The Journey to Publication, Writing

Comparison vs Acceptance of Self

comparisonI saw this quote today, and it truly spoke to me. Likely because it’s something I’ve been thinking about lately, and because I honestly believe it’s true.

Here’s the thing: it’s no great secret that all of us are different. That means the path our life leads us on – personally and professionally – will naturally likewise be different. That’s part of what MAKES us different, and that’s a good thing. Really.

Why, then, would we look at someone else’s journey / successes / experiences and compare them to our own? We aren’t them. Our story isn’t theirs. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

What is wrong is when somehow that comparison is made, and you allow it to lessen the worth of your own story. Or, in your own pain, decide to lessen the value and joy someone else is experiencing.

Last night, I watched the second part of a bio on Frank Lloyd Wright. This was the second part of the bio, chronicling the latter portion of his life and career (part of The Masters series. This is the PBS link, though that’s not where I watched it.) Anyway, a large part of it dealt with how by the age of sixty or so, his career was considered essentially over. New architects from the International Modernist School (forgive me if I’ve mangled that) were gaining in popularity. Evidently, Mr. Wright was said to name flies after some of these new architects…just before he swatted them. He was publicly considered a has-been, and was also public in his denunciation of the new architects and style. Perhaps this was in part the reflection of the video, but it seemed as though he’d let comparison to others stymy his own creativity.

WrightquoteWhatever the case, one of the most inspiring parts was that this was not the last of Mr. Wright. Far from it. In his seventies, he re-booted his career in rather remarkable fashion. He is remembered now as a man who remained true to his own vision, a rebel, and truly someone who forever changed how people thought about architecture and the homes we live in.

Not a bad legacy for a guy killing his rivals in fly-form I’d say.

And how terrible if he had remained in that state, letting comparison and professional jealousy eat him from the inside. Think of the many beautiful master-works he never would have created.

Think of the master works YOU could create if you stopped looking at someone else’s story, comparing your journey to theirs, and instead, got on with your own work and your own journey. They are distinctly yours, and who knows: maybe someone else is comparing themselves to you. Now wouldn’t that be silly?

Your turn: what do you think? How do you move past comparison and get on with respecting and valuing your own journey, your own story?

The Journey to Publication, The Paranormal

Cover Reveal: VIKING WARRIOR RISING

Here I am, another week and another gorgeous cover that I get to help reveal!! This one is from my friend and GH sister Asa Maria Bradley, and besides a yummy cover, this is yet another book that is already on my TBR list! The Vikings are coming, and my, aren’t we lucky!

VikingWarriorRising-300Viking Warrior Rising
by Asa Maria Bradley
Release Date: 11/03/15
Sourcebooks Casablanca

Immortal Vikings are among us.

Leif Skarsganger and his elite band of immortal warriors have been charged to protect humanity from the evil Norse god Loki.

Under attack from Loki’s minions, Leif is shocked to encounter a dark-haired beauty who fights like a warrior herself. Wounded and feverish, the Viking kisses her, inadvertently triggering an ancient Norse bond. But when Naya Brisbane breaks away and disappears before the bond is completed, Leif’s warrior spirit goes berserk. If Leif doesn’t find her fast, he’s going to lose himself to permanent battle fury.

But Naya doesn’t want to be found…and he’ll do anything to find her. Because they’re both running out of time.

“Asa Maria Bradley creates a swoon-worthy hero who sizzles across the pages in this tale full of passion, blood, and destiny! Sexy, stubborn, and smart lovers clash in a tension-filled race to outwit science and control fate. Bradley is a new force to be reckoned with in the paranormal genre! Move over Highlanders…the Vikings are coming!”
– Rebecca Zanetti, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Dark Protector series

“Strong world-building, and a hero that will make you want a Viking of your very own!”
– Paige Tyler, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the X-Ops and SWAT series

“An intensely thrilling and unique romance that whisks the reader into the intricate, smart, and sexy world of these wickedly hot Viking warriors.”
– Sara Humphreys, award-winning author of Vampires Never Cry Wolf

Add to Goodreads List or pre-order from: Barnes & Noble or Amazon

About the Author
Asa-Maria-BradleyAsa Maria Bradley grew up in Sweden surrounded by archaeology and history steeped in Norse mythology, which inspired the immortal Vikings and Valkyries in her paranormal romances. She also writes romantic suspense and currently resides on a lake deep in the pine forests of the Pacific Northwest with a British husband and a rescue dog of indeterminate breed. Asa graduated from the Inland Northwest Center for Writers MFA program at Eastern Washington University with an MFA in creative writing and also holds a Master of Science in Medical Physics from University of Colorado. She’s a 2014 Golden Heart finalist and represented by Sarah E Younger at the Nancy Yost Literary Agency.

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