Month: May 2017

creativity

In the pause: People will tell you that you’re not a writer. Ignore them and write.

Christa Avampato

“There are always going to be skeptics. Prove them wrong.” ~Robert Kiyosaki

10 years ago this month, I made a pledge to write every day and it’s a pledge I’ve kept. Being a writer was the only thing I ever really wanted to be. I had a lot of people in my life who were very supportive of that path. But there were skeptics, some of them very loud. Once a close friend of mine told another close friend of mine that I was wasting my time trying to be a writer. I should just focus on my business career because that was something I was good at, and being a writer wasn’t. I was shocked and hurt. It stung. A lot. To be honest, it still stings all these years later. It shouldn’t, but it does.

On your path as a writer, wherever you might be right now, you may encounter similar people. And it may surprise you who those people turn out to be. Skepticism can really hurt, but it can also make you very strong. When my friend said that about me, I was upset and I decided right then and there that I was going to prove him wrong. I was going to keep writing every day and I was going to get good at it, very good at it.

And you know what I found? His opinion really didn’t have anything to do with my writing. I wasn’t writing for him. I was writing for the people I could help, and I was writing to bring myself joy. I love writing. I am intensely passionate about my craft, sharing my work, and inspiring others to write. It’s the work I’m meant to do.

The skeptics are always going to be there. Turn down the volume of their voices to zero. They aren’t for you and you aren’t for them. Send them on their way—in the opposite direction that you’re going. Move toward your own voice and your own writing.

 

creativity

In the pause: How every author writes a book

Christa Avampato

“When your why is big enough, you will find your how.” ~Les Brown

From the base of the mountain, the climb always looks long and difficult, even impossible. Every climb, no matter how tough, progresses the same way—one movement at a time. Every book ever written has been written the same way—one word at a time, by first time authors and master storytellers alike. When you sit down to write you are taking part in a great ritual that has been around since the beginning of human language. Let the strength of that ritual carry you.

There are plenty of reasons to not do the work. Our distractions are endless, and when we use up the distractions we have, we can always find or make new ones.

Do this: give yourself five minutes. Just get something down. Anything. See where it takes you. It doesn’t have to be great. It doesn’t even have to be good. It just has to be yours. One word at a time. That’s all you have to do right now.

creativity

In the pause: Why I love writing fantasy fiction books

Christa Avampato

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” ~Neil Gaiman, Coraline

“No one is too old for fairy tales.” ~Anonymous

The remarkable thing about fiction is that it can be such a help when trying to survive and thrive in the real world. Turn to any news source and you’ll see our country is in the midst of some bizarre twists and turns. Fiction can help us survive these kinds of circumstances by giving us a brief reprieve and it can help us thrive by showing us what’s possible. I wrote my book to help readers feel less alone, give them strength, and fortifying them with hope. Though it’s fantasy, it’s rooted in the very real circumstances of coping with loss, pursuing truth, and finding the will to love in the darkest of times.

Fiction teaches us that there are dragons everywhere. The good news is that there are warriors everywhere, too, in fiction and in the real world. Our protagonists in fiction inspire us to be the warriors the world needs.

 

creativity

In the pause: My author’s note for my book, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters

Christa Avampato

It took me some time to write the author’s note for my book and I decided to structure it as a letter to young adult readers. I wanted to tell them why I wrote this book for them and to let them know that their creativity and ideas are important to me, and to the world. Here it is. (https://emersonpage.com is under construction and coming soon!)

Dear young adult,

I wrote this book for you for many reasons. One of the biggest is that we don’t have enough women and girls at the center of young adult literature. So few books feature female protagonists, and there are almost no books in which a female protagonist takes control of her own life and destiny. As a young adult, I wanted someone to listen to me, to see me. Really listen to my ideas, my hopes, and my dreams, and care enough to understand how I saw the world. And I wanted someone to believe that I could make my dreams happen.

That hope brought Emerson Page into my imagination. A teenager who builds her own path through resilience, courage, and confidence, her touchstones are love and compassion. She’s strong and brave, and she cares about others—exactly the heroine I wish I had when I was her age. She’s the heroine you deserve to have now, and I’m so excited for you to meet her.

I want you to believe in the power of your creative spirit. It’s my greatest wish for you that you live the most beautiful lives you can imagine. Develop your mind, your heart, and your hands. They are the three most powerful tools you have to build a better world, one of your own design. You can’t always choose what happens to you. You can always choose your energy level, enthusiasm, and sense of hopefulness, and they will carry you through difficult times.

