Is it just me, or does that question bug you, too? It’s as if people expect some level of success that measures up to what they do, doesn’t it? And no matter what you do, someone else is doing what you can better or working just a little more than you, so it appears you are the one slacking.

I’ve let that thing you do define me for far too long. Nowadays, I focus on what I love to do and what I’m best suited for, you know? Reading this and my other posts, you know what the ‘thing’ is for me. Stories energize me and empower me. It may not look like it in our conversations, but I’m interested in hearing what you say. Your words, your sentences, and the syntax in which you speak intrigue me enough to become incorporated into the stories I will or have written. Take, for example, my life experiences. While not all of them are good, the nasty ones I remember like they have been forever stamped into my soul.

I remember so many piddly details that most people would skip right over, not because they weren’t paying attention, but because they don’t recognize their power in the grand scheme of their story. Or that the cigarette they are smoking is embedded with teeth marks because they are struggling with the lid of a jar of pickles. Those bite marks? That’s important, not because the tendril of smoke is stinging the eyes of the person twisting the lid in the wrong direction, but rather that it tells you a bit about them without saying a word. The description alone gives you everything you need to know.

Those small details make a story worth reading. It makes the characters come alive because they feel the same things you do – they are real. They feel honest. And, even with all their faults, they are believable.

Ask me again: What do I do? Please leave your comments below. Thanks!