Find a Reason for Thanksgiving

Hmmm...What's the weather doing now? I'm glad you asked. It snowed yesterday and the white stuff decided to stick around, albeit in brief patches on the leafy and frozen ground. And it's certainly cold out there as you must have figured. I wonder what could possibly be coming next?

All kidding aside, or perhaps not...you might be wondering what's been happening with me and why I haven't been writing anything at all? Well I guess I could answer by saying that it's not that I haven't wanted to write, but that I can't seem to decide what angle to come from when I write.

Lately I've been thinking that maybe my blog is just a bit too lighthearted and silly and that I should perhaps instead be dedicating my writing to something more intellectual and serious. The Election Fever would have been a prime topic prior to Nov. 4 as would the Economic Fiasco. But I don't know the reason why I didn't write something about it as it was all everyone could talk about then and is talking about now - I just couldn't think of anything pertinent to say. And really, does one opinion matter, especially mine?

The reason I say this is that it just seems as if the only thing that makes the world go around is money and that's all world leaders and decision makers care about anyway. Money-Power-Greed-Corruption. What is best for the people doesn't seem to matter, nor any plan that is logical, fair and sensible. Perhaps that's what I'm really grieved about.

So today, this morning, trying to put all my feelings and thoughts aside, I had originally decided to simply put up a post to say, "Happy Thanksgiving" to my Readers, though by now you may be few and far between. The holiday greeting now comes in strange contrast to what this post has become.

How can we be "happy" in times like these? It's a valid concern. I guess I don't know what to say except for we should just try to find some happiness somehow, and for one day try to push what's unpleasant aside and know that there is always at least one positive thing in life that we can be thankful for. It's just a matter of looking a little closer.

Okay, Writer, What are you Working On?

Last night I went to a friend's house for a dinner party. Over drinks, someone asked, "What are you working on right now? Have you been writing anything?" The question took me off-guard and my own lackadaisical reality reached out and slapped me in the face. I took a step back, my mind racing, and then?

I decided to fess up.

I had written a short story a few years back that people really liked. Shortly after that, I began writing more about my main character. This past September, during the second week when my kids had returned to school, I sat down every morning and started forming the writing into more defined chapters. I was completing about one rough draft chapter in two mornings of work. When I got to chapter six, I was debating about where the writing was going. Was the setting accurate? What age group was I trying to target? What have other writers done on the same subject? I decided that I was going to have to do some research and reading, so I stopped production.

More than knowing what my characters are about and feeling secure with the setting, the main problem I have with this particular story is that it's too advanced for a middle/juvenile level reader and it's too simple (or immature) to be classed in the young adult category. My quandary is that I have to lower the register or raise the register, and I can't say that I want to do either one. Why should I have to conform? And what helped me realize this was through reading some other works of fiction. Let me tell you, the content of books classed in young adult fiction that I read was a bit shocking. These books just seemed too "mature" for my taste, and for the standard I'm holding my characters to in my particular story.

This issue - the age level - has remained a problem because I was unable to resolve it when it presented itself, even though I finished reading the books I had checked out of the library - the books that I had so confidently felt would help me solve the problem to begin with. Since then, I haven't picked up where I left off on my story. And this is bad.

So, what did I tell my friends at the dinner party?

I told them the truth.

Unfortunately, as none of them are fiction/creative writers, they didn't have any advice to give. But, I know that what I'm facing right now in regard to this particular project, which I feel commonly happens to writers, is something I have to work through on my own, and I am confident that I will work through it eventually. I know this because focus and determination are two facets of what makes a successful and dedicated writer, and also, the nagging voice a writer hears over his or her shoulder that keeps repeating, "Hey, what about that story you were working on? You have to get it finished!"

What do I reply?

"Yes, you're right. I know I have to get working on it again, and I will. Don't worry."