Saturday, July 17, 2010

What's Your Ah-Ha Moment


I had the rare privilege this week of being invited to participate in Mutual of Omaha's Ah-ha moment video campaign that is currently on a 25-city tour to capture the country's aha moments. These are the moments in our lives where the light bulb goes off and our lives change in an instant. They cause us to grow, to be more and do more than we ever thought possible.

Now I must confess that honestly my first thought was to take a pass. Like so many writers, I hide behind the pen choosing to write the scenes instead of be in them. It wasn't until a dear friend of mine reminded me why I wrote Asteria in the first place that I reconsidered. If ever there was an ah-ha moment, that was it. Again, I find myself far outside my comfort zone and yet I take a deep breath and keep moving forward. Hey, comfort zones are for wimps, right?

It was with this conviction that I made my way downtown to a 34-foot Airstream mobile film studio. Sweaty palms, pounding heart, and a story to tell were all that I'd brought with me.The interview was pretty much a blur, and at times I got a little choked up, but I think it went well. Now it all comes down to the editing (as does everything in life!).

And so in honor of the experience I'd like to know ... what's your ah-ha moment?

5 comments:

  1. I can't wait to see your Ah-ha moment! I'm so proud of you, Chi! And very honored to call you my friend!

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  2. You are too kind, and I couldn't have done it without the support of you, Rena and Ren. I'm so blessed to have you all in my life. :-)

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  3. I love the idea of aha moments! The one that got me started writing seriously was when my sister yelled at me and said, "You're a writer! You should be writing. Writers write." She's a language arts teacher, an avid reader, an appreciater of good writing who doesn't write herself. So it meant a lot that she told me that and it kicked my butt in gear.

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  4. I'm visiting from twitter -

    I love the Aha! moments that have to do with a book - when something becomes clear and opens the way for a character or something else in the book. It's the best feeling, and new energy comes into the writing of it!

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  5. So true! I'll never forget sailing through a scene, the image so sharp in my mind my fingers couldn't keep up. And then Gavin said something and I literally gasped; my fingers froze. I sat there for a moment wondering where on earth that came from ... it really was one of the most powerful moments I have ever experienced.

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