Jan26

What I Watched: American Idol

by CMPhillips on January 26th, 2012 at 9:17 am
Posted In: Uncategorized

What are we addicts supposed to say…My name is Connie and I’m addicted to reality television.

 American Idol is one of my favorites, but probably not for the reasons you think.

Yes, I’m a big music fan. And yes, I’m aware of all the criticism the show receives about how it’s not about real music, that it’s more about image and consumerism. It’s been accused of feeding the big pop-machine that is actually a chief cause of the death of true music.

I think all these detractors are missing the point.

For me anyway, American Idol is about chasing a dream. It’s about going up against the odds and pursuing what the heart wants.

And that is why I love watching these early episodes in a given season. For those contestants who have been hand-picked by the producers and judges we get those poignant back story videos. We hear the tales of those who are strong enough to face  to chase after the stars and pursue the dream even though they face overwhelming odds and so many people who say they are just not good enough.

These are the people who I hope to emulate. They give me hope. And for that, I’m one of their biggest fans.

Are you inspired by anything you see on reality TV?

 

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Jan24

Deciding To Move Forward

by CMPhillips on January 24th, 2012 at 10:14 am
Posted In: Life, Uncategorized

“ The thing that cowardice fears most is decision. ” –Soren Kierkegaard (1813–1855)

Facing difficult decisions is a pretty universal thing.  We all, on a daily basis, have to make some tough choices. And while it can be hard to evaluate if choice a or choice b is better, sometimes the hardest part of all is choosing to decide.

There are times when life puts huge obstacles in our way and the toughest decision is to choose not to let it put us on our butts.

We need to decide we’re not going to be paralyzed into indecision.

There are some aspect of life where taking chances and rolling the dice is advised, life isn’t going to come to you while you’re sitting in your lazy boy.

But when it comes to making decisions about the important things, well, that requires careful consideration. My only advice would be not to spend much time in consideration mode.  As Kierkegaard said,cowardice is best chased away with a decision.

 

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Jan17

The Little Things

by CMPhillips on January 17th, 2012 at 9:26 am
Posted In: Fiction, Life, Writing Life

What is that old adage about the Devil being in the details. Or maybe the one about taking time to smell the roses is a better analogy.

There are times when we tune into all the details naturally: when we our taking a big test, working on a big project for work, or doing are taxes. Certain tasks simply have “you really need to pay attention here” written all over them. But most of the time, it seems we are peddling through life at such a speed that we overlook the little things. The important things.

And I’m not talking about the scent of that rose-bush as it begins to bloom; that detail can touch you as you breeze by. I’m talking about the texture of the petals, the small tear in a leaf or the crack in the stem. These details take time and patience to notice.

As well as to write about.

Currently, I’m working on a first draft. It occurred to me during a power writing session that the main thing that is missing in a rough draft is the details: the very intricate nuances that take the prose from words on a page to a full-fledged story that can move the reader emotionally.

And what is it they say about writing what we know…or feel. I think the best way to learn how to incorporate these details is to learn how to experience them everyday.

 

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Jan12

Holding on to Hope

by CMPhillips on January 12th, 2012 at 10:37 am
Posted In: Life, Writing Life

“Hope never abandons you, you abandon it.”  ~George Weinberg

Don’t you wish hope was really a stone that you could pick up and put in your pocket? And then, when things felt hopeless, you could wrap your fingers oh-so-tight around the stone and keep believing in yourself? In your future?

Sometimes I think it’s hard to keep hoping because it’s not tangible. We can’t run our fingers over it. We can’t see it. And when life gets rough and other people tell us you can’t do that, you’re not good enough or you’re not smart enough; we don’t have physical proof they’re wrong.

We don’t have the magic rock to squeeze in our hand.

But that doesn’t make it any less real.

Like the Mark Weingberg quote implies, hope is always there. It never leaves, it is us who usually gives up on it.

As the clock ticks down to midnight on New Year’s Eve, hope surrounds so many of us as we let go of the previous year’s heartaches and make plans and set goals for the upcoming one. You can feel the charge in the air as if it were electricity. As the month of January progresses, when we fall back into the cycle of everyday life. Resolutions get broke. Hope fades.

My hope for you, reader, as this year progresses is that you are able to treat hope like a stone–not heavy and sinking–but something you can pick up, keep in your pocket, and hold on to.

How do you hold onto hope when it seems all is lost?

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Jan10

The Voices in My Head

by CMPhillips on January 10th, 2012 at 7:23 am
Posted In: Life, Writing Life

Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia.      ~E.L. Doctorow

 

I’ve been known to joke from time to time about how I can’t medicate the voices in my head. They are where all my stories come from. Though I say it in jest, there is a grain of truth to it.

But this isn’t a post about how my characters grow their own voice  as I plod my way through a first draft. No, this is a post that just defends “the voices” right to exist.

Several members in my writing group have received set backs early in the new year. The bad news has left some feeling hopeless and questioning their path to publication.  At a recent gathering this question came up: “When is it okay to just quit?”

I answered their questions with what I often tell myself when the urge to give up becomes so strong: It’ll be okay to walk away when you’re sure you can live with the voices in your head.

On a daily basis, those voices whisper plot points, characters secrets, and new story ideas in my ear. They are a blended part of my being, but a part that I couldn’t live without.

I’m human. There are times when I get frustrated by slow progress and the sting of rejection becomes overwhelming pain. Sometimes the pain becomes so all-consuming it feels like I may drown in it, but I know that even if I decided to let go of the dream, those voice never would.

For better or for worse, those voices put me on this path, and they are going to keep me here.

Can you quiet the voices in your head or do they get louder when you try to ignore them?

 

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