Hitting the books

I looked down at my phone in horror. I had charged it overnight, but the battery was dead. One minute The Rolling Stones were singing “I can’t get no satisfaction,” and the next I was listening to dead air. I wondered what had happened to Mick Jagger, but I didn’t have time to figure it out. I was running up a long hill as part of my preparation for my first marathon.

My music and the GPS on my phone were dead, but I still had my watch and knew how far I had to go. I considered calling it quits and just turning around, but I was barely into mile number 5 and I still had 13 miles to go. I was tired and fed up and considered the idea that running the marathon was a waste of time and maybe wasn’t to be. 

But I kept at it. 

I took one step, then another, and another. I focused on slowing down my breathing, maintaining good form, and getting to the finish line. I didn’t worry about the time of day or how much time I had been running. I just focused on the next step. Before I knew it, I was at the turn-around spot and soon back to the start. I somehow got into a zone and never came out of it until the end. The run turned out to be one of the best of the bunch.

Image by George Milton by Pexels.

Hitting the runner’s high

You spend months getting ready for a marathon, building up long run after long run until 26.2 miles feels second nature. Running a marathon is a lot like writing a book. Instead of running, you write a little bit each day until a few thoughts turn into a chapter and another and another and before you know it, a dream becomes a reality.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about that training run, because it reminds me of the writing process that two of my friends followed in telling their incredible stories: Vicki Atkinson and her tear-jerker memoir on her mother’s mental health and addiction issues, Surviving Sue, and Wynne Leon and her inspiring book on her relationship with father, Finding My Father’s Faith. The books couldn’t be more different, but the compelling stories pull you in and never let you go.

Image by Lum3n on Pexels.

Writer’s write

As many of you know, I interviewed Vicki and Wynne recently on The Heart of the Matter. I love that they started with a nugget of an idea, put their heads down, and found a way through the emotional ups and downs of the writing process to get their stories out into the world to help others.

I especially love the authenticity and vulnerability that they brought to their projects. They bare their souls in their writing. When you pick up their books, you can’t help but feel what they’re feeling and come away better for it.

Yes, I’m sure I’m being dramatic, but I tend to think that anytime someone writes a book is a magical thing. I suspect I feel this way because someday when I write my book, I’m going to be shouting it from the mountaintop to the end of time. I’ll be that annoying guy showing up uninvited to your front door, saying “Hey, did you know I wrote a book? Would you like to buy one or twenty of them? Did ya know they make nice Christmas presents? I’ll sign them. What do ya say?”

I just think a book is a lot like a training run, you put in the time, you fight through the self-doubts, and when you come out on the other side, you’ve accomplished a major feat.

A growing wish list of books

I’m a big fan of Vicki’s and Wynne’s blogs — Victoria Ponders and Surprised by Joy — and their two books. The great thing is that they are not the only ones. There are a ton of books — everything from memoirs to poetry to self-help to nonfiction and everything else in between — out right now by other WordPress bloggers that I want to read.

At the risk of missing a few, here’s a few of the creative endeavors (even music albums) by bloggers on my growing wish list. As you can tell, my wish list is rather lengthy:

I really hope I haven’t missed anyone. However, if I have, please include the title in the comment!

Like running, writing a book or any creative endeavor is a wonderful, crazy thing, a true labor of love, something to be cherished and celebrated. What book have you recently read or you can’t wait to read?