All About the Writing

A to Z Challenge: Patriot's Day

It's almost Patriots' Day here, where we commemorate the events which started the Revolutionary War. I got to observe a "Redcoats and Rebels" re-enactment a while ago, and loved all the research details I learned, so I wanted to share them. This is longer than most A to Z Challenge posts, but hopefully you'll still enjoy it!

Everyone knows how Massachusetts got things off to a great start in the Revolutionary War. There are plenty of re-enactments, especially on Patriots' Day in April, but since they have an unfortunate tendency to start way too early in the morning, I've never managed to see any.

However, there was a recent "Redcoats and Rebels" event at Old Sturbridge Village, which is an outdoor museum depicting rural New England from 1790 to 1840. This particular event didn't start at the crack of dawn, which was a huge plus, because I'm a more appreciative audience once I've had my daily coffee. I was really eager to attend, since this is the closest I can get to time-travelling, or going to a Regency-era theme park. And it would be an opportunity to get some practice with my infrequently-utilized camera.

There were exhibits throughout the day, and in different parts of the campsites and buildings. Unfortunately I missed the 18th century court martial, as well as the laundress demonstrating her skills with 18th century clothing.

But there was lots of other fun stuff. And I'm not just talking about all the sexy boots! I spent so much time lusting after the boots that I didn't get any good pics of them. Too bad I can't download some of my mental pictures, especially of the young man who was a scout for the colonists. I'm not sure which I liked more, his gold hoop earring, the ponytail, or the thigh-high suede boots.

*fans face* Is it getting hot in here?

Well, maybe it's best I leave that mental picture where it is. Instead, here's a pic of the window he was looking out of--but this is before he got here, so you're going to have to use some imagination.(You can tell from this pic that he was really hot, though.)

The cannon demonstration by the Royal Irish Artillery was LOUD. I commented to a couple of Redcoats as I passed that it might be louder than I could handle. One of them suggested I plug one ear and keep my mouth open, and that would help. He said it with a straight face, but I wasn't entirely sure if his "advice" was payback for us winning the War for Independence, so I didn't give it a try.

The cannons produced these cool smoke rings, as if a giant was smoking a huge cigarette with a lot of panache. It required several men to prepare the cannon for shooting, and when they had to move it, even though it was on wheels, they strained. I'm surprised somebody hasn't invented a Cannon Workout, because clearly it worked a lot of different muscle groups. And the cannon-shooting men were very fit.

My favorite demonstration was on how to load and use a musket, by a re-enactor for a Massachusetts regiment. He showed us, first in slow motion, and then in "real time", how long it took to go through the many steps of the process. Sad to say, there was only a few seconds difference between the two demos.

The gunpowder is in a little thing of paper that is kept in a leather bag at the hip. The corner of the paper is torn off with the teeth. The powder is followed by the "ball", one full ounce of lead, which he said is much bigger than current bullets. It doesn't just HIT a person, it SLAMS into them, and it can make them spin several times from the force of the blast.

Also, accuracy wasn't exactly the goal when shooting a musket, because it wasn't really a possibility. It was more of a 50% success rate. It was partly why they stood in lines, so that hopefully SOMEBODY would hit something when they fired their weapons. The re-enactor said the commands used to be:

• Make Ready
• Take Aim
• Fire

However, General Washington changed the second one to "Take Sight" to more accurately reflect that not a whole lot of aiming was going on.

A good shooter would take about 20 seconds for the loading process, but most soldiers took about 30 seconds, so two rounds in a minute was the average (not exactly a "room broom").

A young boy with a snare drum tapped out a different rhythm for each of the commands. Since things got so smoky during battles, from all of the ignited gunpowder, drums were the main form of communication.

Someone asked why the soldiers didn't just crouch down so they wouldn't get hit, but it sounds like there wasn't a high likelihood of getting hit anyway. Also, if they did crouch down and the opposing shooters couldn't accomplish anything, they would affix bayonets to their muskets, and it was the bayonets that really struck fear into the soldiers. The blade is three-edged, which apparently creates a wound that is impossible for a doctor to stitch up, so it caused a very painful demise. (The re-enactor said the Geneva Convention does not permit that kind of blade for modern warfare because it is too brutal.)

