Tuesday, December 21, 2010

The Grinch Who Stole Confidence

My confidence sparkled beneath my tree
The words kept me going, and helped me believe

It was wrapped up all pretty and tied with a bow
"You can do it, You're Awesome, Yay, Way to Go!"

Faith in my writing soon disappeared
Replaced with belief that my words were all weird

The chatter grew louder, it banged in my head
The Grinch stole my pluck, left my writing for dead

"Back away, Grinch!" I shouted with verve
"You can't take my faith, nor my courage and nerve!"

"I'll fall, to be sure, that's part of the game.
What you're doing is cruel, and your costume is lame."

He slipped up my chimney, scurried out like a mouse
I kept his cute doggie, cuz hey, it's my house

Words peeked through his bag, dumped without care
"You'd better not quit. No, don't you dare."

And so writer friends, shouldn't we know?
Hang tight to your confidence, don't let it go!

Has the Grinch ever stolen your confidence?
How did you snatch it back from the green beast?


40 comments:

  1. Ha, ha. That's pretty good Julie. Good thing about saving the dog. I've always felt so sorry for him.

    Yes, we are going to keep the Grinch away and move forward to a fabulous 2011. :)

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  2. This is so clever, Julie! The Grinch is my favorite Christmas movie (the animated one with Boris Karloff). :)

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  3. Oh that Grinch!!! Yes~he steals it often. I get it back by eating a lot of chocolate and letting it run its course.

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  4. Aw, that's awesome! And I agree with Laura re: the animated movie. I refuse to see the Jim Carrey one.

    Anyhow, sometimes the Grinch steals it but I just steal it back when he goes to the next writer's house.

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  5. Oh yeah I just beat the grinch back with a new novella, I am changing things up and setting myself a deadline. I also have CPs waiting for my work so I cant disappoint them.
    Cool one Julie.
    Merry Christmas

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  6. Julie,
    That was laugh-out-loud awesome!!
    Patti

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  7. Brilliant Julie! I have a Good King Wenceslas one for Friday.

    The Grinch hasn't stolen my confidence but he might have pinched some time off me *holidaysaretough*

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  8. This is great, Julie! Very clever...:) Yes, the Grinch likes to steal my confidence. I'm finally learning to write through it and I'll eventually get it back.

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  9. So cute! Yes, for no apparent reason other than maybe the wind changing direction, my confidence will go back and forth between high and low. I try and ignore it how I feel. :)

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  10. He definitely has, of late in fact. I was becoming very discouraged with the submission process until I read a post by Elana, you know the one. ;) She completely inspired me to get back out there and not give up. And hours after I sent out a submission I received a partial request!

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  11. I love this! Yes, I've definitely wavered in my confidence, especially lately as I've gotten back into writing and blogging. I hope the more I do both, the easier it will be to keep the Grinch away :)

    Happy Holidays!

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  12. Now that is awesome! Fortunately my Grinch never gets too far - I tackle him before he gets out of the house.

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  13. Julie, I love this poem!

    When my confidence is hiding I take gentle, baby steps to persuade it to come out. Treats are always good to coax it back too. :)

    Happy Holidays!

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  14. I would have a ton of confidence if I could write something cute like this!!Merry Christmas!

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  15. LOVED this! Great job. Yeah, after my first draft of my last novel I let someone read it. I know better than to do that EVER with a first draft, but I was naive then. It took me six months to cauterize that wound, but I'm a much better writer for it, so I'm glad I did it now. It forced me to take a giant step forward in my writing that otherwise might have taken an additional decade of learning. Still - I won't do that again. LOL

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  16. Your poem was gripping
    While gray skies are dripping.
    We all should take note
    And keep confidence afloat.
    Thank you for your inspriation, Julie.

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  17. I'm working on it, but that Grinch is a sneaky bugger.

    I get my confidence back by reading material I have written a year ago, and see the progress I have made. This helps me see where I could be a year from now.
    Thx

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  18. aahhh. I love this! and yes...I've felt like my writing's been weird...and lost the confidence just like you said.☺☺

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  19. This was great! Thanks for sharing it.

    Merry Christmas!

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  20. That was so much fun - I absolutely love the poem! Yes, the Grinch steals my confidence from time to time. I guess I just keep going because I love writing too much to live without it.

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  21. You scored. You got to keep your confidence and a new pup!

    Very fun.

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  22. Julie..I grabbed my confidence back from my Grinch.

    Wish you a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year.

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  23. Love it!

    Even when you've been published, your confidence can be shaken - but dang, when we write with abandon and kick the negative crap under the rug, it's the best danged thing ever :D

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  24. ROFL... great poem! Kick that old Grinch out and keep his dog (who was always my favorite character anyway). =o)

    I think the confidence stealing Grinch lives in my back closet between the Easter decorations and the bag of wrapping paper bits too big to throw out and too small to use. Usually I do a pretty good job of keeping him back there. Every time I think I have that darn door locked, though, he sneaks out and ambushes me. It's an ongoing battle.

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  25. Thanks for the laugh Julie - this was adorable. Yes, I think we're all prone to this battle and the grinch can sneak up on us at the moment we least expect him.

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  26. One word: Excellent! Merry Christmas to you and yours. :)

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  27. Yes, the Grinch steals my confidence often. But I'm keeping that little dog too!!

    Have a very Merry Christmas!!

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  28. Love the poem!

    I keep this posted on my computer. It reminds me to ignore the negative little voices that try to sideline me: "Self-consciousness is the enemy of all art, be it acting, writing, painting, or living itself, which is the greatest art of all." -Ray Bradbury

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  29. i love this, julie -- and it came at the right time for me today. been feeling this way with my writing the past couple of days -- but these same couple of days i've been getting a lot of words written, so i'll choose to concentrate on that instead!

    best wishes to you and your family for a very happy holiday and blessings for a joyous and peaceful new year~



    amanda

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  30. Fantastic and fun. Great work. Happy Holidays.

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  31. Awesome!!! Proving the Grinch has NO power over you!! :)

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  32. That darn grinch nibbles away at my confidence all year long - but he never takes out such a big chunk I can't keep at it. Happy holiday, Julie and thanks for your fabulous blog!

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  33. Yeah! Gotta watch that Grinch. He's a mean one, Mr. Grinch...Stink, STANK, STUNK!!! lol

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  34. Hi Julie .. I can certainly feel he must be around many authors and writers .. but he slinks off to other normal members of society and knocks them back - the trick is he can't keep it up all the time .. life will come through, happiness will abound, green slimy Grinch must be freezing right now! Have a great Christmas and a merry time - that will keep Mr Grinch away .. love the poem .. cheers Hilary

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  35. That big bad green Grinch! Nope, don't let him steal your confidence as it's not his, it's yours.

    Have a wonderful Christmas! :)

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  36. OH JULIE I think this is my favorite post EVER!! I love it! You are so talented.

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  37. love this post, Julie!! Thanks for brightening my day.

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  38. Love love love the poem. So fun!

    Merry Christmas!

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  39. Loved that post! So creative!

    Yes, the Grinch steals my confidence way more than he should. And too often I react by putting my writing on hold, rather than reacting like those Whos. Thanks for the reminder. :)

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