It's the first Wednesday of the month and that means another installment of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.
Hosted by the Ninja Captain, himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, it's a forum for some of us aspiring writer types to air out what makes us, as said writers, insecure.
O.k, so, this month's entry is a tad bit 'tongue in cheek' and more than a bit outlandish. That said, though, it is something that I, sometimes, think about regarding my writing.
It's about success.
Yes, I know it's strange to be insecure about succeeding and this is going to sound more than a bit odd, but I always have this thought in the back of my mind about when I see myself "hitting it big".
I always get this picture of me coming up with this great story, selling it, making oodles of money, movie deals, etc.....and, then, my publisher (or whoever) wants me to travel in support of it. Not that making money is my motivation because we all know how that turns out...., but it would be nice, though.
Anyway, traveling would present a problem.
That problem being....I am deathly afraid of flying. I mean, I know it's a phobia, but I get nervous just going into an airport. I haven't been on a plane in over thirty years and have no desire to change that.
I mean, I know there are other methods of getting around...such as car, train, etc.....but, if asked to go overseas, I'd really be behind the proverbial eight ball.
Now, while this is an insecurity (to say the least), it's one I probably wouldn't mind having to get over. Maybe success could be a powerful motivator?
See? I told you it was silly.
Please check out the other good folks hopping around in the name of insecurity. You can find them all right here.
Oh, yeah, don't forget....tomorrow is the Heroes and Villians bloghop, hosted by Dani and Jackie. It looks to be a fun little hop and there's still time to sign up, so what are you waiting for??
32 comments:
I'm not deathly afraid to fly, I just hate it. Turbulence and all that.
With success does come fear. Mine was when my publisher asked for another book. I was like "What? I only wanted to do one book. What if I can't produce another?"
This post made me laugh because I could identify with the series of domino thoughts. It reminds me of the children's book, "If You Give A Mouse a Cookie", where one event leads to another and to another and in the end, it's best not to give that mouse the cookie!
I go on flights of fancies like that sometimes, starting from an improbable. :)
I don't think it's silly at all! I am so afraid of public speaking that I can almost have a panic attack just thinking about it. So if I start to think about conferences or book signings and all the other things successful authors are supposed to do, it's easy for me to freak out. I can totally relate to your fears with this.
And I'm not afraid of flying but, like Alex, I do hate it. I get motion sickness and turbulence is enough to kill me. Dramamine is my friend for sure.
I can relate - kind of...
I write under an alias. My fear is becoming successful and being discovered. That would be horrible!
Flying, is one of (many) phobias I suffer from. But I force myself to do it anyway. Consequently, I have never flown without throwing up. Sometimes, I hurl mid-flight, sometimes I make it off the plane and hurl throughout the airport. But rest assure, I can always count on the fact that if I am flying, at some point, chunks will fly too. I make a brilliant traveling companion. LOL
And I hope you do become rich and successful! I'd love nothing more than to see my friend's name up in lights. Why not dream about it? I think it's awesome.
I'm not keen on flying either, and the older I get the more I dislike it. In my youth I flew a lot... over seas to work... It didn't bother me then. I felt like it was just a means of transport....
The last time I flew was a few years ago and I did panic a bit. But what really helped was having my ear buds filled with great music and my computer to watch a movie. IT really HELPED. It kept my mind off all the mechanical "noises" in the plan that normally freak me...
WHEN the time comes Mark, there are ways to overcome this, like hypnosis and if that doesn't work DRUGS... lol. A heavy duty tranquilizer will certainly do the trick. LOL.
You will be so big, the publishers will know to book your tours by bus and boat only and since you da man, no one will argue :)
Don't worry about travelling, Mark, when you make it big, your publishers will find a way for you to travel without flying.
I bet if they wanted to fly you to England or somewhere for a big event you'd manage.
Interesting, Mark! But heh, you can take a road trip on the open road to wherever you need to go! I prefer driving too!!!
Hi, Mark,
As you know, we all have fears. I don't like being in high places as the ground seems to call me even when I'm not looking down.
Work towards your success, you'll have a plan re flying by the time you get past national exposure.
Rachna said what I think. Lets just suppose I wrote that book with all the perks that you were talking about. (You know I'm not interested in writing a book... this is just pretend) My book is so terrific, they can't pass it up, but they know it was written by an old woman who could not do the traveling. So do I have to do the travel? I can't and won't but that is OK so different arrangements are made.
Does that ease your mind?????
I think if your book is good enough to be made into a movie, the people won't mind whether you fly to them, as long as they still had the project! There are other ways of doing things.
Kevin Smith bought a tour bus or something. Or, maybe, he rents them. Anyway, he doesn't fly anymore after that whole thing of being kicked off that airplane.
Hey- if you made it big, you could afford a personal physician to knock you out for the entire flight. :P
Seriously, I'm sure you could work around it. (Fwiw, I'm not big on flying either. The older I get, the more I prefer to keep my feet on the ground.)
