Here in Humidity City, I rarely see kids out playing in the middle of a June day. Instead, they turn up in the evening, in that precious hour between the time the sun turns down its heat and mosquitoes' launch their hunt for fresh blood. This week, a couple of families have been teaching kids to ride two-wheeled bikes on the cul de sac where I live. (Look, Ma, no training wheels!)It's humbling and inspiring to see a kid take on a two-wheeler. The natural athletes imitate what they've seen, their gift for balance asserts itself, and they're off and riding within minutes.
The bike riders I most like to watch have average motor skills and above-average drive. They get the bike going but panic, wobble and fall. They restart, look back to make sure their mom or dad has a hand on the bike's rear fender, wobble and fall. They start again, misjudge speed or turn too sharply, and go down. These kids wear helmets and elbow- and knee pads, but a fall scrapes skin and pride. Some of these kids wipe away tears. Others pretend they LIKE to crash. Then they get on their bikes and try again. And again.
It's a pleasure to watch a natural athlete in action but is a bigger kick to see a child work, work, work for success. What's more, once the kids have mastered bike-riding, I can't see any difference between the naturals and the pluggers.
The takeaway for writers is that we don't have to be gifted to succeed. We do, however, have to fall and get back up again. Fall and get back up again.
Five-year-olds do it. We can, too.
17 comments:
Excellent!
Brandie
Great post, Pat! I recently heard that determination called grit. There are plenty of brilliant writers out there who don't have the grit to finish a book. There's no shortcut for the hard work!
LOVE IT, PAT!
I guess on that note I better pick that 2-wheeler up and get back on...
I kind of wish writers had helmets and knee pads for our muses though. :)
Have a great weekend!
Thanks, Brandie!
Aw, Lark, my inner five-year-old was hoping for a shortcut. Grit is a great word.
Haha, Sarah! Writers may not have helmets or knee pads, but we do have wine and chocolate.
Pat, I love your illustration!
I remember taking those first rides on my two wheeler and my father holding on until I gained my balance. I sure hope writing works that way. I feel a little rusty right now. I'm starting Fast Draft, which I think is crazy, but I want to write my first draft of novel 2. I just hope I don't fall down and fall on my A$$! LOL! Thanks by the way for the tip on Wednesday! :)
I remember learning and I remember teaching my children. My oldest was a daredevil and took off his training wheels (with help) and jumped on and went on his way. My youngest was always afraid of getting hurt, so she was cautious, but eventually, all three of my kids learned to ride a bike. this is a wonderful analogy about writing and about indie pubbing. just do it.
thanks Pat.
This is a really cool post.
I totally remember having stabiliser wheels on my bike and the feeling I had when they were removed was amazing. And writing's just like that too. Love the analogy. Of course there are times when we sail over the handle bars when an unexpected bump on the road surprises us!
Great post. We can all relate to the fear and the rush of learning to ride our bike AND to write our stories.
Great analogy, Pat.
When I was a kid, one of my uncles owned a bicycle shop, so my cousins and I always had classier bikes than we would have had without his family discounts. Sigh. Can't think of any way to get a discount on the effort involved in writing.
I really hate the Blogger spambot. It always takes me at least two tries to make out the "words."
Karen. you will fall--and you'll get up again. Good luck with Fast Draft. I'm the slowest writer on the planet, so you'll pass me in your first fifteen minutes.
Isn't it amazing that three kids from the same family would approach bike-riding differently, Louise?
Re indie publishing: I'm watching and learning from you.
Ack, Christine! I am not going to put on a helmet before I touch the keyboard. Luckily, some of us have hard heads.
Hi, Lynette! I still haven't been able to pull off a wheelie with a story, though.
It usually takes me two tries, too, Kay. (And when it sends me the Try Again message, I'm sure the bot is smirking.)
Love this post :) What I also think is a good lesson from kids learning to ride their bikes is their courage. They conquer their fear in order to go after something they really want.
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