Right after this demonstration, the various regiments lined up so they could parade to the battlefield. I wish I'd figured out beforehand how to use the video feature on my camera.

One of the colonial militia groups – it was easy to see they weren't part of the Continental Army because instead of snazzy blue coats they wore plain brownish linen clothes – anyway, the militia group was a pretty ragtag bunch, and they had trouble figuring out which direction to turn on the command "wheel right". Their commander asked them to hold up the hand they used to hold their ale the previous night, and of course a couple of them raised both hands, letting their muskets drop to the ground. The captain of a nearby Redcoat regiment told his troops, "I don't anticipate any trouble from the Yankees today. They're quite disorganized so it should be a quick and easy battle."

How could I not laugh out loud?

The battle took place in a field, complete with split-rail fences and trees lining the perimeter. It was unbearably hot, and humid, so none of the soldiers seemed inclined to "play dead" until the battle was almost over. I don't blame them. I was wearing a light linen shirt and jeans and was close to expiring. They had wool jackets and vests and breeches and Lord knows what else that I couldn't see. . .oh, and boots of course.

Since nobody wanted to lie down on the ground, the battle pretty much looked like a bunch of men in kick-ass costumes shooting at each other, over and over. They didn't use the lead ball, just the gunpowder, in both the muskets and the cannons, and there was plenty of smoke hanging over the field.

Earlier, while strolling through the campgrounds, I noticed a lot of campfires going, and even though I couldn't see any wood smoke, it was really bothering my throat. That was a detail I wouldn't have expected, so it was great to experience it firsthand (and it was even greater to get away from it).

Another interesting research detail: the tents had six soldiers assigned to them. Two of them would sleep, two would have sentry duty, and two would be on fatigue, which meant camp duties like digging latrines, cooking, whatever needed doing. The tents were made of canvas, and there wouldn't be much warmth in the winter, so the soldiers apparently slept on top of each other to keep from freezing.

This picture I took of a tent made me think of that colonial scout (the one with a gold earring and thigh-high suede boots) needing to steal that Redcoat jacket in the back:

This was such a great research experience, and I can't wait to go again. Next time I'll definitely be braver about taking more pics and asking more questions, since the re-enactors love to share their knowledge.

Maybe they'll even tell me where that scout hid himself. . .

A to Z Challenge: Optimism

If there’s one thing I know about myself, it’s that I can’t plan more than a few days ahead of time, and even when I do, it’s gonna be in pencil—while I’m brandishing an eraser in my other hand.

Sometimes I forget that aspect of my personality, and I actually try to PLOT my life, rather than PANTS. It never ends well. In fact, it adds unnecessary pressure trying to conform to something so foreign to my being.

That’s when I realize I need to call upon a higher power: The Power of Procrastination. It’s often characterized as the ugly stepsister of Avoidance, and I will admit I’ve helped to keep that notion alive. But I wonder if I’ve been a little too harsh. 

After all, what is Procrastination but Avoidance allowed to roam free?

Let’s take a peek at some famous procrastinators:

Scarlett O’Hara:  “After all, tomorrow is another day”

Mark Twain:  “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow”

Lil Orphan Annie:  Honestly, is there anybody who could love “tomorrow” more than this gal?

What do they all have in common? They have a deep-seated, unshakeable, abiding belief that there is PLENTY OF TIME.

Yes, procrastination is a hope-based philosophy. Optimism is the cornerstone of this belief system, along with faith that time won’t run out before we finish what we need to do. . .some distant day in the future.

Ironically, procrastinators are actually given LESS time than that allotted to non-procrastinators. But we don’t let that bother us. Why? Because we know that our efficiency and productivity kicks in whenever there is a “last minute”. 

We like residing on that tiny ledge that is crumbling into the abyss. It revs us up and sparks our creativity. We’re adrenaline junkies, thrill seekers, addicted to the mania that comes with accomplishing something in record time while wondering if this was the time we waited too long.  

If there’s anyone that knows how to ratchet up the suspense. . .it’s procrastinators.

