Reach For The Stars
By E. P. Ned Burke
We are never present with, but always beyond ourselves:
Fear, desire, hope still push us on towards the future.
—Montaigne
Have you ever noticed if someone tells you there are a billion stars in the universe you’ll believe him, but if that same someone tells you a fence post has wet paint on it, then you just have to touch it to be sure?
Human nature is peculiar.
Why is it that many of us prefer to believe the improbable rather than the possible?
And when it comes to unfounded skepticism, writers appear to lead the pack. All it takes is one rejection slip for their world to end.
“Why me?” cries the wounded writer who is certain he is a complete failure or an unrecognized genius that nobody will ever accept.
On the other hand, there are many aspiring writers who will hand over big bucks to some publisher or agent who guarantees them instant fame and success.
Possible? Perhaps. Probable? Not likely.
Between these two extremes dwells the real hard-working writer of today. He (or she) plods along, receiving his share of rejection slips in the mail with as much annoyance as an avid golfer would to a slight sprinkling of rain. It doesn’t stop him. He just shakes off the annoying beads of disappointment and continues on, knowing a sunny acceptance is somewhere ahead.
If there is one lesson to learn in the writing game, it is never to stop reaching for the stars. Perspiring writers are finding success every day. Look at Nicholas Sparks, author of Message In A Bottle that was turned into a major motion picture. He was just an average guy, working the average job, and living the average life. But he continued to write. And he continued to dream the impossible dream. And now that dream is reality.
It can also happen to you.
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul —
And sings the tune without words
And never stops — at all.
—Emily Dickinson
By and large, writers live in a fantasy world of their own making. Non-writers find this world confusing and bizarre. The true writer, however, does not let disappointments, criticisms, or setbacks deter him from his quest. It may, at times, appear to others to be an unrealistic world. Perhaps it is. But is the dream of becoming a successful writer such an impossible task?
No, it is not. People from all walks of life have shown it can be done.
It’s that possibility of actually touching the stars which keeps writers going “where no man has ever gone before.” It is perfectly normal for a writer to come down to earth once in awhile to touch that fence post and face his doubts and fears. But a real writer will not dwell there. A real writer will visit for a time; then wipe his hands clean and write himself back into his creative world.
Writer Lawrence Clark Powell put it this way:
Writing is a solitary occupation. Family, friends, and society are the natural enemies of a writer. He must be alone, uninterrupted and slightly savage if he is to sustain and complete an undertaking.
So reach for the stars, dear writers, and never stop writing, and never stop dreaming of what might be.
