Long Hollow

What Electrifies You?

Author Gayle Brandeis posed that question on SheWrites last month. “What electrifies you? What gets your heart pumping? What takes your breath away? What makes the hair on your arms stand up on end?”

I answered...

Dancing, which I do as often as possible, even to the extent that I missed talking to a lot of people at my high school reunion because I couldn't leave the dance floor. Also playing my drums. I'm not any good. It will never make me any money so no matter how hard I try I can't justify the time I spend on them, but I play anyway, because playing them makes me feel alive. (But only when no one's around. Unless I've had a few drinks.)

And guess what? My answer was the Grand Prize Winner! What a sweet surprise when I saw my name in a SheWrites newsletter yesterday, especially since I had totally forgotten about it. I won a copy of Brandeis' The Book of Live Wires, along with a copy of her Bellwether-Prize winning novel, The Book of Dead Birds.

Yay! Books electrify me, too! (Also winning Grand Prizes and getting things for free!)

Something else that electrifies me is seeing my friends follow their dreams... and trying to help them along the way. Here are a couple who inspire me...

 

Walking the Walk

When I first met Jimmie Jackson, he was a tow-headed golf-loving teenager, rarely speaking up in the Confirmation class I taught. Now he's all grown up with a degree in Electronic Media, living in Nashville, and preparing for the experience of a lifetime: a solo 2,178 mile long journey along the Appalachian Trail, from Georgia to Maine.

Only Jimmie isn't just walking it... he's going to film a documentary as he goes, focusing on the spiritual aspect of the walk as much as the physical. "Why do people hike? What is the connection between being outdoors and leading a spiritual life?" He hopes to find the answers to those questions along the way.

Go to his website, Walking the Walk.org to find out more, and please consider making a small donation to help him see this dream come true. He really is a sweet kid (and I'm not just saying that because I was his Confirmation teacher!)

 photo from WalkingtheWalk.org

 

Indie Friendlie 

Indie Friendlie is my friend Byron Tully's 'baby'. With his beautiful wife, Darlene, and friend, Weathorford Bradley, he created this site to support and promote great filmmakers and great films, the ones without huge advertising budgets, the ones that get stomped on by the bullies with huge marketing campaigns, the ones left shivering in the cold outside of the theaters.

If you love independent film of any kind, go to the site and watch the clips from wonderful movies, documentaries and shorts they're spotlighting in their effort to give them "a voice, a face, an opportunity."

I've only watched one or two, but they were great. "Validation", a full length short, just made me smile and "The Inside Out Project" made me want to stand up, cheer and grab my camera.

Also, if you're a filmmaker, you can submit your own film to be showcased on Indie Friendlie. Click HERE for how-to's and guidelines.

Tully's a sweet kid, too, although I guess "kid" is a bit of a stretch since we went to high school together. He's also very, very funny.

(Full disclosure: Tully promised me one free margarita for every 1000 visitors his site receives from mine. So what are you waiting for? GO! And tell your friends to tell their friends!)

Oh, wait, before you go... What electrifies you? Share in the comments below...

 

Looking Back, Looking Forward

"A writer is somebody for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people."

~ Thomas Mann

If that's so, then I'm definitely a writer. There are times when writing isn't just difficult for me - it's pure hell.

But other times it's heaven, and that's why I stand here in January of 2012, once again repeating the mantra from past New Year's resolutions: finish my book... finish my book... finish my book...

In terms of writing, my 2011 looked a lot - too much - like 2010, 2009, 2008...

It's time to review what I've learned over my two decades or so of writing. I need to figure out what helps, and do more of that, while clearing the hurdles that are keeping me from the finish line.

Let's see... I've learned I need big chunks of time for writing. My writing can't thrive and grow on the handfuls of stolen minutes I've been feeding it for years.

I've learned multitasking is my enemy. I have to close all those extra windows on my computer that tempt me... Facebook being the main culprit, but email and even research sites can be time-sucking tempters.

Other things I've learned: I compare myself to others too often; I need the challenge, support and feedback of a writer's group; I have a problem with finishing what I start... and starting too many things.