Yet somehow, miraculously, with hosannas from heaven above, we get it done. Because there was actually plenty of time to accomplish WHAT HAD TO BE DONE. 

We didn’t get distracted by all the possibilities, the paths not taken, the meanderings that might have been fun but ultimately would have paralyzed us because there was too much to choose from. 

Instead, with the clock ticking, we used our laser-beam focus to concentrate on the essentials, those things that could not be ignored, and it was a bright light guiding us to our destination.

Here are a few suggestions for making procrastination work as a writing tool:

1. Set a deadline. And then ignore it, until—yup, the last minute. This works particularly well with contests, class assignments, chapters that a critique partner is waiting on, or, my personal favorite, blog posts.
2. Do all your Hierarchy of Avoidance chores, to make sure you get them out of the way–and then do whatever you feel like the rest of the day. After all, there’s always tomorrow to do some writing. You need time to ponder all the possible plot threads in your story, and this is the time for it, not later when you’re scribbling to get the word count done.
3. Start something and then set it aside to work on something else. Then put it down and move onto a third project. Leave all of them half-finished until it’s time to get something done, then grab the one that intrigues you and write like the wind.

I'm sure there are more tips and tricks for utilizing The Power of Procrastination. Maybe I’ll even gather them and put them in a book. . .

One of these days.

~~~~~

Don't put off checking out the A to Z Challenge!

A to Z Challenge: New Characters

One thing I love about being a pantser is the process of discovering who my characters are.

When I start a story, it's usually from a random scene that has popped into my head. It's almost always dialogue, which makes me feel like I'm eavesdropping on a conversation between two people who just eased into view. I sit there, quietly, and try to look like I'm minding my own business, when I'm actually minding THEIRS.

Then I go through the usual first impression stuff we all go through when we meet new people. We notice what they look like, and despite our best intentions, we make judgments based on our previous experiences. Since these are heroes and heroines, there isn't a lot to criticize at this point.

But, just as with people we encounter in real life, there's a lot we don't know about characters when we start a story. If we did know everything, the happily-ever-after would be at the beginning of the book, not the end.

I think it's fun to learn new details about the hero and heroine as I move through each chapter. When I'm writing, I'm constantly picking up on the clues they toss my direction, usually via an offhand phrase or an unexpected response to another character's words or actions.

This is when I stop to plot and ponder and decipher exactly what this information reveals about the character. I'm in awe as I learn what is important to them, and what they are going to fight for, and what they are willing to sacrifice.

The tricky part is when a character won't give up their secrets. Even worse is when they do give you juicy information and you're not sure how to interpret it, or how to weave it into the story. I won't even mention how heartbreaking it can be when they drop a bombshell in your lap, requiring you to dismantle chapters you lovingly polished before that shocking moment.

Still, I'm not sure I could write a story where I knew everything about the character ahead of time. I enjoy that slow unfolding of character traits, that leisurely method of learning what makes a particular person tick. It's a process that involves trust, and a huge amount of it. You can only expose your inner self when you believe no one will try to harm you with the information you're divulging.

It makes me happy when my characters demonstrate their willingness to put their hearts in my hands, trusting that I'll take care of their hopes and fears. It's a little frightening at the same time. But hopefully by the time they give me that responsibility, I'm so in love with them, there's no way I can say no.

~~~~~

Woo hoo to the A to Z Challenge! I've been loving it. Hope you  have too!

A to Z Challenge: More, More, More

Ahh, spring.

The time of year when a woman's thoughts turn to a man with big muscle-y biceps, clad in mythological garb showcasing those muscle-y biceps.

Okay, I guess Thor, the Dark World really has nothing to do with spring. Wait. There was that frozen world which had to be vanquished, and that's pretty much what spring does to winter. So let's go with that, shall we?

I had meant to watch this in the movie theatre, because I knew it's epicness would be awesome to see on a huge screen. And by epicness, I mean Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston. #ofcourse

I never made it to the movie theatre, but thanks to modern technology, I was able to rent it online. Even better, it allowed me to watch it on my laptop as many times in a 24-hour period as I wanted.

