This fall was a fabulous time to work on new projects, grow with lessons on balance and time management, and personal growth. As we approach the winter, we are both stepping back to reflect on our year and gearing up for an exciting launch of our book Ink in the Wheels: Stories to Make Love Roll, in February 2013.
After a much needed vacation in Hawaii, we both got back to work. For a time, I took on a new role, growing and working in ways that I had not done before. I was thrilled to be stepping into writing and editing, and project management.
And yet, our manuscript was taking us into a different space, one that would focus on completing our story. Every weekend, we went to the coffee shop or cuddled on the couch and hashed out edits, rewrites and revisions.
Our editor asked us for several chapter re-writes, to go deeper, write more dialogue, to tell our story as it is. It is a huge risk, to put so much of ourselves out there.
Admittedly, we put off writing the most dramatic chapters until last. Neither one of us was in that deep and dark place anymore, and going back there was something neither one of us wanted to do. We knew, though, that in order to tell our story, we needed to surrender, revisiting these places.
What I found was another layer of healing, looking at different perspectives, looking at how we made it through these places, and telling our story so that there is a fullness and spherical depth.
The scariest part, to me, was the moment we pressed the send button to let our immediate family members read the entire manuscript, and to approve the sections where we mentioned them.
At one point, Barton asked, “Am I letting your father down when he reads Losing the Way?”
And I was terrified of what anyone thought, period. I know not everyone would agree with what we had written. Every single family member would have a completely different story from their own eyes. Would they be able to see it through ours? What if everyone pulled out? What kind of a story would we have if we couldn’t fully express it?
Though not all of our family members wanted their sections to be in the manuscript, which we completely respect, what we found was that for the most part, our families were supportive of what we share about our lives together. Speaking to my father, he was truly touched by our story, and I think it gave more insight into our relationship.
And, while we are putting the polishing touches on the manuscript, our families have been deeply touched by sharing our story with them. And we hope this is what others will find.