On February 18, I was cleared by my surgeon to begin putting weight on my left leg. However, what I’m allowed to do at present makes it clear that I can’t start walking on my own just yet. It’s going to be a process, beginning with weight bearing as tolerated on my left side while supporting myself with my walker. Eventually, with the help of PT, I’ll learn to walk heel-to-toe again, going from the aid of a walker to the use of a cane and ultimately to walking independently.
My intention is to be fully mobile with no limitations. The success of my surgery has made that outcome not only possible but a very real end goal. In about three months, I should be walking unaided. I was told it can take up to three months, but to remember that because everyone is different, it might take more time … or even less. However long it takes, the weeks and months ahead will take patience, perseverance, and my full commitment.
This reminds me of the process of writing a book—a process I’ve experienced as an author and as a writing coach.
The Path Forward
The Path ForwardWe start with an idea. Sometimes, we have a very clear story we want to tell, and at other times, we have an impulse to write, but what we want to write is fuzzy. For some, where we want to go isn’t always laid out in front of us—we only know we are ready to take the journey.
Some writers can see the story they plan to write and where they want to take their reader, including where the story will land. Others know what they want to write about but not where they plan to take their reader. The writing, like me learning to walk again, becomes the path forward, without a clear timeline or a clear sense of how each step along the way will look.
Sometimes, though, writers set deadlines for when they want (or need) to finish writing their book. Just as I’ve been told that my journey to walk again may take more or less time than projected, I tell writers almost the exact same thing. I almost never put an end date on the writing process. We may set a “soft deadline,” but I caution writers that everyone and every story is different. Their deadline may need to move as we go, or even be released completely. If that happens, it’s important that we give ourselves grace and remember that a story will take the time it needs to come into its fullest expression.
As hard as it may be to conceptualize, a book can take years to write, especially fiction and memoir. There is so much we learn about ourselves and our characters in the process of writing, and we need time and space for that discovery. Sometimes, our stories and the characters in them take us places we never imagined.
The Journey Becomes Your Story
In learning to walk again, I’ve been given authorization to begin with two physical therapy appointments per week. After a month, that frequency will be reevaluated. So far, this is as much as I know about working with a therapist. More will be revealed as I begin, taking into account who I am and where I’m starting from as it relates to my current strength, balance, and flexibility.
As a writing coach, when I work with a client, the path forward can also look different, depending on where we are beginning and the individual writer’s needs. Some writers want accountability along the way after we’ve worked together to get clear about the story they want to write. Other writers want to have their work reviewed and receive feedback as they go. Others want to keep the coaching process open-ended, reaching out for coaching at times when they get stuck or need to consider new directions. Sometimes clients want to talk through what is or isn’t working in their story or in their writing process. And sometimes, the way we work together changes as we go. Coaching is a fluid process.
Like my process moving forward to walk independently, the end goal to create a body of work, even a completed manuscript, is well worth the journey—no matter how long it takes. What’s needed for this endeavor is commitment, patience, and perseverance. Most of all, the path forward requires a vision of and belief in ourselves and our abilities, as well as a belief in the story we want to tell.
If you are interested in learning more about coaching and how it might look for us to work together, please contact me. I offer a complimentary discovery session to learn about each other and how I might best serve you.
Creating the Time & Space
Additionally, I have some specific, and very special, upcoming writing events that offer you the time and space to connect with and explore your writing. It is not necessary for you to have a clear “end goal” in mind—these are opportunities to see what bubbles up to the surface.
Sign up now, using the links below:
February Wisdom Holders Writing Circle: February 28, 2025, 1-3PM MST
March Wisdom Holders Writing Circle: March 28, 2025, 1-3PM MST
April Wisdom of Women Writing Retreat: April 27 – May 3, 2025
