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Congratulations, Shermie! Wonderful interview. I really enjoyed learning about your inspiration for Revolution and hope you do continue with the story. :) You've also convinced me to get back into audiobooks! I used to be an avid listener while I painted and perhaps I'll get back into that too. Keep up the fantastic writing!

Congratulations on your 2nd place win--that's a big deal. I enjoyed your interview and wish you the best.

Good questions. I think creative nonfiction, since it is based on our memories and perceptions, is always going to be partly fiction. That may be unintentional, but there are good reasons to intentionally alter truths, too. Like the example of exaggerating for humor. I've written creative nonfiction that is as close to the truth as I can get, but I've also written pieces that take several scenes and combine them into one, or take events out of order to make the story smoother. I like this quote from Pam Houston, who writes "fiction" but her stories seem mostly nonfiction: "Everything I write is 82% true."

Interesting discussion! I like how Ben Mezrich handled it in his book The Accidental Billionaires (the book they based the movie The Social Network on). He included an author's note in the beginning that said the book was a dramatic, narrative account based on dozens of interviews and hundreds of sources, and says that he uses literary techniques like re-created dialogue and scenes to move the story along. Because many of the conversations took place in different settings and over time, so he wanted to put them all together. So it's kind of like your movie disclaimer idea, and I liked that he was up front about it because the book is supposed to be nonfiction.

I feel nonfiction should be as true as possible, but I don't have the same expectations for memoir. I don't know why, but I guess it's because a good memoir is intimate. You get to see through a person's eyes and live through her flesh.

So I don't mind David Sedaris embellishing a bit in his stories--it's like a friend telling you what happened over dinner. There are those friends who tell a great story! And you often wonder if it's all completely true. But I think a book like The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks should be as accurate as possible because the author is uncovering an important scientific story about the start of the human cell cloning industry some sixty years ago, and involves an entire family over decades.

Those are just my feelings, and I don't know if they make sense or not. It makes you wonder if the person who invented the saying "Truth is stranger than fiction" wrote creative nonfiction!

Yes, I'd read before that David Sedaris has been known to "embellish" his work for humor's sake. And as one who frequently writes about the humorous goings on in my life, I think that's okay--as long as the gist of the event remains true. If you're making up an entire event, well, then, that's fiction and should be called such.

As for John Berendt, I was not okay with the way he manipulated the time line in his book. If he'd said, "based on true events", I wouldn't have minded so much. But he placed himself in the story AFTER certain events had transpired and he won awards as a non-fiction book.

I'm okay with a writer playing around with dialogue lines, but messing *with* events crosses the line.

I really enjoyed the questions you pose here, Margo. It is interesting that James Frey also claimed that he marketed his book originally as fiction and the publisher suggested they go memoir. I'm not sure if that's any truer than his memoir :)

Thanks for the insight here as I struggle with how (and if) to tell my life story.

Thanks for the comments, everyone. I do understand how hard it is to remember things factually--as in memoir or humor stories--we do the best we can according to our memory and as long as we aren't creating things like going to jail (I mean you just forgot you didn't go to jail?), I can see how the spirit of truth is there. And I agree books like Rebecca Skloot's should be as close to truth as humanly possible. I think my problem is 1. I'm naive 2. When I taught elementary school, we used to teach kids test taking skills. We told them that when answering true and false statements, if ANY PART of a statement was false, the ENTIRE STATEMENT was false. So. . .I guess that's where I am with all of this. I do think a disclaimer helps, somewhat.

Good discussion. I am reading one of Gutkind's other books right now, and exploring Creative nonfiction writing myself. I like what everyone else said. As close to true as is possible. When I read a supposed "creative" nonfiction book, I assume some dialogue or details are embellished, because unless you recorded those conversations, how could you possibly remember every word that was spoken!? I think if you get the gist of the scene correct, the feeling, and perhaps ask those people who are portrayed in the scene if you got it correct, then you're just about as close as you can get. Thanks for the post!

Humor writers get a certain amount of wiggle room, but if anyone else fudges dialogue or the timeline than it is fiction based on actual events. I don't care of you're John Berendt or Ben Mezrich. Maybe its because I came to this world via academia (history and archaeology/anthropology) but you do not fudge the date.

Congratulations, Kelly, on your recent win for your novel excerpt. That is AWESOME! Hard work does pay off. 2013 is a good year for you! :)

Congratulations, Kelly! Isn't it great when our dreams finally see the light of day? So impressive.

Congratulations, Kelly! I love magical realism, and hearing your inspiration behind your story is fascinating. I'm so glad you decided to enter. And congrats on your chapter winning as well. Great interview. :)

Great post, Margo. Your comparison to poetry and picture book writing is so true. If people can write poetry (or a picture book) they can write anything. (Just add more fluff when writing other things. ;)

Also, your suggestion to check out past issues--that's always a wise thing to do.

Thanks for the post.

Great overview of some excellent publications for this younger age group!

Oh, SO true, Margo! Writing for kids is harder than it looks, and it definitely pays to take a class, to get off on the right foot. (Even if you're accomplished in other writing--because honestly, it may be the same tools, but you have to figure out how to use 'em in the sandbox!)

@Sioux: I couldn't agree more!

@Patricia: Thanks!

@Cathy: Yes, using them in the sandbox is exactly right--hey the sandbox, that just gave me a story idea. :)

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Let me try again. I got way too windy on my initial response.

