Beyond Thanksgiving: Writers Need Gratitude

About this time of year we find many articles about thankfulness and gratitude. Yet I contend writers need gratitude or thankfulness throughout the year and not just around Thanksgiving.

The world of writing is full of challenges. You craft a query letter or book proposal and fire it off to a editor who has asked for it—and then you hear nothing. You wonder if they got it or if they hated it or what happened? Then you get a letter from a reader complaining about the typos in your most recent book. Or your phone seems to be acting strange.

Let’s face it: every writer faces problems and things that they try which don't work—for many different reasons. In the midst of these situations there is one constant that the writer can control: your attitude. Do you lean into the challenges and work on something different. Or do you face the day with gratitude and thankfulness.

I’ve not always been a proponent of gratitude and looking at the glass as half full instead of half empty. As I have been in publishing many years, I’ve been working on my attitude and trying to center on gratitude every day.

A couple of months ago, Darren Hardy challenged listeners to his Darren Daily program that there were only 90 days until Thanksgiving. He suggested we keep a Thankful Journal about a friend or spouse. He asked us to write in that journal every day until Thanksgiving and then give it to the person on the holiday.

I’m not much of a journal keeper. I know many writers who journal but I've never developed this habit. At the encouragement of Darren Hardy, I tried this Thanks Journal and have been faithfully writing in it every day. The results have been fascinating to me. Every day I’ve focused on gratitude and something I appreciate then wrote into this journal. If nothing else, it has spun my thoughts and attitude in the direction of gratitude. In a few days, I’m going to this journal to the person. I plan to continue this pattern with a gratitude journal because I’ve found this process has been a significant help to my gratitude attitude.

Within the publishing world, there is much outside of the writer’s control. The one area you can control is your attitude. If you are grateful and thankful, that attitude will shine through to others. You will become someone who is attractive to others rather than someone always grumbling about this or that.

From my years in publishing, I’ve seen how the grumbler and complainers are perceived. The editors and agents may smile, treat you kindly and answer your complaints, but behind the scenes they are talking with their colleagues about how these complaints simply spread the poison to others. When these writers do not get encouraged to do another book, they wonder why. I would contend it comes down to attitude. Is your attitude attractive to others or repelling? If you are grumbling and repelling, then I encourage you to turn to gratitude and thankfulness and let it carry you all year long—not just on one day called Thanksgiving.

Let me know the steps you are taking in the comments below.

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Gratitude is important for writers every day. Read this article to learn the reasons.  (ClickToTweet)

Forever Grateful

It’s pretty remarkable that America has a national holiday called Thanksgiving Day where we count our blessings and remember people with thankful hearts. When it really comes right down to it, it shouldn’t take a national celebration to turn thankful.

When it comes to my writing life, it doesn’t take long for me to turn to my high school English teacher, David Smith. I don’t know what Mr. Smith recognized in my writing but he did see something—or maybe he dreamed that he spotted it. Whatever the case, Mr. Smith encouraged me to join the staff of the high school newspaper and do a bit of writing outside of school. I followed his suggestion and it took me on the path of journalism and my own writing career. 

About seventeen years ago, I decided to return to Mr. Smith, see if I could track down his address and write a sincere letter of gratitude. Unfortunately my effort was too late. I contacted someone in my old high school and learned that Mr. Smith had died a few years earlier. Then I asked about another English teacher but I learned that she had also died. 

Finally I asked about a speech teacher who was an influence on my writing. Almost every weekend throughout high school, I competed somewhere in the state in a speech meet—with this speech teacher guiding our team efforts. This speech coach had been in an accident but was still living. I managed to contact his wife and send a couple of my published books. I wrote this teacher and expressed my gratitude. A couple of years later, I learned that he also had died. 

Time is passing for each of us and it’s a shame not to express thankfulness throughout the year. Don’t store it up for one single day but be forever grateful. 

In Paul’s second letter to Timothy 3:1–5, he writes a list of horrible sins during the last days of the earth. One word is tucked into this list—ungrateful. Ingratitude is rampant in our world. Instead I want to walk to the beat of a different drum—and try and express my gratitude to others. It should be every day—rather than a once a year occasion. 

The Importance of Gratitude

Many people in the United States are kicking back today, enjoying a day off and the beginning of the summer season. It's a holiday called Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day to celebrate our freedom and honor the men and women who died in military service protecting our freedom. Many of us can think of a relative or a friend or an acquaintance who has died in the service of their country. Take a few minutes to pause and remember that person today and celebrate their sacrifice. It’s a step that I'm going to take in my own day.

More than a holiday event, also consider the importance of gratitude in your own life. How are you practicing it? Are you looking for ways to express gratitude and thanks? For me, I'm better at certain times of my life than others. Last week I called an editor friend and left a short message expressing my appreciation for something but then I took it an additional step. I physically wrote a brief thank you note and mailed it to the editor. My handwriting is a bit challenging to read (even my printing) but I'm certain she will note my appreciation.

How are you facing your writing work? With thankfulness or drudgery? Can you make an attitude adjustment and face it with gratitude? Instead of looking at the glass as half empty, look at it as half full. Instead of obstacles, ask for a new vision to see them as opportunities. This perspective combined with an attitude of gratitude will help you have joy in the midst of the deadlines.