IWSG# 123, until Alex culls the list again. :)
Maybe you could have a clone, like Alex to help you out with the travelling bit!
Suzanne
IWSG co-host
Wow, afraid of flying. I wish that were my only reason for being afraid of success! We've already hashed over this one earlier... the fear of success I mean. Are we all on a theme here? You could always take the QE2 across that wide expanse. That's what I'd love to do someday...
Didn't mean to belittle your fear, it is so very real and I do understand. I've known many folks that have it, and other "phobias". Maybe you could use that as your carrot?
@Alex: Oh yeah, I can totally see that. It could really have a "what now?" effect. I used to suffer from bad motion sickness and would throw up just getting on a plane...then I'd sleep the entire trip...wake up, and puke again. It was miserable.
@Julie: Haha...flights of fancy are the only ones I'm not afraid of :)
@Julie: I used to be terrified of public speaking until I took Speech in college. Now, I'm o.k with it. Maybe I should try to take a pilot course and get over my fear of flying?
@Elsie: Hmmm...that would be an interesting conundrum, for sure.
@Jaybird: Yep, right there with you on the flying chunk syndrome, unfortunately...lol.
@Michael: You know, some music would probably help (a little) because I remember being afraid of not only the sensation of taking off/landing, but the noises as well. I'll have to keep that in mind for when I get famous :D
@Elizabeth: Haha, thank you and I can only hope :)
@Rachna: I sure hope so! :)
@Diane: Well...if it were England, Japan, or Australia I -would- be tempted..I won't lie :)
@Morgan: Road trips are the way to go...just longggg, though :)
@J.L: Very true...one step at a time, I guess!
@Manzanita: Well, it does a little bit...as long as I could get away with it. Besides, I'm sure if you wrote a book, it'd be a smash :)
@Laura: That is true and let's hope so :)
@Andrew: Oh yeah? I hadn't heard that. I remember his dustup over the seats and can't say I blame him for going that route.
@Melissa: LOL...you know what, that wouldn't be a bad idea!
@Suzanne: Haha..yes, maybe the Ninja Captain would let me use his Clone Machine! Thank you for co-hosting, as well :)
@Lisa: Oh no worries, I didn't take it that way. I realize it's only a phobia, but that doesn't really help me get over it. Though, a trip on the QE2 wouldn't hurt anything, either :D
Lots of people are afraid of flying. I've worked for an airline for 16 years and talked to many of them. I believe it goes in hand with being so high up in the sky that falling in a crash would be the worst feeling ever. When I was younger, I loved the feeling of being on a plane. Now, tho, not so much--it's just a means of getting from point A to B.
But I bet if you do find the success you hope for, you'd be willing to face your fear head on for your fans. ;)
I'm not afraid of flying, the first time I flew I was on my own just a domestic flight, then I went from London to Atlanta to Memphis to visit gracelands then on to Branson MO THAT WAS 10 YEARS ago since then have been back to the US four more times and countless trips to Spain.
I nay not be afraid to fly but there are other things I'm frightened of.
Yvonne,
I get where you're coming from. I'm not afraid of flying but the threat of having to talking to a bunch of strangers makes me extremely nervous.
I've seen a couple of posts about fear of success and writing today...you guys have all really got me thinking about that one...
You could go the John Madden route and only take bus trips, but that would pose a threat to your international promotion.
Oh, Mark, you make me laugh every time I visit. That big check for the movie deal should get you in first class with some champagne to dull the fear.
I don't find this silly at all actually. I have the same fear and have often thought the same thoughts.
It is just one of those bridges I hope to have to cross one day.
Once you make it big, Mark, you'll be able to afford a great hypnotist to get over that fear in no time! Writer’s Mark
I have to agree that flying just isn't natural for creatures without wings of their own and a few feathers; however, I love to travel to far places, so I'm forced to stifle all that fear and place my fate in the hands of engineers and pilots. I confess to lots of good luck charms and chants. :-)
I'm not crazy about flying either, Mark! That being said, if lots of $$$ was coming in, I might be persuaded to love it. Maybe we'd just have to take a few PM pills to knock our rears out! :D
Just take a boat. lol Or a cruise ship. You can go halfway, and get on another when it's time to come home. ;) I think they'd allow that...?
Not silly at all. Fears like that have tremendous power, and while we should all strive to conquer fears as we can, they still take a toll on us. I think fearing success is normal. There's the fear that we didn't really deserve it, that we took it away from someone who did, that everyone will discover we're a fraud, and then just the fear of being able to keep up with, keep the commitments of our success. I hope that you get the change to either overcome your fear, or find alternate ways of travel.
I haven't flown much, but if I did I have a feeling it would become a fear. Not very helpful, but if I'm ever touring in the same direction as you, we can distract each other by reading from our books... ahem, I mean BESTSELLING books :-)
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