All know the way; few actually walk it.  ~Bodhidharma

i am obsessed with nyc. anyone who really knows me already knows this. but i just feel so alive when i’m here. don’t get me wrong – delray beach is a great place when i want some down time and am looking to regroup and recharge. but for me, my creativity and motivation truly comes alive in a completely different way during my trips home.

this time, i was lucky enough to take a writing workshop with my one-time new school professor susan shapiro. i adore sue. i can honestly say that taking her class, almost 8 years ago, totally changed my life. after enrolling in “how to write for nyc newspapers and magazines” i did just that – for a long time. but if it wasn’t for sue and the inspiration (and amazing contacts) i procured from her class, i don’t think my life and career would have taken the same path. i mean, in one night, i met an editor from the new york daily news and less than a month later i had landed an internship there, which led to a freelance writing gig and ultimately, my long career in celebrity journalism.

so recently, i found myself mustering up the courage to enroll in another sue shapiro seminar this past weekend, this time about how to write and sell your first book. the dream of writing a book has been nagging me since i was a kid and has grown louder and louder in recent months. still, it was difficult for me to imagine sitting in a room with a group of aspiring authors and talking about my ideas and how i planned to turn them into a real deal book. sure, i write all of the time (and even penned a few short children’s’ stories when i was younger) but my most recent work has consisted of 500 word blurbs on the state of angelina jolie’s romance. not exactly what i was thinking for my entre into book publishing…

i was nervous about sharing my thoughts with a large group of people who i was certain would have way more experience than i had. but as i sat in sue’s class (in her perfect nyc apartment, complete with bookshelf lined walls, natch) i found myself feeling hopeful: hopeful that i had good ideas that could actually translate into an interesting novel or memoir, hopeful that i might even be able to one day land a literary agent and begin my path to being a published author and hopeful that someone, somewhere might actually be interested in reading my story.

sitting in a room full of other people in my same shoes, i felt fear take grip. i was shaking and on the verge of a panic attack when it was time for me to speak. but somehow, i managed to tell sue and the two guest speakers about my project – and i even got some really positive feedback. i walked out of the 4-hour class feeling invigorated and excited. and at that moment i realized just how instrumental the city itself was in my new attitude.

the fast pace and constant physical interaction with people is what makes me feel alive. i thrive on that go-go-go mentality and while i have tried to slow it down, i now wonder: why? it’s just who i am. and i’m ok with that.

either way, i have started on my new project and am so excited to see what ends up happening. i almost didn’t sign up for the class last weekend, mostly out of fear but i now feel myself scared when i think about how different my life would be at this moment if i hadn’t done it. in that moment, when i spoke out loud and shared my ideas, i learned to get out of my own way…and i have a brand new attitude because of that.