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Catching Your Dream

The phrase, “Grabbing for the brass ring,” dates back to days when carousel riders enjoyed the challenge of reaching for a prize—a single brass ring. Individuals hoped for the timing of the rise and fall of their mechanical steeds to coincide with the dropping of the brass ring. Some carousel operators dropped a mix of steel rings along with the coveted brass ring. This tactic allowed more than one rider to experience the thrill of reaching out and catching a prize but only the rider grabbing the one-of-a-kind brass ring won a free ride.

Today the phrase evokes the image of grabbing for something that appears out of reach.

What is a Dream?
Writers are unique. Dreams drift through the unconscious mind while sleeping, and while awake imaginings brew stirred by ‘what if’ scenarios. Our dreams tie to the need to write The craving to put thoughts in print courses through our veins. It mingles with imagination, takes on form and definition, swirls with detail and waits to be released. Ideas give birth and stories yearn to be told.

Not every dream matures. Inklings come and go, and even good ideas get shelved. At times, sidetracked dreams stagnate in pools of procrastination. If you leave this situation unchecked, you’ll find your muse discouraged or overwhelmed. Allow this condition to fester, and you chance witnessing the death of a dream.

However, not every dream offers what we expected when we reach it. We may not recognize it immediately, just like the carousel riders grabbing for steel rings when what they hoped for was the brass ring. We walk away with the thrill of the experience, gain knowledge and move to get back on and ride again.

The approach of a new year stimulates even the weary muse to dare to dream again. Hope surges with the prospect of the proverbial clean slate. Muses love clean slates. They itch to fill them with characters, scenes, plots and subplots. A dream is born.

Now’s the time to make a plan to catch that dream and follow it into the New Year. The first step is to identify and sort your dreams.

Two meanings for the word dream help clarify the hunt:

A wild fancy or hope.
A condition or achievement that is longed for; an aspiration.

List of Dreams
A new year perches on the threshold of time just beyond the busyness of holiday shopping, and social and family gatherings piled atop responsibilities of everyday life. I suggest the addition of one small thing to your list of “Things to Do” while riding the hectic waves of life deluging end of the year activity.

Make a list of your dreams. Consider it the first piece in putting together your very own dream catcher.

The Canadian, North American Sioux and Ojibwa hung dream catchers above the bed to filter out bad dreams and thoughts. The tradition of the dream catcher can be traced back to a Sioux woman whose child was tortured by nightmares. She fashioned an eternal circle out of willow branches. Within the circle, she weaved a net of cotton threads known as the “net life.”

The dream catcher’s purpose is to help people enjoy their dreams and life. The good dreams found their way through the net. We can learn a lesson from them by fashioning a writers’ dream catcher to filter out excuses and feeling of discouragement when rejections outnumber acceptance letters or life circumstances change direction and deal time pilfering, energy robbing conditions. The net we fashion is the “writer’s net life.”

Your list of dreams is the first ingredient in weaving this net. You’ll need paper and pen or a small portable recorder. Keep them handy—in the car, on your desk or refrigerator and beside your bed. Don’t risk letting a dream slip by. Be prepared to snag it when it flickers into existence.

Identify It
Categorize your dreams in two columns. “A wild fancy” or “Achievement longed for.” This step offers perspective and serves as a guide when setting goals to meet fresh aspirations.

A wild fancy – these dreams dangle beyond our control. An example of a “wild fancy” would be: To have my novel published next year.

It’s exciting to reach for a ‘wild fancy’ as long as you keep in mind that you don’t have control over the outcome. Your part is to reach for it.

The Native American dream catcher caught bad dreams and allowed the good to flow through. For the writer’s dream catcher, realistic writing goals serve as part of the netting. These goals prevent excuses from robbing you of fulfillment while allowing “brass ring” dreams to flow through. Remember, the key word is realistic.

An achievement longed for – a tangible goal you can meet. Write the first draft of a novel. Time management, hard work and a set of realistic goals situate this dream in a reachable place. You have control.

Build Your Dream Catcher
Realistic goals take thought and planning. Setting too many goals spreads efforts thin fueling frustration and chancing the return of your muse to the pool of procrastination. What dream do you want to see fulfilled?

For an example:

Become a freelance writer

Once you select the dream, begin to fashion the web of your Dream Catcher. Think ahead for a year.

Netting ties directly to the dream. In the example above, “write everyday” would be a good place to start. This one goal forms a single strand in the dream catcher netting, but it’s not enough. One strand does not equal a net. Goals need to thread from and connect to your dream.

What else would help a writer achieve this goal? Here are some ideas:

Write every day
Research markets
Keep an “ideas” file
Query markets
Write filler articles
Send a single filler article to multiple non-competitive markets
Read possible submission publications
Track submissions
Network

Organize
Although each goal represents a single thread, stay focused on the dream itself. Last January, I wrote out six goals to accomplish this year. Here’s my list:

1. Three articles or short stories in print
2. Finish rough draft of Curse of the Ghost Stone
3. Collect 12 interviews for “Recollections”
4. Take three writing courses
5. Market Pumping Your Muse
6. Start up business - Team Spirit Critique and Editing

A lot changes in a year. Although these goals appeared realistic last January, the first one on my list would be categorized a “fancy.” On my part, I can write articles and short stories, but have no control over publication. My plan was to submit at least three pieces each month in hopes I could reach this goal. Submitting three pieces a month is a more realistic and attainable goal. It not only helped me reach but surpass my goal.

Flexibility
My second and third goals were realistic until my publisher requested my novel Windwalker. I planned to refine this manuscript in November if time allowed, but circumstances changed. The rearrangement of goals accommodated opportunity. Windwalker took precedence. I’ll return to the original goals in the future.

Soak the threads of your dream catcher web in flexibility. Allow room for the ebb and flow of life’s up and downs. Just like carousel riders hoped the rise and fall of their mechanical steeds would position them in the right place at the right time to grab the brass ring, writers need to be flexible enough to take hold of opportunities when offered.

Plan Ahead
My fourth goal, taking three writing courses, would take a large slice of my writing time. One class covered a span of six weeks. When setting goals, think of the big picture. I watched for courses and started in January. With my full schedule, I wanted to avoid taking more than one course at a time. I hoped to devote my attention to learning and growing from the experience and to avoid rushing through it with minimum effort.

It’s Not All Fun
I’ve talked to plenty of writers who prefer to stay invisible. As introverts, they’d rather remain the faceless creative fingers tapping out stories and articles on the other side of the computer screen. However, in today’s writing world, most authors must play a part in marketing their work. I fit this into my goals because I’m not a “natural.” Goals help to push past insecurities and complete aspects of projects I’d like to put off.

Give and Take
Along the path of dreams coming true, I’ve met many a creative soul willing to help me better my skills. Networking is another necessary strand to weave into your net. Take time to help others. Share the knowledge and experience you gain with others. My involvement in other writer’s lives led to the start of my own business. Another goal accomplished that not only allows me to help others but grows the network of people I know in the field.

Do It
Dare to dream. Now is the time to take steps to make dreams tangible. Write them down. Set a few goals targeting what you hope to accomplish in the New Year. Tie monthly and weekly goals to the target forming the web of your dream catcher to snag excuses that would keep you from seeing it to fulfillment. Reach for your dreams. If you don’t, you’ll never catch them.

About the Author
Author and freelance writer, Donna Sundblad, resides in Florida with her husband, Rick. Her creative writing book, Pumping Your Muse, is available in paper or ebook format. Check her website for more information at www.theinkslinger.net. Donna also edits for and co-owns Team Spirit Critique and Editing, LLC.