Still, my romance writer self craved something a bit more. I know it's an action-adventure movie, with a romance element thrown in. But if I were in charge, here's how I would change things:

• More scenes with Chris Hemsworth's shirt off. I truly appreciated the one little snippet where he was bathing, and then he stood looking at some kind of majestic scenic vista. I paused the movie at that point--to get a better idea of what he was looking at while his nekkid muscular back was to the camera, but I got distracted by what *I* was looking at. It would just be easier for everyone if there were a few (dozen) more scenes like that, without that caped costume blocking his magnificent musculature throughout the movie.
• More of Loki's voice. There needs to be tons more Loki, no matter what the movie is. Heck, even if he isn't a character in other movies, he still needs to be in them. When he first appears and says, "Hello, Mother", all while clad in leather and draped with chains to prevent his escape. . .well, that silky seductive voice just made crazy wild thoughts bounce all through my brain. And everywhere else. None of those thoughts were maternal ones. #obviously
• MORE kissing. Oh boy, is this movie deficient when it comes to kissing. I was forced to rewind and replay that last kiss with Thor and Jane, at least a zillion times. That improved the kissing-to-action ratio a bit. But there were plenty of missed opportunities for kissing, and I'm not even talking about me wanting to kiss Loki every time he uttered a word. I think at least 1/3 of the action scenes could have been changed to "action scenes". You know what I'm saying.

~~~

Okay, I'm off to follow Loki's advice now. Are you loving this A to Z Challenge as much as I am?

 

A to Z Challenge: Lighthouse

One of my favorite things about the writer's life is research.

So on a beautiful sunny day a few years ago, with my WIP research needs plotted out ahead of time, I ventured out to the Montauk Lighthouse. 

I could easily envision the hero's pirate ship crashing on the beach to the right of the lighthouse, only now I had the sound of the surf and the sunlight bouncing off the waves to add authenticity to the scene I planned to write later.

The view here is stunning, even at ground level, which is where I fully intended staying.

To this day, I'm still not sure how I got talked into going up to the top of the lighthouse. If the tour guide had mentioned ahead of time that there were 137 steps, or how they wound around in a tight circle, OR that there was only a thin rope to hold onto the entire way. . .

Someone should have also mentioned how tricky it is to navigate the angled metal steps while wearing platform flip flops (which were adorable, by the way, so no regrets there). It's even more fun coming back DOWN the stairs, because now you know just how treacherous the whole trip is, and it takes twice as long than going up did.

Having a vivid imagination is both a blessing and a curse. It's a boon when the scenes are spilling out of me faster than my 120 wpm fingers can handle. But here's a peek inside my brain while inside a constricted brick building, built in 1795:

"What's that noise? There's nobody here but me. Ohmygod, it must be a ghost. I wonder if the ghosts are watching me huff and puff, and they're laughing their asses off. Something touched my hair! Wait, ghosts can't touch my hair. So what was it then? God, I need a mojito right now."

(I learned later there is a ghost there, and her name is Abigail, and since I had such a fabulous hairdresser then, the ghostess probably was touching my hair.)

The most valuable thing I learned that day was something my characters all experience at some point: you have to do the thing you think is utterly impossible.

I made it to the top of the lighthouse, which is miraculous since I thought the heart pounding was going to escalate into cardiac arrest at about Step #86. And the last ten stairs required tippy-toe steps while bent over to prevent skull-cracking research moments.

When I made it to my destination--a small circular area which held about 5 or 6 people max--I was ready to toast my achievement, and then creep back down to ground level. But the tour guide, and a pair of tourists who had a gift for meddling, absolutely insisted I step through a small opening for a look outside.

I replied that I was fine just peeking through the opening, and I proved it by leaning to the side to catch a glimpse of sand and surf. 

"Oh, no, you just have to go outside. It's amazing."

I tried to resist, one more time, but since I was still trying to catch my breath, the meddlers interpreted my lack of speech as agreement with their plan. I don't know why it was so important to them that I have this particular experience, but their will to succeed was strong.

The opening had room for one person, and the "safety feature" was a wrought iron railing, about waist high. Just as I knew I'd regret not coming up to the top of the lighthouse, I convinced myself I would hate not going out onto that minuscule platform.

As impossible as it seemed, I had to do it. Had to.

So I took a step forward, on incredibly wobbly legs, and. . .

Wow. It was so liberating with the wind whipping around me, staring down at the beach and the waves, envying the seagulls floating past me. It was next to impossible to leave.

Research not only increases your knowledge, it stirs up curiosity so you want to learn about dozens more topics. Even more importantly, it expands your knowledge of yourself, which in turn leads to increased awareness of your characters, as well as their emotions and experiences. 

So never pass up the opportunity to do research. It's one of the most delightful parts of a writer's life.

That, and mojitos.

