Platinum Author
The fourth core principle is balance and refers to the point of equilibrium between opposites such as yin and yang, being and doing, receiving and giving, stillness and action.
Each carries the seed of its opposite and perfect balance is found when you embrace the paradox that both can be simultaneously true! So there is a sense of release in every stretch, giving in the act of receiving and stillness at the core of action.
Confucius explained that "It is easy to go to extremes: it is hard to stand firm in the middle." Yet finding the Middle Way is one of the secrets to unlocking the greatest potential for achieving long term success as an author in the world.
Creative Balance
Creative balance means that you take care of your physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual well-being in addition to taking focused action to do your writing and connect with your audience. When you are in balance, you ask for help when you need it and take the initiative when it is time to do what you need to do.
Balance also enables you to apply a whole-mind approach to communicating with impact. The right brain aptitude for imagination and intuition combines harmoniously with the left brain ability for strategy and organization.
This balanced approach needs to be applied to all stages on the writer's journey.
With your writing, the power of right brain, yin energy enables you to come up with and develop your ideas. You then need the focus of left brain, yang energy to structure those ideas and hone the skills of your craft.
Building a successful author platform also requires balance. There are many ways you can reach out to your readers in the market today such as writing a blog, speaking, and connecting with people via social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
All of these activities involve a reflective and intuitive sense of what is right for you and your book alongside a proactive and strategic application of consistent action to turn your vision into reality.
So here's a quick and easy quiz so you can see how balanced you currently are as an aspiring or published author:
For each of the statements below, choose one of the following options: (a) Always (b) Regularly (c) Sometimes (d) Rarely (e) Never.
1. I make time and space for silence, stillness and just being in my life in order to connect with my true self and my authentic voice.
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)
2. I recharge my creative soul by engaging in a healthy mix of nurturing activities such as reading, listening to music, spending quality time alone, walking in nature...
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)
3. I turn up to do my writing and enjoy developing my skills at crafting language on the page.
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)
4. I am learning from the best sources of information available how publishing works, what actions I need to take and what options are available to me.
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)
5. I am building my author platform and engaging in a variety of activities to connect with my readers.
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)
Now review your scores. If you have mostly:
(a)s and (b)s - well done, you are totally on track!
(c)s and (d)s - you've made a good start but need to raise the bar further
(e)s - you need to review your motivation and enlist the guidance of a professional coach or join a group (online or offline) to turn your ideas into action.
As always, remember to enjoy the journey and that becomes all the more possible when you are beautifully balanced on your conscious and creative path (most of the time at least!)
About this Author
Julia McCutchen is the Founder & Creative Director of the International Association of Conscious & Creative Writers (IACCW) where writers discover their authentic voice - on the page and in the world. She offers FREE articles, audios and videos for writers at http://www.juliamccutchen.com. For a FREE 10 Point Action Plan to discover your authentic voice plus information on training and the benefits of joining the IACCW writer's community, visit http://www.iaccw.com
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