The Right Word At The Right Time

by Maggie Marr

The right word at the right time?  How about, yes.  As writers, yes seems to be the word we strive to hear.

Yes, that word is perfect.

Yes, that sentence is ideal.

Yes, the chapter has tension.

Yes, the characters are well-rounded.

Yes, I will represent your book.

Yes, we want to buy your book.

Yes, I loved your book.

Yes, you are a writer.

We spend most of our careers struggling to get to that magical YES!  But here is the thing, I learn more as an author, as a professional, as a person from hearing, no.

No.

No, the book was not a best-seller.

No, you can't make your mortgage only by writing.

No, your pilot didn't get picked up.

No, I couldn't sell this book.

No, while not a word I often want to hear, is the word that always gives me direction.  No, points me the way I need to go, because every time I hear the word no, I have two options:

1.  Give up.

2.  Try harder.

The hard no helps me make a decision.  With that no, I decide whether I need to pursue the story, the path in my life, the  relationship, that received the no.  I must decide if I want to dedicate the time and the energy--my precious resources--to turn that No into a Yes.

Many times--the most brilliant times--no knocks me on my ass.  No then becomes the catalyst for hard work, persistence, patience, craft, dedication....all those things that I utilize to get to yes.

While yes, is most always the right word at the right time, and often my favorite word, no, is a hard reality that often leads to my greatest successes.  I am thankful for both.

Maggie Marr is an author, an attorney, and an independent producer.  She is the author of Courting Trouble, Can't Buy Me Love, Hollywood Girls Club, Secrets of The Hollywood Girls Club and the soon to be published Hollywood Hit.  She writes for film and television and is a member of The Vero Law Group.  Maggie lives and works in Los Angeles.