Back to basics

Jensen Ackles was my original muse avatar.

Ever since Karen introduced me to the show Supernatural, I've had a slightly unnatural affection for this half of the Winchester-brother team. Not that Sam (Jared Padalecki) isn't good looking in his own right - there's just a little something extra about Jensen...

Despite valiant efforts to the contrary, I've not had a great creative run this past few weeks. It's true there's a lot on my mind, but I think the primary contributing factor is this: I've lost touch with the basics.

Step one: Open laptop
Step two: Write

I've had several mentors over the past few years, but the strongest pieces of writing advice came from Steve Berry and James Rollins.

Steve: Write Tight.
James: I give myself permission to write crap today.

Back to basics.

At one time, both of these messages were taped to the side of my computer. They pushed me through the tough times, when the words weren't flowing, or my prose was padded with adjectives and run-on sentences. But somewhere along the way, the tape unstuck, and the advice dropped out of my view. Out of sight...

Not surprising, this basic" philosophy applies to my everyday life challenges. I've gained back a lot of the weight lost at the start of the year, despite my goal to lose 50 pounds. I've tried to place blame on a multitude of things - moving out to the country where there is no J'Adore dance and is too far for work-out dates with my friends. A sudden aversion to raw vegetables since I can't find my favourite hummus in our small hamlet. And on and on...

But really, I just need to get back to basics: Work out. Eat healthy. Make time for ME.

So this Monday, I'm making a promise to myself to take it slow.

Get back to basics.

And return to when I first made Jensen Ackles my muse avatar. He was my lucky charm then. Let's see if I can count on him again.

Happy Monday - and to my American friends and family, happy July 4.

- Dawn