Where have I been?

we are several weeks into the novel class.  tossed my novel aside and wrote 2 short stories, also sepending a lot of time going over past writing journals, since i am still computer-shy when it comes to composing a story.  i get lost when i'm in 'word' but thoughts seem to flow better in my notebooks. bummer, they all look alike, so sometimes there is a lot of digging for what i'm looking for.

BUT - class last week at story studio chicago was once again eye opening.  scenes.  what makes up a scene?  is your character transformed in the scene? no? then why is it there?  had to get up out of bed last night at midnight because i thought of a reason for a scene i have been struggling with  - a scene from the novel i am working on. can your scene do more than one thing - reveal character and move the story along? does something happen in the scene? where is your scene taking place? can it do double duty by taking place somewhere else?  ok, now i am listing questions so i can remember them! off to work on the scene. scene by scene, bird by bird by anne lamott. little by little it will get done. that is my hope.

Days 3 - 7 NOVEL Image

i can already tell i am not going to be very good at keeping track of days.  i totally abandoned ship this week, to use an over-used cliche.  stopped the irish story, stopped the kevin story and started what i will call the 'hanging story.' BUT. i had a mini-epiphany, a miphany.  i realized that the stories that i like the most (of the ones i have written) start from an image, not a character. a single image. that is what the stories i like have in common. AND. once i start writing about the image, exploring it, the characters start to come into focus (wow, it is cliche city here tonight!) the characters feel free to come out.  so, i have 3 new characters that are circling my thoughts now that came about when i started writing about the image of a man hanging in a picture window and passers-by thinking it was performance art. i am excited to sit down and write tomorrow because i feel like i have somewhere to go.  images. 

here is an image i want to write about.  the baby with the headless mom.  saw this in a museum in london on a very rainy day last june. just found this on my phone today. i could hardly walk away from this. the power of a mother's arms when all else is gone.

Day 2 - NOVEL

switched topics.  tried writing the train scene and bored myself silly.  but i need the train scene. or maybe not. anyway, i bailed and started writing about a character i was working on this summer. notebook got wet leaning against my belly at the pool.  so, to sum up day 2, i switched stories. good lord, this is going to be a process.  maybe when the kids are in school . . . maybe when i'm not sitting at the pool . . . maybe when i'm back at my desk . . .

Day 1 - NOVEL

I'm changing this up a little. Last night I started the Novel In a Year Workshop at Story Studio Chicago.  So I am officailly calling today, August 21st, the first day of MY NOVEL.  What novel you ask? Very good question.  I am using this to document my progress, hoping there is some. I will say, there are great people in the class and a feeling of community (wow, i say I'm going to start a novel and then i go and get all cliche on you!) I wrote a page last night - that counts! and tonight i have set aside an hour to just write. i hope the characters are not too tired from the run and will join me!
This first thing I did is I went for a run.  Ran about 7 miles.  Let my characters swirl about my head, no epiphanys, yet, but it felt productive.

So.  Here is the big bad blank page. I am driving children to school orientations and book pick-ups. hope to fill in some blanks.

lilly would be proud

this is george wearing my mother's lilly pulitzer pants, circa 1975.  he looks a little like robert plant, no?  i think if you can rock the pink and green, you can rock anything.