Life will undoubtedly hand you setbacks. When that happens, don’t give up. Make the setback mean something. Use it as fuel to work even harder. I always wanted to write a book and have it published. That has been one of my biggest dreams. I spent five years thinking about Emerson, writing down notes and ideas here and there. Then I spent two years writing her story, and another year pitching it and getting it through production.

Fourteen people rejected this book before I found my publisher. (And those are just the ones who bothered to send a rejection reply at all. Many others never even did that.) Don’t be afraid of rejection. Learn from it, but don’t let it stop you from moving forward. Your ideas have merit. Keep looking for the people who appreciate you, and don’t stop until you find them. You find what you look for. Believing is seeing. The book you hold in your hands right now is proof that dreams do come true so long as you don’t give up.

This book is also about community, and the power we have when we believe in ourselves and in others. Be good to each other. And when you see someone in crisis, don’t walk by. Help. You would want that help if the tables were turned, and someday they will be. Life is about give and take, and I’ve found that the more I give, the more it comes back to me.

More than anything, this book tells the story of a young woman finding her way in a world that is often confusing and frustrating. The same thing happens to us from time to time at every age. When that happens to me, I look to the stars. They remind me that we’re literally surrounded by miracles. That we are miracles. We are the stars and the stars are us, and we’re all connected.

When Jasper explains Emerson’s ancestry to her in the Library of Imagination, when Samuel sits with Max in the Crooked Willow Café, and when Nora finds Truman in the In-between, an adult is supporting and encouraging a young person who feels alone. No matter how old you are, I hope this book makes you feel less alone.

Whenever I feel down about the state of society, I remember that you will one day be in the driver’s seat, and that helps me to keep going. You are the hope and light of this world. I’m cheering you on and I’m rooting for you. I believe in your value and the value of your ideas. The world needs you.

I always welcome the chance to connect with readers; it’s one of the best things about being a writer. I look forward to the conversation.

Wishing you the most magical life you can imagine,
Christa

Email:
christa.avampato@gmail.com

Twitter:
https://www.twitter.com/iamemersonpage
https://www.twitter.com/christanyc

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChrista

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/iamemersonpage
https://www.instagram.com/christarosenyc

Websites:
https://www.emersonpage.com
https://christaavampato.com

Sign up for exclusive content, giveaways, and fun event news related to my book, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, that will be published November 1, 2017: https://goo.gl/forms/GwZKMm8gR3zhFVGJ2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

creativity

In the pause: Write and live like you’re running out of time—another lesson from Hamilton

Christa Avampato

“Why do you write like you’re running out of time?” ~Aaron Burr, “Non-Stop” from the musical Hamilton

Sometimes the best thing you can do with your neuroses is accept them and work within them. I think that might be the secret to life.

Hamilton has a way of teaching us so many lessons, about history, economics, and life. There are many ways to describe Alexander Hamilton and I think there is one that stands above all others—non-stop. Something in him knew his life would be short; he had seen so much loss at such a young age. He understood how fleeting life can be. He wrote and worked and loved and lived like he was running out of time because he was. We all are.

I’m not suggesting that this is the only way to live. I’m not even suggesting that it’s a good idea to focus so maniacally on what we’ve lost as Hamilton did. I just know that this is how my mind works. I see time ticking by and do what I can to make the most of it because I can’t make it slow down. This is what keeps me moving forward, especially in times of difficulty.

I’ve never been good at waiting and biding my time. No one I know would ever call me patient. I sit for 18 minutes a day meditating, and that’s about what I can handle. I don’t dwell on things I try that don’t work out—and that goes for baking a pie to landing a job and everything in between. I learn from my experiences and try something else. “Netflix and chill” is never going to be a phrase I embrace (and by that I mean the clean version, friends). I wish I could; I just can’t do it and be happy. And I like to be happy so I embrace my work, my friends, and my curiosity. Those are the things that matter to me.

