Monday, October 30, 2017

LET ‘ER RIP! GIVE IT ALL YOU GOT!

LET ‘ER RIP! GIVE IT ALL YOU GOT!


Everyone has moments they remember from childhood. Maybe it was lying in a pile of fresh fallen leaves, or a snow drift creating angels. Perhaps the memorable moment is a place in the safety of darkness, on a rainy day, crouched in a tent made of sheets. But it was a certain place and time in which the spirit soared  high, free to touch the sun, without being told you might get burned.

A LETTER TO MYSELF

Dear Turnip,

Do you remember falling into a pile of fresh fallen leaves?   You didn’t worry about the bugs or the musky dust. You raked the pile high.  
Did you notice the crisp fall air, or listen to the leaves showering from the trees like the rain?  Probably not. You were eight years old. You lay spread eagle on your back, swishing your arms and legs to the crackle of your leaf angel that would never be as distinct

as the snow angel you would make a few months later.
You gazed up into the thundering, billowing clouds, too young to wonder about boys ,or  who your friends would be. You imagined wild horses thundering across the endless storm filled heavens. Your world was small, just Mom, Dad and Punkin, who was the boss of you because she was a year older.  Oh yes, and Andy, Dad’s black lab, who went everywhere with you. No wonder Mom and Dad never worried.
They could have told you to cherish those days. Every moment. 
Today I strive to recreate that free style you enjoyed, running and falling, and crawling into the fragile crisp leaf caves. I remember the gift of freedom you thrived upon. The only rule, “Be home by dark.”
If Mom and Dad had warned, “Be careful,” you would have asked, “Of what?” I’m glad they didn’t instill that fear and you didn’t have to ask. Instead, you grabbed that   freedom and incorporated it into the confidence which I enjoy today. I am grateful fear never held you back.
When I am weary from my mind’s battle with doubts of who I am, and what I will become, I remember you, Turnip, and your eight year old undaunted spirit.  You are my hero.  Because of you I grew strong and confident with courage to face the future and its challenges.  So let ‘er rip. Give me all you got, world. And I will stand back up.
Love,
Me


Oh, and don’t forget!! Readers’ reviews  keep writers motivated.

USEFUL LINKS

SPORTSTER'S BLOG


Click on the link below to find out more about Judy's books.









Safe travels!
                   









Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Ellen Behr interviews Judy Howard


Your biographical note on your Amazon home page includes this quote from Henry David Thoreau: "How vain is it to sit down and write, when you have not stood up to live?"

At what point did you realize you needed to write about what you'd lived?
My husband passed away in August of 2004 and 3 months later I made my first solo trip in   my motorhome from California to Florida. People referred to me as an inspiration, that I gave them courage to tackle things they had been afraid to try.
Six years ago when I wrote my first book,   COAST TO COAST WITH A CAT AND A GHOST, I felt my story needed to be told. An author, Louis Urea said, “Sometimes, God tells you what to write.”  I believe it is the same for me. I intended the memoir to be somewhat of a travel log. Instead, it evolved into a story about  not just  dealing with the loss of a loved one, but also of  facing spousal abuse and  finding courage to stand up for myself  and  through the process, becoming  stronger  and greater than I ever dreamed of becoming.

Your books are listed as novels, but the main character shares your name. How much of the character's experiences in your books ("Coast to Coast with a Cat and a Ghost" and "Going Home with a Cat and a Ghost") mirrors your own life?
Coast To Coast With A Cat And A Ghost is definitely is the closest to a memoir. It was my first book and was well received, surprising me. So, as a new author, flying by the seat of her authorial sweat pants I wondered if I could make something up.
 And wa-la!  Going Home With A Cat And A Ghost was born. My sister called me egotistical because I didn’t want to lose the character, Judy Howard. If she worked in the first book, why not keep her?   I hadn’t planned a series but they say that’s how to sell book. Why not?  So how much is truth and how much is fiction?  I’ll leave that as part of the intrigue for the reader to ponder.

