The Olympics are long gone, which is a very good thing for my writing. The nights of endless gymnastics, swimming, beach volleyball, diving, and track may or may not have affected my daily word count (okay, it totally did), but at least a few sports failed to suck me in (I'm looking at you, fencing and water polo). However, there was an upshot to the abnormal amount of time I spent in front of my television--I found tremendous inspiration in every athlete out there. I also noticed similarities between what it takes to be an Olympian and an Olympic writer:
1) Train. Those athletes didn't make it to the Olympics by saying, "I know I have it in me to be an Olympian," and then find excuses about how they didn't have enough time, money, etc. to put in the hours. Using Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours rule (if you haven't read Outliers, you should), these athletes have logged well over 10K hours in training. Michael Phelps should have gills from how much time he's spent underwater. How does an Olympic writer train? Certainly not by saying they know they "have a book in them...someday." They write. Then they write some more. Then what do they do? You get the idea.
2) Be persistent. Not every athlete qualifies for the Olympics on their first try. Those that make it to the Olympics don't always get gold--or medal at all--their first time there. I don't think that's a bad thing, as it can be a powerful motivator. Track star, Allyson Felix, took the silver in the 200m in Beijing. From 2008 until the 2012 Games in London, she trained her ass off and focused on being the very best she could be...and got her gold. Most athletes don't medal, but at least they knew they did the best they could do and were good enough to get to the Olympics. The lesson for writers? Never give up. Keep trying and get better. If your first book doesn't land you an agent or a book deal, keep trying. If you self-publish and the book doesn't sell well, keep trying. Go back to step 1) and push yourself to be the best writer you can be.
3) Hope for a little luck. Yep, even in the Olympic, sometimes winning a medal involves a bit of luck and good timing. I watched a noted BMX racer (yes, I watched BMX too--I told you I watched a lot o' Olympics) go down because of a crash in front of him. One swimmer might hit the touch pad a bit harder than another and get the faster time. Everyone has times when they feel they are "in the groove" and other times when things don't go their way. With the Olympics, athletes have only that one moment, and they better hope they are in the groove. Though not as intense, there is timing and luck involved with publishing too. Even publishers can't always predict which books will be a hit. Sometimes it takes hitting the right publisher, or the right audience, with the right idea at the right time. You don't have control over this, but you do have control over steps 1), 2), and 4), which makes this step more likely to fall into place.
4) Be a good sport. Whether an athlete won gold, bronze, or even nothing at all, most of them carried themselves with grace, poise and humility. Oscar Pitorius, the double amputee track star from South Africa, didn't medal but stood out as an Olympic hero. McKayla Maroney demonstrated great humor over the attention she's received regarding her obvious disappointment at winning silver in the vault. If you haven't checked out the McKayla is Not Impressed page, it's cute (my fave pic is the one of her in the scene at the art museum in Ferris Bueller's Day Off). The lesson for writers? Whether you're a New York Times bestseller, or an aspiring writer trying to get out of the slushpile, treat others with respect and kindness. It doesn't cost anything to be a decent human being, plus I'm a big believer in karma, kismet, and various other k words.
Those are the things that jumped out at me, so I hope you can use those to go forth and become Olympic writers. Did you notice other similarities? Anyone else watch as much Olympics as I did? More importantly, did anyone out there watch water polo?
I watched a little water polo. I used to play in high school, so maybe that made it a little less boring to me?
ReplyDeleteThe only Olympic comparison I came up with relates to viewers. Some of those sports could have done with a little more explanation and background information. It would have made viewing them on TV a little more bearable. Fencing confuses me. The rules of Greco-Roman wrestling completely elude me. It reminds me of querying.
If you have a great story, but you can't sum it up in a few sentences and hook the reader, they're going to change the channel (or reject your query) and look for something they do understand quickly! For all I know, there is no more fascinating sport to watch than fencing, but because it wasn't presented well, I didn't bother watching.
I love the comparison of Greco-Roman wrestling to querying, and yes, I could see if you played water polo why it would interest you. They didn't even have that sport at my school, or fencing, so maybe part of it is the familiarity factor, but I would love to hear from someone who does think fencing is fascinating to watch. For now, I still prefer watching The Princess Bride for any fencing related entertainment. Thanks for weighing in. :)
DeleteI LOVED the fencing! Of course I do Viking sword-fighting, which is live steel combat, not that boffer stuff they do in the SCA. I found women's fencing much more exciting than the men's fencing. I didn't see any fencing with foil, only eppe & saber.
DeleteViking sword-fighting sounds awesome--I think they should have THAT in the Olympics!
DeleteI love your analogy- thanks for the writing suggestions and inspiration! I loved watching The Olympics-- from Opening Ceremony to Closing. In fact, being in those ceremonies relates to writing as well-- sometimes you get an opportunity to participate in something huge even if you do not have the specific talent most do....A recent graduate from the high school where I work (Edison, NJ!) performed in the Closing Ceremony with her Indian Dance Troupe. It's important to be humble and proud and take advantage of all opportunities--as a writer too!
ReplyDeleteI so agree with you about being humble--Usain Bolt could use a few lessons in that arena. Your comment about taking advantage of all opportunities is also super important, as you don't always know where something might lead. Thanks for your comment! :)
DeleteUsain Bolt is so arrogant, I really wanted someone to beat him. Jerk. Instead, I enjoyed the "surprise" champions--like the fellow from Guatemala who won a Silver in race-walking. The first ever Olympic medal for Guatemala. And who didn't love the South African runner who is a double-amputee? He didn't win, but wow! In the Three Day Eventing, the surprise winner in the first section (dressage) was a Japanese business man on a gorgeous Selle Francais mare. Everyone was stunned & I was happy for him. Unfortunately, he fell off during the second part (cross-country) so that was the end of his spectacular luck.
DeleteI'm SUCH an Olympics junkie! I get little writing--or anything else--done when the Olympics are going on. I've gotten smart & record it to my DVR, so I can fast forward through commercials & boring stuff like basketball (hate it!) badminton (!!) and "table tennis" aka ping pong. I mean--really? Although I got a kick out of the ping pong scandal. Heh! Of course I didn't see enough of the equestrian events, so I'm watching some of that "on demand." I love all the sports that I used to compete in: swimming (50 free, 100 back) diving, track & field (high jump & hurdles) weight lifting, plus of course fencing & archery. Oh & dressage, but I already mentioned equestrian. Just think--only 2 more years until the winter Olympics & I can blow off life for another 2 weeks!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't stop watching all of the swimming and track events either, and yeah, I need to write as much as possible in the next 2 years before the winter Olympics. ;)
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