We’ve just got this one life, and no one is ever going to find a way to manufacture more time. Time is the most equitable resource on Earth. We all get the same 24 hours. Let’s use them in ways that mean something to us. Hamilton certainly did.

creativity

In the pause: On this Mother’s Day

Christa Avampato

For mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, teachers, mentors, and friends who have played an important role in the lives of children—thank you. To those who are with us, those soon-to-be, those who have passed on, and those who have lost children they love. Happy Mother’s Day to all of you. By investing time and love into a child, you have built a better world. Whenever I feel down about the state of society, I remember that those who are young now will one day be in the driver’s seat. There is always hope, there is always light, so long as we dedicate time to children and help them grow up to live the most beautiful lives they can imagine.

creativity

In the pause: Introducing Emerson Page

Christa Avampato

I really tried to wait, but I just couldn’t contain my excitement. My fantastically talented friend, Bonnie, is doing the illustration of Emerson for the cover of my book and I am just blown away by it. Bonnie is doing another similar version as well and then I’ll turn both of them over to the graphic designer to blend into the cover design. I’ll share Bonnie’s additional sketch and the full cover design when they’re ready. In the meantime, I’d like to introduce you to Miss Emerson Page. She’s pleased to meet you. Thanks for taking this journey with me. And to Bonnie, thank you a million times over. You brought my dream to life, literally.

For information on giveaways, exclusive content, and fun events for Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, click here to sign up.

18426693_10158673624825072_1218801331_o18452715_10158673624510072_1353731907_o18426973_10158673624710072_503636_o

creativity

In the pause: The courage to go your own way – a lesson from Mitch Albom and Tuesdays with Morrie

Christa Avampato

“What if you just did it your own way? No rules, no right or wrong, just what you think is beautiful?” ~Sandra Magsamen, Living Artfully

There’s really something to be said for going your own way. I often talk about my Darden professor who warned us to “stay away from the boxes”: the ones people (will try to) put you in, the ones you put yourself in, and the ones you put others in.

I was reminded of that idea again today when I watched an interview with Mitch Albom.  He was a sports writer who wanted to write a book about his dying professor and the important lessons he was learning about life by visiting him. Publishers didn’t want the book. They told him to stick to sports writing. That’s what he was good at. That’s what he knew. And this book was too depressing. “No one will want to read that,” they told him.

Albom persisted because he wrote the book in hopes of being able to pay for Morrie’s medical bills. One publisher finally took it, several weeks before Morrie died. And it was a very slow build, not an instant best-seller. Fast forward 20 years: Tuesdays with Morrie is read all over the world. It’s sold over 15 million copies in 45 languages and is read by kids, seniors, and everyone in-between.

Albom has grown, too. He’s gone on to write novels, nonfiction books, and stage plays. On one of those now famous Tuesdays, Morrie asked Albom how he supported his community and Albom told him he wrote checks to charities. Morrie told him he could do more. And he has. Albom founded an orphanage in Haiti that he visits once a month and has 9 charities total that he runs. So much for all those publishers who told him to stick to sports writing. Thankfully for us, and the world, he didn’t listen to them. He refused to stay in that box.

Albom, and so many renaissance men and women around the world and throughout time, teach us that it’s okay to not be neatly defined. It’s okay to do a lot of things as long as they are meaningful to you. Look at the people who founded our country—not a single one of them was just one thing. Somewhere between then and now we got into this rut in our society of having one narrow focus for our careers and our lives. Let’s embrace the idea that we are complex, intricate, and multi-talented beings. Be proud of always growing in new directions. Let’s be all that we are.

creativity

In the pause: What would you tell your 13-year-old self?

Christa Avampato

Today I’m writing the Author’s Note for my book and I’m framing it as a letter to young adults to explain why I wrote the book. It’s akin to the idea of writing a letter to my younger self, specifically my 13-year-old self since my protagonist, Emerson Page, is 13 in the book. If you could give your 13-year-old self advice, what would you say?

creativity

In the pause: The editing process of my novel, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, is done

Christa Avampato

Great news from book land: the difficult job of editing is finally done and my novel has been sent to layout at the publisher. I am feeling so many things right now—relieved, grateful, excited, exhausted, and, if I’m really honest, a little sad and scared. Bringing Emerson to life over this last two and half years has been an amazing process. It’s been a long and winding road filled with blessing, disappoints, and learnings at every moment. Emerson isn’t just a character in a book to me. She lives and breathes and exists in the world, and I will miss traveling this particular road with her. It has been an honor and a challenge to tell this first part of her story, and to see the world through her eyes. What a journey!

And now a new one begins—getting the book into the hands of readers. If you’d like to get updates on giveaways, exclusive content, and fun events, add your email to my list at https://goo.gl/forms/nIZodlQQ993r4RXu1.