Philosophies for a Peaceful Life Part 1

*Worry is pointless and detrimental to your health.*

     There are two kinds of situations that call for worrying. The kind you can change and the kind you can't. If you find yourself in a worrisome situation that you can fix, then make a plan, take action, and allow yourself to stop worrying.
     If on the other hand, the situation is completely out of your control, CHILL OUT! If there's nothing you can do, there's nothing you can do. Worrying about it will only do you harm. ((It has been proven that excessive worrying releases cortisol into your blood stream. This harmful chemical causes aging, cancer, high blood pressure, increased risk of heart attack, and reduces the efficiency of your immune system.))

*Anger is a useless emotion*

     Anger is one of the most basic human emotions. It's hardwired into our brains by our biology. Fortunately for us, we have logic and reason on our side. Here's the thing. The world is full of lovely, kind, people who want nothing more than to sprinkle sunshine over the world.  The world is also full of jack-holes who take pleasure in ruining your day. If they ruin your day, they win. Don't let them win.
     Try to let rude, accusatory, self-entitled, and confrontational people pass into and out of your life without leaving negativity stains on your emotional carpet. Spray yourself down with mental scotch-guard. The best defense for this is pity. Horrible people have horrible lives. Maybe they have more money, better cars, a nicer house, a prettier wife, than you, but for some reason, they are unable to appreciate what they have. That is something to be pitied.
     Another defense is thankfulness. Be grateful that you didn't accidentally marry someone that negative. ((unless you did, then I'm really sorry)) Be grateful that person's unhappiness isn't YOUR unhappiness.

     Most of the time, the situations that anger us are not caused intentionally. They are caused by small, insensitive, and repeated slights from those we love. Instead of allowing these situations to cause familial discord, ignore them. Which will take you longer, fighting with your spouse about taking the garbage out, or taking it out yourself? I ask myself this. Would I rather have an evening full of yelling and hurtfulness, or a happy evening together? This works in reverse as well. If your spouse/roommate/parent asks you to do something that you don't really feel like doing, just get it done. It will make everyone happier in the long run.
    Another option is to just let their chore go undone. Perhaps they'll get to it eventually. Let people work within their own time frames. They are your spouse, not your employee.
     If someone hurts your feelings, try to remember, that they didn't do it intentionally. They probably didn't even realize they were being hurtful. Rather than take the offensive, consider first. Are you being reasonable? Are your hurt feelings really his/her fault or are you being oversensitive? Is it important enough to ruin the rest of your day over?

     Sometimes it is their fault. Sometimes it is a big deal. Just remember, once people start yelling, they stop listening. Once the yelling starts, it becomes a contest, and everybody likes to win.

Happy Birthday to Me

I turn 30 in an hour. I guess it's supposed to be a big deal but it doesn't feel like one. When my mom turned 30 she went out with a group of friends, got drunk,  and got a tattoo. I don't think I'll be going to that extreme. :)

I'm thinking cake with my family and writing.

Madden '12

Madden and ESPN are holding a vote to decide who is going to grace the cover of Madden 2012. They are down to two finalists. Michael Vick of the Eagles and Peyton Hillis from the Browns. I'm not really a football fan and I don't play Madden but I DETEST Michael Vick. I don't care how much money he donates or time he volunteers. I have no respect for someone who would hurt and kill animals the way he did. Taking sweet puppies and turning them into aggressive fighting dogs is twisted. So, boo for Michael Vick and everyone should go to

http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/feature/madden2012cover

and vote for Peyton Hillis.

Are writers allowed to take sick days?

I haven't written anything in 4 days. My allergy meds have been knocking me on my ass. Mostly I've been sniffling and sleeping. It makes me wonder something though. How do people who take 10 years to write a single book manage to keep the enthusiasm burning? For the past 3 days, perhaps because I'm not writing, ideas for other books keep popping into my head. I've been jotting them down as they come to me... about 3 a day... but how do I keep my internal obsession focused on the RIGHT idea. And once I do get to those other books, how do I reignite the excitement for them?

I hope this makes sense. :)

JimmieHammel.com

Is There Something Holding You Back?

When I was a kid, all I ever wanted to be was a writer. When I grew up, I convinced myself that it was a pipe dream and created more achievable goals. I went to college for years and changed my major 8 times. I had so many ideas for stories, books, screenplays, and I never even started one. I wrote for class. Often. If I compiled every essay, research paper, oral presentation, and writing assignment, I could create 2 full length, and boring novels. My diaries could make ten.

Why were the research papers easy, while the fiction was so hard? It's the same thing. Writing a blog, writing an essay, writing a novel. You give your audience what they want. Why is giving an analysis of the themes in Macbeth  easier than telling a story? Answer: it isn't. It was all in my head.

When I wanted to write fiction I would sit at my computer and NOT write. I would judge every line. I couldn't get through an entire paragraph without needing to reread the entire thing and pronounce myself useless. I expected perfection without experience.

I have learned a little in the past month. It doesn't need to be perfect, it just needs to get done. It's okay if my first draft is complete garbage because every edit will be better than the one before. You have to mine a lot of dirt to get diamonds. Giving myself permission to suck has freed me.

So, while I'm qualified to give advice about very little, I AM qualified to give advice about this: If this sounds familiar to you, anonymous reader, if you too have struggled with the passion to write but the inability to actually finish something, JUST WRITE. Write anything. Write badly. If the scene isn't coming to you, just describe what you can and move on. If you aren't sure what comes next, skip to a scene that you'll be able to write more easily. Give yourself permission to suck.

Now I have an hour before I need to leave for work, and I'm going to go write something terrible.  ;)

While I should have been working...

Here's what I was doing last night when I should have been working. The best book covers I've seen all have people in them, but there's no way I'd be able to work on something that complicated. There's a local artist I might try to commission for something more professional.

Chapter 1

Speaking of Product Descriptions...

This is the trial blurb that I have on my website, what do you think?




One thousand years in the future, an extraordinary woman will have to make a choice between losing her humanity or her life. Lythian Kennett is a vampire trapped in a world she despises. A fatal misstep draws her out of the shadows and into the fight of her life. Persued by a relentless adversary, one mistake could cost her not only her own life, but those of her companions as well. 

She never asked to be their leader. 

She never asked to be their savior. 


But then again, she never asked to be a vampire...