"If you're going through hell, keep going." Winston Churchill 
"The only way around is through." Robert Frost
The only way out is through. We usually don't want to hear this particular bit of advice, but I have found that it is true.
I thought about it as I was out walking this morning, my legs in some pain. After struggling with a knee issue for the last couple of years, I've finally found a chiropractor who is helping. Turns out I have one leg shorter than the other, and now a lift in my right shoe to balance things out. And that, in turn, works muscles in my legs that haven't been used in ages.
So, pain. And, my legs just have to get used to it as I gradually build up my steps. The only way out is through.
Same thing is true, of course, in writing.
Stuck on your work in progress? The only way out is through the wilds of the manuscript.
Got another rejection? The only way out is to feel the discouragement and despair, get through it, and send it out again.
Don't know what to write? The only way out is through taking notes and free writing.
Books aren't selling? The only way out is through more marketing.
You get the idea.
This concept may seem the tiniest bit depressing, but I find it comforting. Nobody is going to come save me, I have to do it myself, whether that means putting another word on the page or taking another step.
What do you think? Does this concept resonate with you?
Photo by ngould.
Sandra Pawula
Oh yes! This idea does resonate for me right now. I like the specific examples you gave. We all do have to face the marketing aspect of our work in one way or another. I feel encouraged.
Charlotte Dixon
I'm glad you feel encouraged, Sandra!
D young
Resonates here as well! Everyone hits a “wall” in many aspects of life.
Thanks for this bit of advice and it indeed is an encouragement!
J.D.
That little path looks inviting, though I’m sure it runs smack into a cliff face at the top of that grade. On another note that little quote from Winston Churchill comes just as I have been reading about him online–actually more about his American born mother, Jennie. Very interesting family pot there. No additional stirring needed.
Sabra Bowers
Yes, it does. I’m over hearing only focus on the positive.
D young
And if we reflect on the Frost quote, I remember his poem “the road not taken”. How do we know unless we try? Maybe we see the ‘wall’, ie: difficulties involved in a certain path, so we evade the opportunity. That’s a silly way to live. Always cautioning on the ‘what iffs’. In some instances, this is ok. We can’t all live frivolously as Winston’s mother did. But there comes a time that taking chances is the only way to go, to grow, and become.
Charlotte Dixon
Glad it resonates for you as well!
Charlotte Dixon
I loved that image, too, it beckons to me. Hmm, interesting coincidence–I’m not familiar with Jenny Churchill. In truth, I’m not all that familiar with Winston, beyond the image we all have of him. Probably time to change that.
Charlotte Dixon
Ha! I’ve learned that you’ve got to feel the negative and not try to stuff it away–and only after that can you focus on the positive. Thanks for commenting!
Charlotte Dixon
Well said. I do know that because I tend to be a big picture person, I have had a tendency to be able to look down the path and see the “wall” and decide not to go there. I’ve gotten a lot better about it as I’ve grown older, though.
D young
As we experience walls and either tear them down or plow right thru, we tend to be less phased by their presence. If that’s aging in a nutshell, I can handle it!
D young
Google her. I did. Haha. I was curious. She was quite the lady.
D young
I’m trying to find gravity in the picture. Could that be part of your point? Hills and curves can trip us up. Keep going!
Charlotte Dixon
Will do!