How Watching a Whale Can Help You Write a Book
I am sitting on a boat off the coast of Cabo, scanning the deep blue water of the Pacific Ocean for any hint of an enormous humpback whale beneath the surface.
I concentrate on the water, looking for the signs that the biologist who is our tour guide told us might give away the majestic creature’s presence.
A flat spot in the water, smooth as glass; a water spout. A ripple that looks like a small wave but then emerges as part of the animal’s body sneaking just above the surface.
As I watch, a large, smooth spot spreads across the surface of the water and our guide shouts the location in relation to an imaginary clock superimposed over the boat. “Look at the water. One o’clock.” All the passengers look toward the bow of the ship and just a little to the right (starboard side for the boat purest).
In the distance, right where the smooth water had been, a shape forms just above the water’s surface. At least I think so. It’s dark and long, a crescent that could be a wave forming rather than part of an enormous mammal, if not for the lumpy, uneven shape of it.
It disappears before I can touch the red button on my iPhone to record. But then it reappears, larger, lumpier and most definitely not a wave. An animal, surfacing for a few seconds, this time enough for people who are already recording to capture its image before it drops into the depths again.
Good Enough
I smile. Our tour has a “whale” guarantee: if you don’t see at least one whale, you are gifted with a second outing at a later date/time. I can’t take advantage of this guarantee because of a pending flight departure, but that’s okay. I’ve seen a whale. And the excursion has been enjoyable. It’s a magnificent day. My husband and I are on a boat in the Pacific, in the company of our friends who invited us to be guests in their beautiful home in Cabo San Jose. We’ve seen the famous Arch of Cabo San Lucas – a rock formation jutting out of the Sea of Cortez – and we’ve had our picture taken in front of it. And now I’ve seen a whale. What more could I want?
But Things Get Better
As our captain drives us toward the spot where the whale first appeared, the animal breeches the surface again, its body growing as it stretches out of the water and toward the sky. I don’t try to record it this time and instead let my brain wrap around the enormity of this animal less than a hundred yards away.
Then it dives again, but now, instead of being satisfied, I crave more. I watch the water with a greater intensity. And the whale does not disappoint. Its tail leads the way this time, lifting and creating an arcing waterfall before slapping back down on the surface and then doing it all over again. Twice. Three times. Four. When it stops, our guide lifts a small plastic whale to show us the position of the animal in the water. “It was on its back, belly up, slapping the water to communicate with other whales,” she says.
Our captain drives the boat toward a cluster of other boats and we discover there are two humpbacks swimming beneath the surface. One approaches our boat and swims underneath it, showing us the magnitude of its body compared to our small vessel. Then, an enormous fin breaks through the water, towering above our boat. We can see all the detail of the animal’s “propulsion system,” including the barnacles that line up along the ridge of the fin. The whale slaps its fin on the water repeatedly, and it seems playful.
An Idea Emerges
“Sometimes they are trying to slap the barnacles off their fins, and other times they are trying to impress a female,” our guide explains.
“Mission accomplished,” I answer. “This female is impressed.”
I’m sharing this whale watching story with you because I think the experience is like the one we have as writers when an idea for a book first comes to us.
Something clicks inside of us, and we begin to think about writing a book. We may have a small spark of an idea, and we search our minds for more, looking for places where the idea might spread out and connect to other thoughts or ideas in our minds. We search for other hints and clues that our idea might work–maybe something obvious, like a waterspout, but maybe something more subtle. Then, if we keep returning to our idea, we might see it start to take form. Maybe we even try to write it down, and it seems lumpy, disorganized, and hard to hold together in our mind’s eye. Perhaps it wasn’t even a real thing. But if we’re persistent, and we keep searching, keep returning to our idea, it may take shape, grow bigger and remain on the surface of our consciousness for longer periods of time.
When Your Book Idea Won’t Leave You Alone
At this point, we begin to crave more time to think about our book idea. And before we know it, it won't leave us alone. It’s slapping its tail on the surface of our consciousness, claiming its voice and demanding to be heard. And before long, it’s trying to impress us with its importance, its message, its need to be written.
Does this sound like you? Do you have a book or story idea that has surfaced and resurfaced over the years from an unexplored place in your mind? Do you need to be heard? Need to claim your voice? Need to write a story that won’t leave you alone? One that’s trying to impress upon you the importance of its message and the persistence of the clock ticking away in the background? What’s stopping you from exploring it? What would happen if you tried to write it? And how will you feel if you don’t?
Interestingly, my friend who invited us to join her and her husband in Cabo and who organized this whale-watching excursion asked herself some similar questions about a year ago. Then she contacted me about writing not one, but two books. She and I had been high school and college friends, but we’d lost touch for a few decades. She reached out about book coaching because she’s a busy woman who knows the value of working with someone who can help her get to the finish line on a goal that would probably continue to take a back seat if she had to go it alone. The bonus for me (and I think for her) is that we rediscovered a great friendship and have grown even closer through this vulnerable work of writing. (The double bonus is that our husbands have become friends, as well!)
What Happens Next
If you’re like my friend and you want to talk about an idea that won’t leave you alone, let’s schedule a call. I want to help you bring that idea to the surface and then find your way toward releasing it into the world. Email me at michelle@bookcoachingworks.com or go here to book a call. Here’s what will happen after you do that:
1) I’ll send you a questionnaire that many people have told me helped them get clarity on their idea just by filling it out.
2) Then we’ll meet via Zoom to talk about your answers, explore your idea(s) and figure out the best next steps for you, whether that’s working with me or doing something else.
3) You’ll be much closer to holding a finished manuscript in your arms and claiming the title of author.
What would it feel like to look back on January 2023 as the month when you finally took the step you needed to take to write your book? Email me now and let’s find out.
I believe in the POWER of YOUR story.
NOTE: Our unforgettable whale watching excursion was booked through Cabo Nature and I cannot say enough good things about them. From the start, the professionalism of this company was evident. The guides are biologists and their knowledge of the area, the habitat, the whales and the other wildlife was superior. But also, their ability to spot whales and then treat the animals with the respect they deserve while also inspiring awe in the guests, made the experience even better. We learned that this company helps universities in Mexico and California study these whales, which wasn’t surprising after seeing how knowledgeable they were about finding the whales and then explaining their behavior to us. Please read their reviews on Trip Advisor and compare them to other companies before booking because you won’t be disappointed.
Whale Watching in Cabo San Lucas with Cabo Nature. Whale shows us how it communicates.
Whale gives us such a show that I have time to turn the camera around and do a selfie video, showing how close it was to our boat.
Whale swims under our boat and then another whale emerges.