Why did you choose to write fiction rather than autobiography? Your life sounds bigger than fiction!
 I find writing fiction to be fun, filled with my dreams.  I can fly high on my fantasies, and unlike reality, I   control the ending.  The dark moments in a world of fiction may be difficult to write but never as painful as revealing   the reality of a personal truth, which didn’t turn out as I had hoped.
You are right, Ellen, Ellen, my life is as big as the Montana sky and thrilling as lightning in a thunderstorm. Compared to a time in my life when suicide became a tempting option, the life I live today is more fulfilling and magical than I ever imagined.  But the those deep potholes from which  I dragged myself out , and the long  detours I took wandered through are easier for this author to address  with distance , in a novel. Sometimes I do take the easy way but my usual mode of operation   is the hard way.
John F. Kennedy said, “We choose to go to the moon, not because it is easy, but because it is hard.”


When did you start RVing? Do you still travel by RV?  I began Rving solo in 2004. In January 2017, at the young age of 71, I rented my house out and now live full-time in my twenty-four foot   Winnebago which I have named, “The Big Story.”  I tow a Smart Car, appropriately named, “The Short Story.” 

Do you write in your RV?  
I had a custom desk built in my RV. It is my favorite place to write. There is nothing more inspirational than pounding the keyboard while the rain beats on the roof, or when the ocean washes incessantly onto the beach, or the wind whispers ideas to me through the trees. On beautiful days, my cat,  Sportster, will not stop howling until I move  out side  with my computer, It is there he can absorb the sights and smells of his surroundings and plot his next novel …or his  autobiography?  By the way, his nose is bent out of shape because no one yet has asked for an interview. I told him when he gets a couple more books out he will be taken more seriously as an author.  He just twitched his tail, spit and then took a nap.  
Do you write in your RV?  
I had a custom desk built in my RV. It is my favorite place to write. There is nothing more inspirational than pounding the keyboard while the rain beats on the roof, or when the ocean washes incessantly onto the beach, or the wind whispers ideas to me through the trees. On beautiful days, my cat,  Sportster, will not stop howling until I move  out side  with my computer, It is there he can absorb the sights and smells of his surroundings and plot his next novel …or his  autobiography?  By the way, his nose is bent out of shape because no one yet has asked for an interview. I told him when he gets a couple more books out he will be taken more seriously as an author.  He just twitched his tail, spit and then took a nap. 




Many of you have asked, "What's it like writing on the road?" This is my office, highlights from left to right. 
1. The muse. And famous author Sportster @Sportsterandme.com.
2. If you enlarge the photo you will see a timer. I'm trying out a new productivity strategy. 
3. Gifts from a couple of my favorite people who keep me charged up with believing in myself on a professional level. The painted rock. Thank you Deb Sanders. And my latest nonfiction book to insure that someday I will be climbing up on the stage to do my very own Ted Talk. Thank you Lynne MorganSpreen. 
4. Oh!! Don't overlook the most impressive feature, my picture window that changes scenes with the twist of the ignition and a step on the accelerator!!! Welcome to my office!

What inspires you most when you're traveling?  
Nature, nature and more nature! And always the people and their stories.
Every person should   be required to serve a two year tour, living with the locals of several of the small towns in every fly-over state.
  Using one of your books as an example, could you walk us through how you got the idea through the final version of the book? What was the toughest part of the process for you? Why?  
By the time I finished my first book, Coast To Coast With A Cat And A Ghost, I was hooked on writing. I figured anyone can write their own story, but I wondered, could I make something up? So I tackled the familiar Hallmark romance story, reuniting with the old high school boyfriend.  I mixed it up with some tragedy and intrigue and wrote, Going Home With A Cat And A Ghost.

Sportster the cat (featured in earlier books) has for some time narrated a blog. What inspired you to give him center stage as main character in "Activate Lion Mode"?
After writing MASADA'S MARINE, which was about a dog named Masada who becomes a service dog for an Iraq veteran with PTSD, I was emotionally exhausted. It took me two years to write and I considered laying down my pen and shutting off my computer. But writing is like a drug, and I couldn’t give it up. So I decide I would write something fun, ACTIVATE LION MODE.

"Activate Lion Mode" is the first in a new series. When can readers expect the second book? Does it have a title yet? Yes they certainly can. Sportster promises Activate Love Mode will be out mid 2018. I too will have an autobiographical novel out in 2018.

Will RVs continue to play a role in your books?
Until they pry my cold dead hands from the steering wheel.