 ~~~~~

 The A to Z Challenge continues!

 

A to Z Challenge: Karma

Delia Carlisle was expecting a memorable anniversary celebration, complete with crazy wild sex, a fancy dinner, and maybe even a marriage proposal. But things didn't go so well in the bedroom that morning, and then at dinner her boyfriend didn't propose.

He broke up with her.

It's no wonder Delia believes she's cursed. Especially when every new man she meets ends up with a concussion or a trip to the ER.

Her internal "disaster consultants"--the What Ifs--completely missed the clues leading up to that first heartbreak. Now they're working overtime to prevent another one. . . and doing their utmost to keep men off the endangered species list.

A sexy chef named Jonathan keeps popping up in Delia's life, stirring up the most delicious feelings. Maybe Bad Ex Karma isn't a curse after all.

~~~~~

Available soon! Until then, you can. . .

~~~~~

The A to Z Challenge continues! We're almost to the halfway point!

A to Z Challenge: Just the Right Words

I started blogging in February 2009--reluctantly--because I wasn't sure I wanted to write little essays for complete strangers to read. In fact, I wasn't convinced strangers would ever want to read my little essays.

But the prevailing wisdom was that if you're a writer, you needed a blog, so potential readers could get a taste of your writing style, and potential agents and editors could get a sense of your social media reach.

So I started out quietly, almost hoping nobody would see what I was writing. My hopes were definitely realized at first! I didn't have a clue what to blog about. Whenever a great idea bursts into my brain, my next thought is to put that bit of brilliance in a book. Why would I want to use it up on a blog post?

Still, I figured I could write about my writing journey, so I called my blog "All About The Writing". I started throwing out an occasional post that was related to writing in a vague way, because I certainly couldn't portray myself as an expert. Heck, the majority of my posts are things I'm struggling with in the current work-in-progress, or words of inspiration designed to keep me from throwing my hands in the air (or my laptop out the window). 

After about a year of posting infrequent announcement-type things, such as a contest final or a win, I decided to blog more faithfully, keeping to a regular schedule. I started "Monday Mojo" posts, designed to give the writing week a good kickoff, and in "Friday Faves" I discussed posts I'd discovered in the blogosphere, and why they intrigued me.

To my complete surprise, I discovered I loved blogging. Loved it in that annoying, all-caps, I-can't-keep-myself-from-shouting-and-jumping-on-the-couch kind of way. Everything became a potential blog post.

Was the muse Endora being cantankerous and unwilling to cooperate?

I wrote a blog post.

(Actually, I've written several involving Endora. She thinks she's the star of the blog, while I consider her the unruly mascot. But please don't tell her I said that.)

Was I feeling discouraged with my lack of progress on a book project?

I wrote a blog post.

It wasn't too long afterwards that I discovered my little essays on the writing life seemed to resonate with other writers. They would leave comments about how my experience mirrored theirs, or how I inspired them with "just the right words" at a time when they really needed them.

Even more thrilling was having my blog posts shared on Twitter and Facebook, and being the landing spot for a variety of Google searches.

My most popular post is Character Goals, which I wrote to help myself figure out what might motivate a less-than-cooperative character in my WIP. To my delight, this post has been referenced by an online gaming community as a valuable resource for developing their characters, and it gets several hits every day as a result. How cool is that?

