“Remember to play after every storm.” Mattie Stepanek

“There are joys which long to be ours. God sends ten thousand truths, which come about us like birds seeking inlet; but we are shut up to them, and so they bring us nothing, but sit and sing awhile upon the roof, and then fly away.” Henry Ward Beecher

Good work is hard work—that was the core message of yesterday’s post, which focused on the struggles that the storied writer Philip Roth endured in penning his prose.

There’s a flip side to this approach.

Balance is everything: There’s a time for struggle and a time for flow.

We can also find joy in the journey—and happiness in our hours of writing. As the Bible puts it, we can make “a joyful noise”—we can let our words soar up and out into the Universe. We can leaven our hard work with joy. We can have fun and play around!

My beloved mom, Dorothy, once gave me a sign that said, “Joy is your purchasing power.” And the more I travel down my own personal writing road, the more truth I find in this simple saying.

So, while I embrace the idea that “good work is hard work,” and certainly know the fulfillment this brings, I’m also mindful of the need to go with the flow. This is a nice balance and works for me.

When you balance hard work with joyful expectation, magic happens!

Here’s why:

Joyful expectation opens you up to new ideas and possibilities.

Joyful expectation invites the Universe to be your partner, a co-creator.

Joyful expectation creates joy on the page—and your readers feel it.

Joyful expectation reminds us to “play after the rain” — to have fun!

So let’s go for balance in our writing life. Let’s push ourselves and fight through the tough times on the page, but let’s also remember to “play after every storm”—to enjoy the journey. Write on!

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