What motivated you to write the Masada series, featuring a service dog for a PTSD-afflicted veteran?   
I discovered a nonprofit organization which raised puppies and then sent them to local prisons to be trained as service dogs for veterans.  The prisoners win, the dog wins and the veterans wins. What a great story!



Your experience as a pet groomer clearly has influenced your writing. Do you have any advice for others who are thinking of incorporating aspects of their professional life into their fiction?
Write about what you know even if your career seems ordinary to you. Your individual perspective   and passion will give inspiration and passion to a story that no one else can.

What have I not asked that you'd like to mention?
An issue which writers are rarely asked is, “Writing is hard, lonely and full of doubt. How do you keep going?” 
Perhaps the public believes we have a gift, a talent which drives us and that it is easy for us.   It is not. To be successful, we all have to do the work. Everyday.
Every day I study the craft, and its many divisions –– writing, character building, plot and structure and so on –– updating my knowledge of the constant changing world of marketing and social media and publishing –– and most of the time I do this alone.
So how do I keep going?  I give it away. Through my writing and inspirational seminars, I try to help writers on their journe,y and like magic, they help me. I keep going on, giving away the knowledge and support that others have lavished on me.
Oh, and don’t let me forget!! Readers’ reviews  keep us writers motivated.
USEFUL LINKS



Thanks,   And safe travels!







Wednesday, October 18, 2017

WHERE IS YOUR THERMOSTAT SET? TURN IT UP!

WHERE IS YOUR THERMOSTAT SET?
TURN IT UP!!




Gay Hendricks PhD, said in “The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level, “Each of us has an inner thermostat setting that determines how much love, success, and creativity we allow ourselves to enjoy. When we exceed our inner thermostat setting, we will often do something to sabotage ourselves, causing us to drop back into the old, familiar zone where we feel secure.”
My work goals.
          To become a Ted Talk speaker.
          To become a New York Times Best Selling author.
          To appear on the Steve Harvey Show.
Personal goals.
          To live out my life with the one I love.
          To see the Northern Lights.
          To be a keynote speaker at my high school.

All of these goals exceed my thermostat setting. Just writing them down causes discomfort, even reading them, and certainly making them public. Doubting, fearful voices drone like the disturbing hum from a bad speaker.

 I compare how I react to my desire to achieve these goals, to my
dream of driving a Mario Andretti race car on my 70th birthday. The feelings of inadequacy, of being undeserving and just plain terrified me and  almost froze me where I stood.
Regardless,  I went for the checkered flag. The thrill of surviving the risk was worth the price and became my trophy. I took it to the limit. I gave it my best shot.  I accomplished something I never believed I could do. And that made all the difference.


So, here is what to do.  
Break your project, idea, task, activity or goal into the largest possible number of sub-steps you can imagine. 

Let’s use the example,  becoming a Ted Talk speaker.


Write all the steps down.
 4. Join Toastmasters
1. Decide what you want to say
3. Decide on a title of your Toastmasters speech
2. Know why you want to say it.
5. Practice, practice, practice
6. Become active, volunteer in the venue you are passionate about


Prioritize the list.
1. Decide what you want to say
2. Know why you want to say it.
3. Decide on a title of your Toastmasters speech
4. Join Toastmasters
5. Practice, practice, practice
6. Become active, volunteer in the venue you are passionate about.

  Go back to the first item on your list. Fnd the smallest possible action you can take to advance it.
1. Decide what you want to say.
          a. Find your passion
          b. What would you like to change in the world?
          c.  Decide how bad do you want to say it?
          d. What are you willing to risk to reach your goal?
         

Aim for baby steps. Focus on small wins. 
The idea is to take even the smallest action towards the bigger goal.
Small baby steps are the key. The road to a worthy goal is long and daunting. No one whose name ranks in the top ten chart got there overnight.
Never mind the discomfort, it only proves you are exceeding your inner thermostat setting.   Keep our eye on those day-to-day baby steps.
You will be uncomfortable. Don’t let it sabotage you.
 Don’t give up.

Keep your heart on the prize.

Oh, and don’t let me forget!! Readers’ reviews  keep us writers motivated.

USEFUL LINKS

SPORTSTER'S BLOG

Click on the link below to find out more about Judy's books.






Safe travels!