Another post, Three Good Things About Writing Part-Time, was one I wrote to console myself about not being able to write full-time. One day this post was highlighted on the very popular Passive Voice blog, resulting in a record number of hits, more than any other of my posts. My attempt to find the bright side of part-time writing seemed to benefit other writers, which was a wonderful surprise.

Lately I've been struggling to find enough time to devote to blogging. I consider not doing it anymore, but I know I'd miss the camaraderie of the whole experience, and all the friends I've made. I also enjoy being able to work out a thorny writing problem by the simple process of detailing it in a blog post. I'm thrilled that I've stumbled across a groove--giving encouragement to other writers--that I hadn't at all anticipated when I started down this path.

I even compiled my blog posts from the past few years into an e-book of writing inspiration, called An Encouraging Word.

All because I decided to write some little essays one day.

~~~~~

I hope you're having as much fun with the A to Z Challenge as I am!

A to Z Challenge: Improvement

I have done a lot of revising the past few years, and in the process, I've learned a great deal about improving a story. I now know so much more about craft, and technique, and the "rules" of writing. 

That's the good part.

Unfortunately, I've become so conscious of all the things that need to be done during the revision stage, I've somehow convinced myself I should do them during the first-draft phase.

That's the not-so-good part.

I like to write the first draft fairly quickly, blazing through the scenes so that my internal editor is two miles behind me, huffing and puffing to catch up. 

Lately, though, it feels like the internal editor is a sadistic drill sergeant, leaning over me as I struggle to bench press 1000-pound weights with arms made of pencils. 

While I'm all a-quiver trying to create, the internal editor is yelling reminders in my ear. 

"Show, don't tell!"

"Adverbs are for sissies!"

"Where are the layers of description, using all five senses?"

"You can't use THAT word again!"

Talk about a creative buzz kill. Now I'm second guessing myself before I even do the first guessing.

My brain is power mad with its knowledge of craft, forgetting that the role of revision is to IMPROVE the story, not terrify it out of existence before it even appears on the page.

Luckily, before my characters left me for a writer who could accommodate their storytelling needs, I stumbled across a post titled "Just Go", by James Scott Bell. 

He states, "When you write, you have to write freely. You can't let a lot of craft knowledge freeze you up."

This is excellent advice. But how do you follow it?

Mr. Bell says to "write like it's play". 

While doing that, he says you should keep only three things in mind:  1) High stakes for the character, 2) Opposition that is stronger than the character, and 3) Tension/conflict in each scene.

I think even these three things can be tricky if you have an uncompromising internal editor. In that case, I would emphasize the "write like it's play" aspect. It's during this "play writing" that you learn what the stakes are, as well as the extent of the opposition to the character. Once you determine those, it's easier to ramp up the tension/conflict. 

These are also fixable during revisions, so resist the temptation to refine them now, because it's that need for instant perfection that got us into trouble in the first place.

So, until I've finished the first draft of this WIP, I've decided to keep my eyes away from craft articles and technique posts. Now it's butt in chair, writing like it's play, and keeping one goal in mind:  Story First. 

When I do hit the finish line, that's when it's time to focus on revisions. Although I definitely plan to leave that drill sergeant of an internal editor in the dust.

~~~~~

Is everyone having fun with the A to Z Challenge? I know I am!

A to Z Challenge: Highwaymen

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for highwaymen. They are generally charming, and witty, and chivalrous in their own way. 

After doing some research, it turns out I'm not the only one with these tender feelings.

Back in the heyday of highwaymen, high-born ladies visited them in their gaol cells and wept at their executions. Hard-working men envied them their wealth and freedom (and no doubt the female attention they received).

In short, they were the bad-boy rockstars of their era.

So just how did criminals who robbed carriages earn such a devoted fan base?

In The English Highwayman, A Legend Unmasked, Peter Haining traces the highwayman's popularity back to the legend of Robin Hood, and the need for poorer people to have a champion against those in authority. However, although highwaymen robbed the rich, there doesn't seem to be evidence they gave much, if any, of the spoils to the poor. Yet that doesn't seem to have diminished their vaunted reputation with the local populace.

Another interesting source of information is The Great Road to Bath by Daphne Phillips. This particular road was a profitable one for highway robbers not only because of people travelling to their country homes, but because of the nobles traveling to court at Windsor.

