Dear Dare to Dream

Dear Dare to Dreamers,

It's September, the start of a new season and a new school year, and so, in the spirit of fresh new beginnings, I'm very excited to announce a brand new feature on this blog.

I've been wanting to introduce a more personal and interactive element to Dare to Dream for some time now and as I often receive emails from you, asking for advice, I thought it would be a nice idea to incorporate this into the blog.

So I'm starting a Dear Dare to Dream feature, where you can write to me directly and anonymously, for advice on achieving your dream and I will answer your letter on this blog.

Just think of me as an agony aunt for dreamers.

So, what should your dreams be about?

Pretty much anything really. Here are some prompts to get you started:

:: Maybe you dream of achieving a particular career goal.

:: Maybe you dream of finding true love.

:: Maybe you dream of not feeling so lonely, stressed out or sad.

:: Maybe you dream of feeling more healthy and vibrant.

:: Maybe you dream of being able to let go of a past hurt.

:: Maybe you dream of manifesting a happy future.

:: Maybe you dream of being able to start all over again.

:: Maybe you dream of being able to deal with a very difficult person in your life.

:: Maybe you dream of finding the confidence to stand up to a bully.

:: Maybe you dream of being able to get over a break-up.

:: Maybe you dream of finding the something missing from your life.

:: Maybe you dream of working out what that 'something missing' is.

:: Maybe you dream of not having palpitations every time your bank statement arrives.

:: Maybe you dream of conquering your job or exam stress.

:: Maybe you dream of coming to terms with a loss.

:: Maybe you dream of getting over a failure.

:: Maybe you dream of coping with success.

:: Maybe you long to be seen - or heard.

:: Maybe you dream of finding your way back to your true self.


Whatever the dream, I'm here to help.

All you need to do is drop me an email at:

daretodreamletters[AT]gmail[DOT]com


All emails will be published completely anonymously, along with my reply.

And my reply will be full of practical and heartfelt advice, drawing upon my own personal experience and my work as a coach.

Over the years, I've been able to achieve ever single dream on the prompt list above so I feel certain that I'll have plenty to offer and share.

Another thing I've learnt over the years is that when you give up on your dreams, you give up on yourself and your right to be happy.

We all have a right to be happy but sometimes we need a helping hand.

Or a supportive blog post.

The Dear Dare to Dream inbox is ready and waiting.

Here's to reaching out and helping each other...

Siobhan x


DARE TO DREAM HAS MOVED

You can find the new site here.

Fresh new posts include:

15 Things I've Learnt From 15 Years as a Writer

Dear Dare to Dream: How can I overcome my illness and become a speaker


An Exciting New Chapter for Dare to Dream

How J K Rowling Helped Me Through My Darkest Days as a Writer

I started writing books during a very difficult time in my life.

My marriage had come to a painful and traumatic end and I was single mum to a young son.

It was a very fearful time - I can remember many sleepless nights spent wondering how I was going to make ends meet and keep a roof over our heads.

I also felt like a total failure. Coming from a 'broken home' I had always vowed that I would never put any child of mine through that trauma.

Apart from my son, the only light in the darkness of those days was my writing. 

When I began working on my first novel, Sweet FA, it provided a welcome escape from the harsh realities of my life at the time.

But my writing itself was not without fear.

I had no previous experience of writing fiction.

I hadn't done any courses in creative writing.

I didn't have any contacts in the publishing world.

I wasn't a member of any writing group.

I had no idea if what I was creating was any good at all - let alone publishable.

I wrote mainly when my son was asleep and there were some nights when I would be slumped over my typewriter (I couldn't even afford a computer!) crying with exhaustion and wondering why the hell I was even bothering.

It was on those nights that one person helped urge me on and gave me just enough hope to keep me typing. 

That person was J K Rowling.

Like the rest of the world, I'd read all the stories about how Rowling had penned the first Harry Potter novel in a cafe in Edinburgh as a penniless single mum.

But, rather than merely being a heart-warming anecdote, this story became a life-line for me.

When Rowling talked about her feelings of despair as a single mum I could so relate to her experience.

And the fact that she had kept on working through her dark times; had kept the faith in her creative dream and gone on to achieve such remarkable success, formed a beacon, guiding me through my own fear and doubt.

Last week, I went up to Edinburgh and visited the cafe where J K Rowling had written that first Harry Potter book.

Having played such an important part in my own vision of hope for the future, it was extremely moving to finally actually be there.

And, in a really magical way, it proved to be a gift that kept on giving.

The past couple of months have been a bit of a tough time for me, in that I've suffered some personal loss and felt a bit demotivated work-wise.

But sitting at a table in the corner of the cafe, picturing J K Rowling writing away and conjuring up such a magical future for herself and so many readers, I felt a wave of optimism and hope wash over me.

