Ever hear of Mark Gungor? He classifies personalities as having an emotional country of origin. According to him, you’re either from the country of Control, Perfect, Peace or Fun.
Since a citizen from the Land of Perfect seems fixated on getting life’s details to comply, you might think they’re from Control. But watch out. If you imply that, they’ll bust a gasket and declare, “I’m no zemming control freak!” If you say the same thing to an authentic Control Person, they’ll respond with glee, “Darn right! Now gimme that remote!”
I’m learning to borrow from each emotional culture. That way, I won’t stress about trying to get my story absolutely perfect before it’s published. Or stop writing because my environment isn’t peaceful enough. Each realm has benefits, so I’d encourage you to visit all four of them.
The Principality of Perfect: Writing demands a certain amount of precision. I love finding the right word. If someone’s a funny person, are they suspicious, peculiar, absurd, or hilarious? I was delighted (thrilled, overjoyed, and elated) when I first discovered my laptop’s built-in thesaurus. Best tool ever! Just don’t make the mistake of using a big word when a singularly non-loquacious and unpretentious linguistic expression will suffice.
The Fatherland of Fun: Want to include humor in your book (or your workplace)? There’s no need to resort to slapstick. Give each of your characters their own comedic range, then be consistent. In Stoneslinger, I’d originally made the hero a bit of a prankster, then realized it didn’t jive with his personality.
The Kingdom of Control: Fantasy authors are like professors with multiple degrees. You’ve just created a new world. Making it plausible requires you to delve into Biology, Geography and Geology, with their accompanying laws of Physics. You’re the Architect of the fantasy elements. There’s the Sociology of its culture, with at least a nod to its History. Linguistics will help to decide on its expressions, monikers, and place names. You’ll Engineer how it fits into a series. Then there’s the MBA degree to market it. After trying to master these, you might need your Psychologist on speed dial.
Find your personal rhythm of how all this fits into your schedule. Be realistic, but cut yourself some slack. Most importantly, don’t neglect to visit…
The Province of Peace. Write (or whatever you pursue) because you enjoy it. Focus on how much you’ve accomplished, not on how much you didn’t. Pace yourself. Look after your well-being. Celebrate your progress! Learn to let some things go. Talk to other writers. Cherish your fans. You only have to do your best, not measure up to anyone else’s. And have fun!
Your turn. What emotional country are you from?
Ciao for now,
Kai