Alabama on My Mind

I'm almost there!

Day after tomorrow, my eldest son and I will making our way towards Mobile, Alabama where I have been invited to speak as a guest author and workshop leader.

One of the most exciting things about this lit life has been speaking, leading workshops, and being open to new friendships via social media.

 Just over two years ago, after being nagged by my agent, I started blogging. Carrie (Cox), president of the Mobile Writer's Guild was one of my very first followers, and she has watched my journey from pre-published to published author and has become a friend. She has been putting the wheels in motion for this trip ever since Edges came out. The Mobile Writer's Guild has kindly paid for my plane ticket, and their library is putting me up in a hotel. I will be speaking on Thursday night and leading workshops all day on Saturday.

This morning she posted a Q & A with me on the Mobile Writer's Guild website. She asks me:

What are the perks of leading workshops?
When reading for pleasure, what attracts you to a book?
Who are your biggest literary influences/heroes?
Are you picky about where you write?
What are the pros and cons to being Madeleine L'Engle's granddaughter?
What are some of the best ways to get reluctant writers to try their hand at storytelling?
How do you balance working, writing, and family responsibilities?

Great questions, huh? Hop on over to their site and read my answers. I'll just sit back and listen to some music while I wait.

Hi again!

I've never been this far South. The farthest I've gone is to Panama City Beach Florida, when I did that reality TV show called Into Character and went to a cheerleading camp. (Twilight Zone!)

My son and I will take a plane to Georgia, and then another one to Alabama. We land at 2PM, and Carrie will be waiting for us. I am going to hug her so hard! I also have a few friends I've "met" on-line who are coming to my professional workshop on Saturday afternoon including Anne Riley, another writer from Birmingham. I can't wait to finally meet them too!

Can you tell I'm crazy excited? Yes, this lit life is a rollercoaster ride baby, and this trip will be one of the highs.

Saying Yes . . .

. . . is so easy - it slips off the tongue, it's my default answer. Everyone knows that I'm a softie, and that saying "no" doesn't come naturally.

But I realized in my mid 20's that saying "yes" to everything without discernment isn't really an affirmation of life - it is more like a slow death.

I'm a recovering *buzz word* people-pleaser. And we've all learned that never leaves anybody happy in the long run.

It's a slow and LONG recovery folks.

As I grow up I'm able to experiment more with the boundaries of "no" and the fluidity of "yes".
Where am I going with this? I set out to write a post about saying "yes" to be part of a Performer's Showcase for the Westchester Library Association, and before I even mention it, I'm off on a tangent.

But I said "yes" without knowing what it was  performing? Do they really want to hear me sing? and then I promptly forgot about it until I got a reminder email from the organizer, who said: if you have any brochures, make sure you have at least 75. Brochures? I don't have brochures, but I've always wanted them, so this was the impetus to get 'em. (Say yes!)

My husband made his priority creating me a gorgeous brochure over the weekend to take to the event today, with a description and some reviews of EDGES and a number of workshops that I do. It's an a la carte brochure - almost like a spa!

I felt so good about this that I wasn't nervous about "performing" - I had a piece of paper to fall back on. (Which is another blog post in and of itself. WHY DO WE NEED A PIECE OF PAPER TO FALL BACK ON?)

It turned out to be very casual, and there were actual "performers" there - a science program - fashion designers - actors! There was one other writer hawking her wares too, and she happens to be a neighbor from Katonah whom I've never met: Deborah Batterman who has published a short story collection entitled: Shoes, Hair, Nails. I am looking forward to getting to know her!

Deborah, the other "performers" and I sat at separate tables so that librarians could come and talk to us about our programs. Mine? Red Rocks and Brownstones (Edges talk), Mining Your Life For Your Fiction, Truth, Fiction and Unicorns, The Modern Diarist, A Wrinkle in (an hour's) Time.

Of course, librarians, if any of you are reading this, I can tailor any workshop to your needs!

And I have to say, all in all, it did feel GREAT to have a brochure to fall back on. :-)

P.S. I said "yes" to NaNoWriMo, and miraculously, I am up to 30k. Yippee!!!!