Our poster today is one more version of the old Keep Calm posters the UK used extensively during WWII. So can 'karma,' which means destiny or fate, finish your writing project? If only!
You are the only one who can start it, keep working on it, and finish it. Does that feel like a burden? It shouldn't if you have a passion for writing. Maybe during a moment here or there, but overall, writing should not feel like a heavy load to carry. If it begins to feel that way frequently, then it's time to take a step back and do some reassessing.
I was raised in the generation when parents told us 'you started it, you finish it.' My husband and I carried it through when raising our children. If they signed up for a sport or a group, we insisted they see it through til the end of the season. At that point, they could decide to quit or stay with it. I still think it was a good lesson despite the sour looks we got at times or the tears that flowed now and then.
How many unfinished stories, essays, articles, or poems are gathering dust in your files? Consider working on them again. Finish what you started. It's probably more fun to begin an entirely new writing project, but there is also satisfaction in finishing those others.
You're probably thinking that the reason those unfinished pieces are in the files being ignored is because you ran into a problem in trying to finish. I've got a middle-grade children's story that I've pulled out more than a couple times, but I cannot get it to gel the way I see it in my mind. Someday, I AM going to finish it and will feel mighty good when I do.
My friends can't complete that story for me. My family can't either. It's me who must find the solution and finish the story.
I do like the first part of the poster quote which says 'Keep calm.' Being a nervous wreck over getting a story right doesn't help. Staying calm, cool, and collected will get you much farther. I'd change today's quote to 'Keep calm and finish what you began.'
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