Monday, November 24, 2014

Perseverance, with an Example

Every writer, myself included, has given others some of the standard advice. Write what you know (or some version of that statement), and never give up. Keep going no matter the obstacles. Persevere, persevere, persevere. And every writer who has ever published anything will nod her head knowingly. On this wet and windy Monday morning I offer an example of that advice.

Dorothy Stephens is a freelance writer who published her first novel, for the YA audience, at the age of ninety. Someone who knows her has to tell you she's ninety because otherwise you wouldn't believe it. That aside, her novel, A Door Just Opened, is set in rural America in 1910. The story takes us into the life of thirteen-year-old Anna, who longs to escape the world of the farm and attend high school. But there is no money to send her to school, her mother needs her on the farm, and soon her older sister, Mary Ellen, brings a complication that threatens to sink the family. Based on a family story, the book was published by Fire and Ice, a young adult imprint of Melange Books, LLC.

I first met Dorothy through a friend, another writer, who steered me to Dorothy's memoir, Kwa Heri Means Goodbye: Memories of Kenya 1957-1959. The memoir was a finalist for the 1996 Bakeless Prize in Nonfiction, 1993, given by Bread Loaf Writers Conference. Dorothy's memoir is a reminder of how much the world has changed as well as how free we Americans once were when traveling abroad.

I'm writing about this here, today, not only because I admire Dorothy and enjoy her work but also as a reminder to me to look beyond immediate circumstances.

Over the last several weeks I have been dealing with a family illness, and as focused as I have been on this my mind has occasionally wandered into more selfish terrain, where I have the shocking, nearly debilitating thought that I will never write again, that I've lost my place in the pantheon of midlist writers, and, yes, that I'm drowning in melodrama.

I'm not terribly good at selfless acts, and I never fully ascribed to the idea that you "go where life takes you," as though I were in a canoe without a paddle--and without hands. But those moments pass, and at the end of it all, as things start to improve, I forget the selfish thoughts, congratulate the patient on such a strong recovery, and sit down at my desk, once again trying to figure out how to solve a murder I set up before I had a solution. Very short sighted of me, I know, but apparently typical.

Dorothy Stephens is a delightful person and an accomplished writer, and, at the very least, a sobering reminder of the importance of taking the long view and persevering all the way.




12 comments:

  1. My dear Susan, what a wonderful posting on your blog this morning about my books. Thank you for all those kind words. They provide much needed encouragement as I work away through a roadblock in the new novel I'm working on. I well know that feeling of thinking, when life throws unexpected crises in your path, that you are forever drained of all words and will never write again. I'm so sorry you've had to go through that recently due to a family illness, but glad you are back writing again like the true professional you are. It is my privilege to have crossed paths with you as writers and friends these past few years.

    About creating a mystery before you have a solution. I have a different but similar problem with this new novel: A long beginning and a long ending and a missing middle. The search for the middle story continues!

    Thank you again for starting my day with that great posting.
    Dorothy

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    1. Oh, that meddlesome middle! Writing would be so much easier without it. You have my sympathy, but I'm sure you'll get through it. Glad you enjoyed the post.

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  2. Susan,

    What a wonderful story! So inspiring.

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    1. Every time I feel like I'm losing my perspective, I think of Dorothy. It's a great story.

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  3. Thank you for introducing us to Dorothy--and some of your own fears as well, which as I think you know, attack us all.

    Keep solving those murders, and my hat is off to Dorothy.

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    1. Thanks for your comment, Jenny. As you know, none of this happens overnight. But we do get there, with perseverance and, I think, with humor.

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  4. Terrific post! Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I can relate to so much of what you said.
    Marja McGraw

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    1. Marja, as writers we go through so many of the same experiences, and yet we feel like we're all on our own. We need these reminders we're not alone.

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  5. Dorothy's story is indeed inspiring and I can relate to it because I am close to her age and my last novel is presently being edited by my mentor and muse.You will persevere, too,Susan. Many thanks for your blog.

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  6. Congratulations, Mary. And best wishes and good luck with your next novel.

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  7. Wonderful story, Susan. Thanks for sharing and congratulations to Dorothy,

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  8. Thanks, JR. I hope Dorothy is reading all the comments.

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