Marcus Lopés

Author

Writing Life

Productivity Hack: Eliminate the Time-Suck

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What do you want to do more of? Write? Spend time with your family? Paint? There’s a solution: eliminate the time-suck.

The key to getting more done or doing more of what you love isn’t about managing time more efficiently. We can’t change that there are sixty minutes in an hour, 168 hours in a week, 52 weeks in a year…

What we can do is monitor how we spend our time. How many hours do you spend watching TV each day? Hooked on The Bachelor, The Walking Dead or The Voice? Or how often do you pick up your phone to check your social media accounts or e-mail? Take a look at the Screen Time report on your phone and find out. You better sit down first. [Read more…] about Productivity Hack: Eliminate the Time-Suck

Celebrate Your Wins

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Being an artist — writer, painter, sculptor, dancer — can be lonely. We spend lots of time alone creating, practicing our art. We battle resistance, procrastination and self-doubt as we work to bring our art into the world.

As artists, we persevere. We keep going because this is our calling, and we must heed the call.

Sometimes, though, when we’re focused on achieving a goal, we overlook the progress we’ve made. When I’m writing a novel, I don’t really think about the long hours I’ve put in, or how many days I’ve shown up to do the work. I’m so focused on the end goal — clicking ‘Publish’ on Amazon — that I forget about all the steps it took to get to that point. [Read more…] about Celebrate Your Wins

Nothing is Impossible

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“Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail.”

– Charles. F. Kettering

How many times have you let yourself be held hostage by the thoughts racing through your head? If you’re like me, too many. My inner critic shows up any time he can to tell me I’m a fool to dream, that my writing isn’t good enough, or that I’ll never ‘make it.’

But I’ve learned to trust my voice, my art, my calling. That means I’m showing up every day to work on my dream. So, I don’t give my inner critic any room to play. It’s too risky. Daring to move from where I am to where I want to be, my inner critic isn’t welcome. [Read more…] about Nothing is Impossible

Will You Heed the Call?

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In our household, my partner loves to watch Entertainment Tonight. We only have one TV, so he learns how so many people are heeding their calling (or at the very least who’s divorcing whom). But as soon as the credits start to roll, I flip the channel. Now he must ‘suffer’ through the last half of Murder, She Wrote. Compromise? Maybe. [Read more…] about Will You Heed the Call?

Your ‘Why’ Will Get You Through

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A couple of weeks ago, I received my editor’s critique of my latest manuscript. I’d been waiting for it, eager to get this particular book project moving again. As I digested all the comments — good and bad — I stalled. I didn’t know where or how to begin. Then I started second-guessing myself, that maybe this wasn’t as good of a story as I thought it was. Would anyone be interested in reading it? Then I hit rock bottom and thought … maybe, I should chuck it all.

Breathe

I’d let the drama from the page spill over into life. Taking a step back, I realized my editor was doing his job. As always, he hit on all the big-ticket items — character and plot development, structure, continuity, story arc, theme development, repetition and plot holes. Even before having the manuscript edited, I’d tried to address some issues that had been raised with regard to my previous books: Make the main character more likable. Give the reader a happier ending. Explain what motivates an action so that the reader isn’t blindsided by the reaction.

That would, no doubt, make the book more popular, accessible en masse.

The Problem

From the beginning, I knew that this book wasn’t going to fit snugly in any one genre, and that that might make it harder to market. The word on the street was that it needed a near-total rewrite, or it risked only receiving 1-star reviews. And there is room for improvement. My editor offered many great insights that will help make the story better.

Strangely, this time around his questions and comments had me wondering if making something ‘popular’ meant ‘dumbing-it-down’ to the level of a ten-year-old. I believe readers are smarter than that and deserve better. Or am I wrong?

Worse still, it felt like I was moving in the opposite direction of my dream instead of closer to it. The terrifying part? I wasn’t sure who’s story I’d be writing anymore — mine or someone else’s.

All I know at this point is that I must trust my art.

Resolve

I let myself wallow in self-pity for about a day, tempted to ditch it all — not just the book, but writing. All because a familiar question, when doubt reared its ugly head, poked at me: what’s the point?

I’d forgotten my why. Writing is why I’m here on earth, my purpose. And I’m doing it — challenging norms and breaking the rules — to, I hope, change the world, make it a better place … be a beacon of hope. That is my why to life, and I can’t imagine doing anything else.

We know that in this life, not everyone is going to like what we create and share with the world. But when you know your why — and are living it — it’s time to stop giving a f*ck about what other people think. Living your why, you’re not compromising your truth or your character. You’re being who you are. Stand up and take a bow.

This is your life, your mission.

Embrace it and your why.

Then roll up your sleeves and get to work.

I am.

Are you living your why? Click Reply or leave a comment in the section below. I’d love to hear from you!