I haven’t felt very courageous lately.

My book didn’t make the quarterfinals, but that wasn’t entirely surprising. A Square Foot of Calfskin was a long shot, just like every other book that entered that contest. If you’re interested, you can find the list of quarter-finalists here.

No, failing is part of the game when you live with courage.

It’s failing to try that takes the wind out of your sails. Avoiding an action you know you need to take.

For two months now, I’ve been avoiding a situation I wanted to change. Taking no action, hiding behind work (not writing, obviously), doing my best to stay busy so I wouldn’t have time to do what I knew I needed to do.

Last week, I started taking steps to rectify that. My first step worked out better than I planned, as such things often do.

This week I’ll take another. It may go well. I may fall flat on my face.

But I will have taken the step I feared. And that’s the important part.

That’s how I live with courage.