“Never say never, for if you live long enough, chances are you will not be able to abide by its restrictions. Never is a long, undependable time, and life is too full of rich possibilities to have restrictions placed upon it.” Gloria Swanson (US actress, 1899-1983) 

Inspiring quote, right? My good friend, Patrice, emailed this to me the day after I found out my book, Angel Vindicated, is a finalist in the RWA® RITA® contest for Best First Book, and it really resonated with me. 

I NEVER thought I’d actually final in this contest. I NEVER thought I’d see a small press/eBook final in this contest. But it happened and I realized that I’d carted around all that negative energy for nothing. Instead of allowing myself to hope and dream, I’d bottled up my chances and threw them out to sea. I didn’t even bother to watch the bottle disappear into the horizon. I closed my eyes and turned away. 

Thankfully that poor, neglected bottle came back with good news! Hello! 

I learned a lesson from this, and I gotta tell ya that I won’t be saying NEVER when I’m waiting for the winner to be announced at the conference in July. I’m going to shove myself outside my tiny, restricting box and say MAYBE. I’m going to accept that I’m entitled to the rich possibilities Ms. Swanson was speaking of, and I’m going to allow myself to hope—and, more importantly, to enjoy the journey.
Because that’s what life is about for a mama writer, right? Enjoying the journey. 

When was the last time you opened yourself up to the rich possibilities? Or restricted yourself from them?
Viola Estrella

www.violaestrella.com 

Angel Vindicated

 

 

 

Available in eBook and paperback from Cerridwen Press.

Also available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million.