One Little Elephant

575 calories total


Now, let’s pretend I eat this same lunch 5 days a week and I want to drop a few pounds (which I do). Assuming I keep the rest of my diet static, I can lose 7+ pounds this year by simply changing one component of this meal and I won’t even notice the difference. How?

Remove a single slice of cheddar and
this.........................................................becomes this.


By breaking a half slice of cheddar into puzzle-type sections, as shown here, I can still adequately cover the toast.

There’s still cheddary goodness in every bite, but I’ve trimmed away 100 calories per meal.

100 cal x 5 days x 52 weeks = 26,000 calories or approx. 7.5 pounds per year.

Quite a difference, right?

But what does this have to do with writing novels?

I’m coming to believe that tiny, almost unnoticeable changes in my day, implemented consistently over long periods of time, are what will eventually transform a housewife into a published novelist.

So I keep eating that elephant one bite at a time.


Something that’s helping me write today: The example of the confident initiative shown by my handsome, but quiet future-engineer son. When he needed a date to a fancy dress ball, he walked right up to the prettiest, most vivacious girl he knew and asked her out - despite the fact he felt there was a good chance she'd turn him down.

She said, “Yes!”

I wonder if she could teach that word to some agents and editors for me.