Ms. Phillips describes how highwaymen came about after the English Civil Wars, when people had had everything taken from them, or had no prospects after being discharged from military service. In later eras, some took this career path after losing their family fortunes at gambling, and these are the ones considered "gentlemen robbers" or "knights of the road".

A boon for highway robbery was the invention of the flintlock pistol, which was a great deal easier to carry while riding a getaway horse. Improvement in roads and carriages increased the number of rich personages traveling to their estates with all of their worldly goods. Combine these things with the lack of a police force and it's easy to see how much opportunity there could be for an enterprising highwayman.

Adding to their notoriety were the broadsheets and poems devoted to their thrilling exploits. As Mr. Haining remarked, "There seems little doubt that many highwaymen confessed readily to their crimes, their vanity unable to contain their tongues." These confessions were instant bestsellers, going through multiple printings, so it's possible that a few were fiction, or at the least made more exciting with some judicious "revision" of the facts.

Which brings us to my fictional highwayman, Lord Midnight. He is a product of my imagination, with his own reasons for taking this career path, but he carries on the legacy of the charming knight of the road, stealing ladies' hearts wherever he goes.

~~~~~

The A to Z Challenge continues!

A to Z Challenge: Gratitude

Some days it feels like there is nothing but an endless supply of things to do, and an even longer list of things that aren't getting done. Add in all the writing things that need doing--and nowhere near enough time to accomplish them--and it's easy to sink into a woe-filled pit of despair.

There are edits and revisions and outlines and synopses and brainstorming. New stories must be written. Sales statistics must be checked, constantly, in case I accidentally slip onto a bestseller list without knowing it. There is a constant stream of social media to tend to, with new ones being born every minute.

Oh, and did I forget to eat today? There may not be time to sleep either. They probably want me to show up at the day job too.

A recent day like this made me realize I needed to revamp my mindset. Instead of bemoaning all the writing things on my list, I decided to relish those items. I chose to be grateful for many things that could easily be characterized as burdens. This change in POV doesn't always diminish the workload, but it does make it easier to carry around.

So here are a few of the things I'm grateful for today:

1. People who read my blogs -- Some months I have lots of blog posts to do, for my own blog, and as a guest. It can be tough to think of a new topic, or a twist on an old topic. It's easier to flop onto the couch and whine about having too many things to write. But, I've waited a long time for this: people willing to read what I have to say. It's delightful when people read my musings and comment on it and engage with me. Even better is when they say I've inspired them. How could I not be grateful for all these bloggish opportunities?
2. People who read my books -- I am thrilled that people read my books. Thrilled. When I first started writing, it was agonizing to have someone read my books. Heck, it might have been agonizing for them too. But I get excited when I see ratings and reviews of my stories on Amazon and book reviewers' blogs. I'm giddy each time someone tells me via email or Twitter how much they enjoyed my stories. Okay, I even get a charge out of seeing my book listed as "currently reading" on Goodreads. Back in the olden days, there was no way of really knowing that someone was reading your book, but now you can see updates on Twitter and Goodreads, and it's fun to be part of the reader's experience as they turn the pages.
3. People who read my tweets -- I've met so many great friends through Twitter, and we manage to find each other in other places too, such as Goodreads and Facebook and Pinterest, making the internet seem like a nice cozy neighborhood. I'm glad that people not only indulge my barrage of coffee-related silliness, but tell me how much they look forward to it. When my muse disappears in a puff of acrid smoke, taking with her the joy of putting words to paper, it's wonderful to turn to online friends who make me smile and re-invigorate my writing.
4. People who have read this far -- Thank you for letting me express my gratitude, on a day when I needed to remind myself there is much to be thankful for. I'm very lucky to be a writer, especially in a time when there are so many outlets for expressing my thoughts, worries, fears, words, stories, and all of the other creative jumble that exists in my brain. Writing is an urge that I wasn't sure I'd ever get to explore, and I'm still amazed that I get to do this on a daily basis.

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I'm also grateful for the A to Z Challenge! I've enjoyed so many new blogs as a result.