A New Journey

I believe this weekend will go down as being the scariest and most exciting time in my life. I have publicly branded myself a writer. I have kept writing in a closet that I only entered when I felt no one was looking. I have shared the idea of writing books with very few for fear that I may never accomplish this life dream. A fear of failure is something I live with every day. Just attending Frontiers in Writing this weekend was one of the hardest decisions of my life because once I start, there's no turning back. I am opening the door for more failures and disappointments than successes. In a workshop at FiW presented by a brilliant author, Linda Rohrbough, she explained the psychological term cognitive dissonance: the uncomfortable tension that may or may not come from having two conflicting thoughts at the same time. If you are completely comfortable with what you are doing than you are not excelling.
Apparently I am ready for an abundance of cognitive dissonance as I step out of my safe, comfortable world. My stomach has knotted, a lump has set up camp in my throat, and an awkward feeling of insecurity has ached in my arms and legs all weekend. Here I am... naked to the world.