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Out the window, I could see airplane streaks in the sky as people flew out of the city searching for tropical getaways and quiet retreats. But not me. I would never leave the city. The hustle of city life ran through my veins like water in a faucet. Everything outside the city seemed horrifyingly still.
“Is that an alien?” Katie asked me, crawling into my lap.
“No, silly, that’s a mask.” She reached out her tiny fingers towards the picture and traced the figure.
“It looks like an alien,” Katie insisted.
“Nope. That is this man, actually,” I said pulling a different photo out of my pocket.
“You mean the bug man is daddy?” she asked. I nodded. “Is he in heaven?”
She had one hand on the masked face, the other on her father’s face. And I slid the needle into her neck.
Katie’s father had promised us happily ever after. The preacher and doctors told me I needed to be patient and we would see him again. But I am not a patient woman. Katie did not feel any pain as she met her father. I felt her heart stop before injecting myself to join her. We would get our happily ever after.
I heard the word “cantankerous” used in everyday speech today and it made me realize just how under appreciated the word really is. I think there are many underutilized words in the lexicon.
Mental note to expand vocabulary and throw in some wild ones for extra affect.
Because…Why not?
It’s not good enough to just like to write. It takes practice and dedication and commitment. I would classify myself as a “Wannabe Writer” – I like writing and I write “when I find the time” and I’ve come to realize that if I want to pursue something – feasible or not – I need to make time (not find it) and really practice writing. Whether it be stream of consciousness, a poem, or just writing down anything I happen to hear that strikes my fancy. And honestly…I’m struggling. And I need help!
My overall question is: How did you become a Wannabe into a Writer?
I know the answers are different for everyone, I am just very curious about the individual writing process.
1. They say to become a better writer you must write every day. Does it matter what you write as long as it is for X amount of time or X amount of words?
2. Between work and sleep and exercise and food – where do you make the time to write?
3. If you write novels, do you still practice short stories and poems? Or do you put 100% of your time and focus on your novel?
I want to get better at this writing thing. I’ve started a blog not so much so that people can read my work (though that is a bonus) but so I can learn from some of the people who are living the lives writing that they want to live. Any and all advice is most welcome!
#55WordChallenge: Week Sixteen
That woman looked at my child like it was her own. True she had given birth to the boy, but he was mine to raise and love. The boy’s father was in chains. And the woman will come to understand that I am the child’s only hope to a better path in life.
http://55wordchallenge.blogspot.com/2014/06/55wordchallenge-week-sixteen.html
When happily ever after ended, Isabel gathered her overstuffed suitcase into her arms. The handle had broken off years ago. She walked across the grass to her car parked on the curb behind the mailbox. She shoved the suitcase into the passenger seat and walked to the driver’s side. Her hand on the door, she saw Charlie in the house standing cross-armed in the window. Isabel slid into the car and started the ignition. She shifted to drive. The last thing she saw in her rearview mirror was the mailbox scattered like driftwood all over Charlie’s yard.
