Going Where the Path Leads

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.”

Confucious

It’s a cold and rainy day, so what better time to snuggle in for a good writing session? I’ve made myself a cozy warm green tea with ginger, and scooched down under a fuzzy blanket. So, I’m ready to go. Now what?

It’s been made clear to me lately that things don’t always go according to plan, either in real life or in writing. I had so many plans for this weekend. I had even made a dictatorial to do list full or bullet points and bravado of all the things I was going to accomplish this weekend. But then the thunderstorms came in, which inevitably means at least a day of debilitating headaches for me. (Oh, the life of living with chronic illness.) At times like that, it would be easy to feel sorry for myself and cry and whine about all the things I could do if I didn’t have a chronic illness, but that wouldn’t help me or anyone else for that matter. So, what’s the point? The only thing to do when life changes your planned course is to follow the path as it winds and twists and turns and falls out from under you.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m all about forging new paths, creating roads where none ever existed, slashing through forests of obstacles to reach your goals. But every now and then, the fight is more destructive to you than it is to the obstacles. So, in times like those, the only thing to do is become zen with your surroundings and let the path lead you wherever it will.

A Writing Obstacle

I am reminded of a writing obstacle that came up for me recently, one that possibly could have derailed my whole publishing project if I had chosen to fight it rather than following the path.

Not long after I found a publisher and editor, we realized that I had referenced in my novel a significant number or books and songs. I didn’t have a strong grasp of copyright law while I was originally writing the story, and I mistakenly thought if the authors/songwriters were no longer alive, then I was safe to use a line here or there from their works as long as I gave credit in the back of the book. That was certainly not the case.

Fight or Change Course?

So, I had a choice before me: I could cling to my story as it was written, including all book and song references, and pay a possibly exorbitant amount in licensing fees, OR I could rewrite certain sections, change the references or take them out completely. For the most part, you are safe to use works whose authors have been dead for 50 years or more, the cut off publication dates from 2019 being anything before 1924. (In 2020, it will be 1925, and so on.) Of course there are exceptions to those rules if copyrights have been renewed or purchased by others, or as in the case of Peter Pan, the copyright has been granted to a children’s hospital in England by Parliament until the end of time. So, what was I going to do?

I decided to let the path dictate my direction rather than tenaciously clinging to my original ideas. So, I went through and changed all of the books referenced by my characters, which was a considerable amount. Then it came to the songs. There were two songs which were integral to the story, were emotional touch stones for my characters, and connected several generations. What was I going to do about those? The meanings of the songs I had chosen and the feel of the music were important. So, what else was there to do, but to write my own songs?

A New Creative Opportunity

The lyrics came fairly easy, but then I thought, “I need to know what the song sounds like to be able to describe it.” I’ve also always been that person who when coming across lyrics to a song I don’t know in a book, was driven crazy by not knowing how it sounds. Have you ever seen lyrics in a book and wondered what the song really sounded like?

Then it occurred to me that we live in a world of technology and mixed media where text, video, pictures, and music interact with each other all the time. Think of Instagram posts and stories with music or memes, just to name a couple of examples.

So, I decided to write and produce some of the music to go along with A Light from the Ashes to help my readers fully immerse themselves in the world and the story. I consulted my niece Elisabeth Grace, my resident expert on Garage Band, then I just started playing around with it. I had never tried to make music with anything other than my piano and my own voice before, so this was all new territory. But what a wonderful experience it has been! I’ve learned new things, made something completely new that never would have existed without the original obstacle, and let my new path lead me where it would.

What About You?

Have there been times in your life where you were faced with a daunting obstacle? How did you face it or get around it?

The next time you are faced with an obstacle, either in life or in your creative world, ask yourself: Is it time to fight the obstacle or let the path lead me in a new direction? You may be surprised at the new world you find.

Check out the songs from A Light from the Ashes here or on Soundcloud.