learned one thing from writing, it’s how to get through blocks, and now I’m applying that knowledge to this new endeavour.

First, I decided to work at drawing for an hour a day. Improvement is inevitable if we spend an hour a day at something, right?

Second, I asked a friend if I could call her twice a week to let her know whether or not I was meeting my goal. She agreed and even offered to come over and help me with my shading troubles!

Third, I made sure that I kept it fun. The more fun I’m having, the easier it is to overcome resistance.

Now I’m curious to see how developing this new skill – this new way of using my brain – will encourage me to grow and change as a writer and as a human being. I’ll keep you posted on that one.