Over the years, I have been told (thankfully, in warm tones) that I am cheeky or have āchutzpah.ā From what I understand, or maybe what I want to believe, cheekiness or chutzpah is more of a degree measurement, not necessarily good or bad by itself. Either means you are relatively unabashed in how you conduct yourself, which, of course, can be great when it allows you to do the right thing, even in the face of adversity, and simply terrible when it enables you to do something awful despite societal needs.
At any rate, where does this so-called nerve being somewhat described come from? Did it come from being the only freckle-faced, red-haired kid in most of the classes I was ever ināgiving up and leaning into my natural conspicuousness? (Probably.) Did it come from my home environment? (Likely.) Did it come from moving frequently and having to (but also getting to) start āoverā fully and often? (Definitely.)
Wherever it was then, though, now Iām a rounder, softer, less-red-haired lady who has built up her own āmobile homeā with her partner and kids. So, if I have chutzpah when it comes to what I choose to do and how I choose to do it, itās not because of external forces any longerāitās simply because I feel confident in my creative ability. And itās not because I woke up one day that way. Itās because I consciously practiced, practiced, practiced at being a creative problem-solver for as long as I can remember.
āThe most important tool the artist fashions through constant practice is the faith in his ability to produce miracles when they are needed.ā āMark Rothko
I hear (read, see) creators often lament their lack of confidence in their writing, and I hear them. I really do.
While Iāve been lucky enough to have worked in ācreative problem solvingā for quite a while now, writing for children was a new challenge with near-impossible odds when I first set out. What on Earth was I thinking, really?
What has turned the tide for me each time I have been in WAY over my head are my go-to friends: why, how, who, and what. (I first honed my writing chops through journalism; what can I say? Notice I didnāt include āwhenā because the answer is always nowāor worseā¦yesterdayāand I didnāt include āwhereā because I always start with the library or tHe InTeRwEbZ.)
Hereās how I use āwhy, how, who, and whatā to gain āmaybe even approaching chutzpah levelsā of confidence.
āWHY do I (emotionally) need to do this?ā
This is the most crucial question, honestly. Sometimes, you donāt, not reallyābut when you truly do, the answer becomes what drives you. So, why did I need to become a childrenās writer? Because I finally took my blinders off.
āHOW can I (eventually) master this new skill?ā
My answer: read extensively (including craft books); write extensively; revise extensively.
āWHO can I learn from?ā
āWHAT else can I do to improve my chances of success?ā
My answer: Besides all the āHOWā stuff, giving and receiving oodles of critique, being myself, letting myself enjoy the journey, getting a smartypants agent I gel with, and otherwise working my dump truck off.
Notice how these questions are all questions addressed to me. Iām not saying these should be your questionsāor, even if they wereāYOUR answers!
But breaking the āgetting into childrenās literatureā scary deep waters down into specific, moveable buckets helped me carry a lot of water for a long time. And these fundamental questions were how I first organized the buckets I eventually would need to fill. (SO MANY BUCKETS.) And, not to beat a metaphor to death, butā¦do you know what successfully carrying a ton of buckets does?
Doing the work brings real confidenceāearned confidence. Derring-do. Chutzpah. Moxie. Whatever they may call it, when others note it, they will need a special word for itābecause itās not the same-old, same-old they see every day.
Your ātaking it as a high complimentā friend,
Elayne
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