Remembering how far I'd come since my own dark days made me feel humbled and excited. It reminded me that anything is possible if you are prepared to work hard and simply believe.

Before leaving the cafe I went into the toilets. They were covered from floor to ceiling in graffiti dedicated to J K Rowling from grateful readers.

Once again, I felt a wave of happiness and excitement. It reminded me what a privilege it is to be a writer - and how thrilling it is to be able to affect people's lives for the better with your words.

Once again, I felt J K Rowling inspiring and motivating me - and urging me on.

A bit later, I was walking past Waterstones in Edinburgh. I popped inside and headed for the Young Adult section.

When I saw my books there on the shelves it brought tears to my eyes.

All those years ago, when I'd sat hunched over my typewriter, with just my love of writing and J K Rowling's example to keep me going, I never would have dreamed that I would go on to achieve all that I have done.

And, if I can share anything at all with you to help you through your own doubt and fear, it would be this:

Sometimes, in our darkest times, we need a light to guide us. So, rather than cower in the shadows, seek out your light - whether it be in the form of another person, some words of wisdom, or God / the Universe. Let them lead you on, into your own brighter, happier future . . . 


DARE TO DREAM HAS MOVED

You can find the new site here.

Fresh new posts include:

15 Things I've Learnt From 15 Years as a Writer

Dear Dare to Dream: How can I overcome my illness and become a speaker


An Exciting New Chapter for Dare to Dream

Always Remember to Blaze a Trail

2009 was one of the worst years of my life. Or – as the Queen would put it – my annus horribilus.

My then partner had been diagnosed with cancer – a brain tumour – and told he only had months to live.

A close member of my family was being bullied at school and becoming a shadow of their former self before our eyes.

And my writing career felt dead in the water.

There were many times during that year when I felt as if I was drowning. I’m a natural born fighter but there are some times, when life throws so much crap at you, that you just can’t see a way out.

I remember one day, after I’d burnt some toast, sinking to the kitchen floor and crying for about an hour.

I tried so hard to maintain a strong and bright exterior to the outside world but inside, I could feel myself slipping away.

It’s at times like these that you need an intervention. You need someone to step in and shine a light on your darkness.

For me, it came in the form of a conversation with a friend.

It was one of those rich, late night conversations in which you really connect with another human soul. My friend was a fellow writer, and from a similar background, growing up on a London council estate. He’d obviously seen that I was drowning and so he set about throwing me a life line made up of his words – it definitely helped that he was a poet!

Amongst many other things, he told me that he saw me as being just like a shooting star and that I mustn’t ever stop blazing a trail.

For most of that year I’d felt more like one of those dud home fireworks that splutters and fizzles out to disappointed sighs. It felt incomprehensible that he should see me in this way.

But his words lodged in my brain – and gave me something to cling to.

I went home emboldened.

My partner wasn’t going to die.

My family member wasn’t going to be bullied any more.

And I was going to write another book – and publish it myself.

As I knew that it would be all too easy for me to slip back into my feelings of depression, I got a shooting star tattooed on my wrist as a constant reminder.

My Shooting Star Tattoo

And from that moment on, before I said or did anything, I'd think to myself, what would a person who's just like a shooting star do? How can I blaze a trail?

My partner ended up defying the doctors and surviving. Sadly, we broke up, but we remain best friends.

I helped my family member who was being bullied move to a new school and they are now back to their happy, carefree self, with a wide group of new friends.

The book I wrote and self-published went on to win a national award. (I couldn’t help smiling when I saw that the award itself was star-shaped.)

The book then went to auction and the publishers I signed up with said how much they loved my star tattoo – and could they incorporate it into my name on my book covers?

Fast forward to last Thursday, when I had a launch party for my new novel, Finding Cherokee Brown – my second novel with that publisher.

As I stood there about to give a reading from the book, I don’t think I’ve ever felt happier.

Reading at my Book Launch

There was my ex-boyfriend, smiling and cancer-free. There were the posters of the book with the stars designed into my name. There were my closest friends – my rocks during that terrible time. And there were so many other, newer friends, who didn’t even know me back in those dark days.

And here I was, about to read from a book I’d written about bullying – inspired by what we’d been through during that dark time.

It was such an important lesson in never giving up, no matter how hard things get.

And, echoing around my head were my friend’s words – said to me, but applicable to everyone:

‘You’re a just like a shooting star – you mustn’t ever stop blazing a trail.’


DARE TO DREAM HAS MOVED

You can find the new site here.

Fresh new posts include:

15 Things I've Learnt From 15 Years as a Writer

Dear Dare to Dream: How can I overcome my illness and become a speaker


An Exciting New Chapter for Dare to Dream