{"id":119,"date":"2021-05-24T11:25:43","date_gmt":"2021-05-24T17:25:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/?p=119"},"modified":"2021-05-24T11:25:43","modified_gmt":"2021-05-24T17:25:43","slug":"tame-the-dragon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/tame-the-dragon\/","title":{"rendered":"Tame The Dragon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

by Gail Lowe<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am in the process of taming my dragon.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I write while it\u2019s sleeping or preoccupied with some other dragon-worthy pursuit.  But eventually, it pins its fiery gaze on my work and burns words to ash.  Rubbish, it snorts, slinking back into its cave, leaving me to wonder why I ever thought I could be a writer in the first place.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What my inner dragon doesn\u2019t realize is that these soul-searching moments are fortifying my resolve to face my biggest critic.  Myself.  If I can do that, then I will be better equipped to face any other critic I encounter on the road to Writerville.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m not against criticism.  Constructive feedback is essential to growth.  It\u2019s the criticism that comes from a place of limitation that\u2019s harmful.  The self-talk that keeps you small.  This is what needs to stop.  Or as my mom says:  If you can\u2019t say something helpful then zip it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do you zip those inner thoughts?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
\n

Know a Lie When You Hear It<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Know a Lie When You Hear It<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My dragon lies.  In fact, my dragon is a big fat liar!  Once I started to challenge the truth behind those thoughts, the emotional response fell away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redirect Your Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I became the observer of my thoughts.  As a result, most times I can stop the negative spiral and get to the truth.  My writing is better than it once was but less than what it will be.  I am a work in progress.  Choosing to focus on what I\u2019m doing right while keeping future goals in mind changed the game.  Now when my dragon throws a haughty breath in my direction the fire extinguisher is already primed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accept Uncertainty<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every time I step outside of my comfort zone I open myself up to internal resistance.  My dragon doesn\u2019t like uncertainty.  It prefers the comfort of its risk-free predictable cave, and it doesn\u2019t help that my dragon has a very long memory of things that didn\u2019t go exactly as planned.  It loves the \u201cI-told-you-so\u201d moments.  These are when the routine of writing keeps me grounded.  As long as I am doing the work, I feel like my compass is set.  Like a well-prepared Indiana Jones, pushing past self-imposed limits into the unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn the Power of the Shush<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When my dragon is particularly bossy, I pull the Dr. Evil shushing thing from Austin Powers.  My dragon roars.  I shush.  It tries again and I shush.  I start to think I\u2019m the funniest and most ridiculous person in the world and I laugh that dragon right out of my head.  Thank you Austin Powers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ultimately, what I want is a peaceful co-existence with my dragon.  Tame doesn\u2019t mean extinguished.  If it has something useful to say, then I will listen.  After all, every writer knows the value of a good critique partner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am in the process of taming my dragon. I write while it\u2019s sleeping or preoccupied with some other dragon-worthy pursuit. But eventually, it pins its fiery gaze on my work and burns words to ash. Rubbish, it snorts, slinking back into its cave, leaving me to wonder why I ever thought I could be a writer in the first place. – Gail Lowe<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"TAME THE DRAGON\nby Gail Lowe\n\nI am in the process of taming my dragon ... it pins its fiery gaze on my work and burns words to ash.\n\n#GailLowe #TCLA #AmWriting #SoulSearching #BiggestCritic #ConstructiveFeedback #Critique #CritiquePartner #Shush","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[31,18,3],"tags":[41,39,6,40,7,38],"class_list":["post-119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-inspiration","category-story","category-writing","tag-criticism","tag-encouragement","tag-gail-lowe","tag-insight","tag-the-corner-lot-authors","tag-writing-process","post-preview"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":85,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/perfection-excuse\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":0},"title":"The Perfect Excuse","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"March 21, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I thought I wanted perfect. I chased it with a list. Until I changed perspective. And found what I had missed. Perfection is the ultimate goal. That's the incoming message, isn't it? - Gail Lowe","rel":"","context":"In "Fear"","block_context":{"text":"Fear","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/category\/insight\/fear\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/jonathan-hoxmark-6VWTC9sWu8M-unsplash.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/jonathan-hoxmark-6VWTC9sWu8M-unsplash.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/jonathan-hoxmark-6VWTC9sWu8M-unsplash.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":133,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/cope-its-good-for-you\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":1},"title":"Cope, It\u2019s Good For You","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"June 28, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"This is my favourite Covidism: A person will come out of lockdown as a hunk, a chunk, a drunk or a monk. The first time I heard it, I laughed. The second time, I put my drink down long enough to step on the scale. Hmm, better rethink my coping\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Insight"","block_context":{"text":"Insight","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/category\/insight\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Blog_Gail_Cope3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/writing-contest\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":2},"title":"Writing Contest","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"August 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"by\u00a0Gail Lowe I hope July treated you well.\u00a0 For me, it was a month of firsts.\u00a0 I entered my first short-story contest.\u00a0 Then I got my first rejection notice. The experience was a wild combination of excitement and disappointment that taught me a few things about my writerly self. Not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Writing"","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Gail_August2020.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":29,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/the-thing-about-stars\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":3},"title":"The Thing About Stars","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"December 16, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Winter Solstice, or Yule, will soon be upon us. December 21st will be a night of fire pushing back the cold. Flames dancing up from the fire pit to cast shadows over sleeping trees and snow-covered grass. Gravity-defying sparks breaking free from flame in a doomed attempt to join\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Writing"","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Gail_Dec2020.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Gail_Dec2020.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Gail_Dec2020.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Gail_Dec2020.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/writing-can-be-murder\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":4},"title":"Writing Can Be Murder","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"April 27, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"by Gail Lowe \u201cHow to Commit the Perfect Murder was an old game in heaven. I always chose the icicle: the weapon melts away.\u201d\u2013 \u00a0Alice Sebold,\u00a0The Lovely Bones I\u2019m figuring out how to commit murder.\u00a0 The method and weapon still elude me although I have decided on the location and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Writing"","block_context":{"text":"Writing","link":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/category\/writing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"photo of a black bird","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/pexels-photo-3927600.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23,"url":"https:\/\/thecornerlotauthors.com\/GailLowe\/it-starts-with-an-idea\/","url_meta":{"origin":119,"position":5},"title":"It Starts with an Idea","author":"Gail Lowe","date":"June 8, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"by Gail Lowe Sometimes it drops into your mind complete with ribbon and bow. Sometimes you get a picture, a few words, and your mind has to chase the story down one sentence at a time. It doesn\u2019t matter how it arrives. It\u2019s what you do with it. 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