Yesterday I was tagged on FaceBook for the best reason evvvv-VER!
It had nothing to do with memes, old pictures, or family and friend shenanigans. It came out of the blue and made my day.
In March I had the privilege to do a writing workshop and sit on a couple of panels at the Creative Ink Writer’s Festival. The weekend was a whirlwind filled with positive energy, learning, and mentoring. The FaceBook tag came almost two months after the Festival and expressed thanks and recognition for some of the presenters. Here’s what it said:
“I went to a lot of talks and heard some great tales of success and the road one travels; tricks of the trade, funny stories, sound advice, words of encouragement;… Here are some of the faces (she actually drew them…)who brought ideas, insight, planning and stellar presentation to the mix. Thanks! Time well spent.“
Here’s the picture of me she included in her blog. I feel so flattered.
http://www.heartshapedrawk.com
The reason this is so special to me is because the human experience is all about connecting and being ‘seen’. As writers we deliberately shut ourselves away in our rooms to create our own world filled with characters, stories, and drama. It’s not always easy to go against that innate need to hunker down and create to step outside of the comfort zone and give back.
That’s what all the volunteer presenters at Creative Ink do. They share their knowledge and hope that someone connects with what they’re saying. To actually be told (or tagged on FaceBook) is such a moment of surprising acknowledgement, I was taken aback. To me it means that my work is not in vane.
Remember to tell a writer/presenter that you learned from them and that you appreciate their time and effort. Believe me it’ll be well received.
