I sloshed through cold dew, barefoot, to the end of the dock.
"Thought you'd be up," Bruce said from the water.
I took a long sip of hot sugared Breakfast Blend, surveying the empty seat. "Looks like you could use a third."
Cade twisted the boat's steering wheel, lining up the Mastercraft with my pier--a perfectly executed parallel park, sleepy lake style. "You wanna come?"
It was a win-win, helping out two ski buddies, an impromptu summer morning slicing wake on ribbon smooth water, the best I'd seen all summer.
I'm a decent skier; an even better spotter.
The way I see it? It doesn't matter whether you're writing or critiquing, dune mountain climbing or skiing--you've got to have backup. Heck, you may have the most pimped out 5.7 liter V8 boat with a tower rack, non-factory glitter paint, and a badass O'Brien slalom named Betty-- Excuse me. I digress.
My point is, if you don't have a spotter, if you're working without a posse, you'll probably get to where you need, but it's not always pretty, not always safe. And not very smart.
Advice to Writers wrote well on his blog when he quoted West: "Writing is a solitary occupation. Family, friends, and society are the natural enemies of the writer. He must be alone, uninterrupted, and slightly savage if he is to sustain and complete an undertaking."
Truth AtoW, and it helps to turn off Tweetdeck and Facebook, but sometimes we need a nudge, a poke, a tweet or shout-out to affirm, "Yes, we're all in this together."
I spot you, you spot me.
Go out on a limb; spot someone, follow a newbie without being followed back.
You spot me, I spot you.
Read a manuscript for a friend. Befriend the new mom in the car pick-up line. We're all new somewhere, sometime--it's only the location that changes. Make a difference. Be that person, whether we're sharing air and breath or in a virtual world.
Are you ready?
