On Writing

I recently went to A Muddy Cup* for coffee with a new friend who is a published author. Over my outrageously decadent Nutella mocha, I asked her to fill me in on her writing process, after which she asked, as people often do, if I write. There seems to be a widespread perception that every children's librarian has a half-written fantasy novel tucked away in her underwear drawer.

I said no, that I don't have a story begging to be written, nor for that matter any great talent. And then she asked the simple question that started me down a breadcrumb trail, "but do you ever just do it for yourself, because you enjoy writing?" Hmm... while revising proposals and crafting work emails do not make my heart sing, I noticeably perk up when it is time to haul out my First Mate's Log, which documents our summer sailing trips through the San Juan and Gulf Islands.

So now my goal is to read less to give me time and space to write - basically, consume less, create more. When I do read, I've narrowed my focus to memoirs, books on writing, best books of 2013 and new books from favorite authors. I admit, not quite a laser-beam focus (and I still managed to read 18 books in February), but I have been scribbling during bumpy bus rides and have posted blog entries once a week since MLK Day.  And I feel much more like the writers of my fantasies, going on artist dates and making lists of wishes and passions.

In a bit of synchronicity, I was approved to go to the Western Washington University Children's Literature Conference, which I just returned from. It featured an all-star line-up of Jennifer Holm, Laura Vaccaro Seeger, Nic Bishop and Steve Sheinkin (his book Bomb is so good). I've been to two of these conference in previous years, but this year's speeches particularly resonated with me.

My takeaways:

• You don't need a special space to write - your bedroom or kitchen table will do
• If someone or something makes you nervous, there's probably a story aching to be told
• Lessons learned from life come together in unexpected ways
• Be ruthless - sometimes you have to cut something you love to create a stronger whole
• There are far more lizards and snakes being delivered via FedEx than I ever realized
• Don't worry about a particular audience, write what thrills you
• There's lots of meat in family stories

So I'll see how it goes.  My goal for this blog was to post at least 8 weeks in a row and reassess from there. Next week is week 8 and I'm leaning toward continuing. I'd like to chat a little more with my parents about their childhood stories. I know surprisingly little about their favorite dinners, toys and best friends from childhood. Even if it doesn't turn into a writing project, it should still be worthwhile.

Do you have any new projects that you're working on? (Yes, I will keep asking questions in the hope that SOMEONE posts a comment on a post other than my 20 things for 2.0 posts)

*yes, I realize that it is strange to post a Facebook link during my fast, but they don't have a website and I feel like I should promote a site or page that they created, rather than relying on Yelp