On the 'up' side, I'm much better at saying 'no'. Housework, bills, laundry, cooking... I can easily shove the thought of them into a closet and forget they exist. Wearing earplugs helps me do the same with any nearby conversations or television noise. (I work at a desktop in the open livingroom.)

My biggest challenge for 2012? Finding a balance and setting priorities between all of my different interests/callings/projects... writing my book(s), blogging, photography, and my seed of a personal history/photography business... while not neglecting my family, friends and health.

Pretty much the same challenge I faced last year. And the year before. And the year before.

I hope that by next January, I can adopt a new mantra. At least for a different book.

At times

With mere minutes to spare (I thought) I hit the send button, catapulting my She Writes submission just under the deadline wire. 

Turns out I had four hours left - Tom and I both weren't thinking straight on the Pacific vs. East Coast time thing - but that's okay. If I'd known I had the time, I would have used it, staying up way too late. I'm already dragging as it is.

I spent the past two days writing, writing, writing, trying to get those 2000 words just right. Sometimes the story just flowed - I was right there in it. Other times the words I needed were rooted in hard soil;  I had to plant my feet and pull, pull, pull till they broke free.

Anyway, after staying focused on my book like that, and working the whole weekend, I'm behind on everything else again. 

I'm not even talking about laundry. I can live with that. What stresses me out is my email inbox is overflowing and mostly unanswered, I have 341 unread posts on my Google Reader and I have no idea what celebrations, trials or tribulations my Facebook friends have been going through for days.  

I don't like that. Will I ever find a balance?

Today I've been too scatterbrained and distracted to accomplish much of anything. Here it is almost 8pm and I have no idea where the day went, except for the almost 2 hours I spent on the phone with a nice lady from AT&T who tried to help me set up my outdated version of Outlook Express on my ancient computer, and the quick trip into town to light a candle in the church, water my friend's plants and grab some milk from the store.

See, as of yesterday evening, my dad is in the hospital. It's unclear exactly what's wrong with Daddy, but a good guess is some sort of circulation issue, his main gremlin the past few decades. They're running tests and I pray they're able to determine what's going on. (An update before I could publish this - so far everything they've tested is looking good! Maybe it's something minor after all!!)

I jumped on Facebook last night long enough to request prayers, and the outpouring of positive energy in my mom and dad's direction through prayer, good thoughts and love was phenomenol. 

Thank you all! I hope to be a better friend and less of a scatterbrain next week. (No guarantees before then!)

 

I know that at times I will be troubled, 
I know that at times I will be belabored,
I know that at times I will be disquieted,
But I believe that I will not be overcome.
Amen.

- Julian of Norwich

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Good Monday - Writing and (news of) Weddings

Today is Monday, isn't it? I've already lost track.

I neglected so much today - I'm behind on emails, Facebook and reading my favorite blogs, as well as laundry and... well, everything.

But it's for a good reason: I spent the day writing... specifically re-writing the beginning pages of my book for the "We Love New Novelists" contest on She Writes. Once I took a hard look at them, I decided they weren't in shape to submit anywhere.

The deadline is tomorrow. I intended to get up early (as in 4am) every day this past week to work on it while the house was quiet, but that good intention fizzled by the second morning. I just had too many other things going on. Sleep and Procrastination won over Writing (as usual!)

So the pages I submit won't be as good as they would have been if I'd been able to spend a few focused hours on them every day for a week, instead of frantically writing for two days, but I'm just grateful for these two days free of (too many) other obligations and that I'll have something to submit!

Having this deadline in front of me stoked my writing fire; I'm determined to dedicate a couple of hours every day to keep it flaming until it's finished.  

Now for the wedding part of this post... this morning I got word that my brother's new love is now offically his wife! Donnie and Donna sneakily got married at 6pm last night in a small church ceremony only an hour or so away. But I've forgiven him for not inviting us. I just hope someone took pictures!

This one will have to do for now - I took it during their visit a few weeks ago. Please join me in congratulating and asking blessings for this joyous couple, Donnie and Donna!