I finally recorded my first chapter! I woke up thinking I’d make that day all about getting my chapter recorded, no matter how long it took. I’d thought that before, for weeks, over and over again. But this time, recalling a friends’ suggestion that I practice reading the chapter first, I felt new determination. It seems so obvious to practice. I think I’ve been assuming that, since I wrote it, I didn’t need to practice. I read my work every week to other writers. It’s not a problem. I put fun expression in.

As I began to read aloud, I put the wrong pitch on some of the lines. Of course, I’m not in the mindset I was in when I first wrote it years ago. I went to my daughter and said, “Come out and ask me in a little while if I’ve finished reading through the chapter.” I said, “And then say, ‘We’re recording at 3 pm.’” I did it! I read through the chapter and then recorded it. Within the first few lines, I realized I can fix wording. No one says it has to be verbatim. It’s a performance. I wrote in a few corrections. The biggest relief was that I like my first chapter! I think the biggest block was fearing that I wouldn’t. I loaded it to the radio station’s drive and awaited the addition of sound effects by Bob Young, KNYOs producer.

This experience has been a reminder of how important it is to keep bringing up something troubling me, getting my community, my tribe, to help. A lot of times I think I have to solve everything myself. I was scared each paragraph, each page, ’til I finished it. But I pushed forward, without pausing, not expecting perfection, having fun putting expression in as I’d intended it. You can hear it this Sunday, Sept. 4, at 7 pm Pacific Standard Time and the following chapters each Sunday at that time. Tune in at knyo.org. Go to the Past Podcasts link at the top to listen after it’s been aired.