I can't help thinking it's a simple, economics supply-demand issue. There are so many writers, so many submissions, that publishers, in a sense, have the upper hand right now. Add to that the changing world of books, how people are reading and their willingness to buy books, the profits are being spread thin for publishers as well.

As you suggested, I think most writers want to see their creations enjoyed by readers.

I am glad there are large groups advocating for authors. Corporations are, after all, very bottom-line motivated and the creators can get lost in that shuffle

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LOL, I'm giving this a second try too.

I think the biggest dealbreakers with the original terms of Hydra did not have to do with no advance. There were other issues: Hydra wanted the rights to the work forever, they were taking all foreign rights, and they were deducting expenses normally absorbed by the publisher such as editorial work and cover art.

The new terms, even for the profit-sharing model, have an out-of-print clause and allow you to negotiate foreign and subrights. That's an important improvement, IMO.

Also, I don't know about SFWA but RWA does allow monies from royalty to count toward membership qualifications for PAN, their subgroup for published authors.

If a publisher doesn't offer an advance is this telling you that publisher doesn't expect to make much money from your book (and neither should you)?

@Julie: Well said, it is a business and the creative person is often not business-minded. In today's world, we have to be or as you said we will be lost in the shuffle. I am glad, too, that the publisher listened to the outrage though. It reminds me of what happened a few years ago in the children's publishing world with book covers.

@Maya: Thanks for adding that--yes, I knew there were many more issues besides the advance, but the blog post I read that bothered me the most was on John's site: WHATEVER and mostly talked about advances--I guess because I haven't gotten one, I took offense. :)

@Amber: I'm not sure. Maybe it means it's a changing world and nobody really knows what's going to happen yet until you get a book or two published and test the market. I write children's books. I write historical fiction and picture books--neither one of those are high money makers right now, and I know that. I am happy that someone is paying me to write and share that with children/teachers/parents. I guess for me it doesn't matter if it's upfront or after. And I guess I wrote this post trying to figure out if it should matter to me OR if it mattered to most and I was a minority.

To all--thanks for your comments! It's an interesting debate/situation. And I definitely don't think publishers should take advantage of new authors, of course; but I also think smaller and mid-level publishers need to have a good business model or they will find themselves going bankrupt in today's market.

Thanks for posting this, Margo! I was unaware of the controversy with Random House's digital-only lines. When we did the E-Publishing Revolution issue a couple of years ago, I was a little shocked to learn that most e-publishers, with few exceptions, do NOT offer advances. I agree with Julie's point of the changing climate of publishing, but I'm not sure if profits are being spread too thin for publishers. I know book stats have always been vague in the publishing industry, but it appears from the publisher-reported stats that digital sales have increased exponentially over the past few years. But I've also heard from other sources like Digital Book World that profits at the larger publishers have risen while sales have remained flat. Are they making profits because of lower advances, less money spent on marketing, and lower production costs for digital books?

Like many other industries it is lopsided and in favor of the conglomerates. Small and mid-size publishers struggle in the marketplace. I think it's up to the individual author to decide what's right for her. And I don't think you should take offense, Margo, about the comments on the advance. SFWA has always had these strict guidelines in place, despite the changing industry. They even have a list of publications you have to have been published in to qualify to apply for a membership!

But what is AWESOME about this story is the power of the people--because writers, organizations, agents, and readers spoke out against this contract, Random House changed it.

I love discussions like this! I'd love to see more of this on The Muffin. :)

Ang: You are right. :) I should look at it in a more positive light--power to the people--makes me think a little of the scene in Les Mis where the college rebels are waving the flag and singing, "Do You Hear the People Sing?" :) I qualify for PAL (Published Author List) with SCBWI which is my genre anyway, and my publisher is on their list. So there. :) LOL

I was just about to give up on writing short stories and focus more on blogging but after reading your reasons to write short stories, I will keep on going. Thanks for the advice Margo!

Margo, this post was spot on! I also have been focusing more on writing short fiction in the past two years. It's really fun because you can play around with different genres without investing a ton of time in case a storyline doesn't work! I also began writing my first stories for middle-grade readers this past fall and already got an encouraging rejection from Highlights. Your class sounds really fun and affordable!

@catina: I'm so glad! It is so easy to get discouraged and wonder if we are wasting our time. I actually came up with this because of an argument that existed in a critique group I belonged to. I was OBVIOUSLY on the side that believes short fiction is important!

@Renee: So true--not everyone is cut out for a novel or memoir or nonfiction work or etc. Thank God we are all different!

I wish I had better fiction writing skills. But if I'm going to dabble in fiction, I do prefer the short story. I like the economy of it, and it's seems so much less daunting!

I spent 22 years at a career in higher ed. I attended workshops, associated with colleagues, grew in my position, had work goals and measurable outcomes. Now I write and to me, the pursuit is similar. Except I get such greater control, satisfaction and creative outlets!

Julie:
I think you are exactly right. I do think it is similar, but for some reason, it is hard to say, "Writing is my job/career." Even yesterday, when I was on a school visit as an author, and a 5th grader asked me, "Is writing your job?" I had a hard time saying, "Yes." But I did say it! :)

Good point Margo, and exactly right. If authors don't take themselves seriously, all the doubt becomes justification for not working. Appreciate the post.

Thanks, Destiny! It's good to hear from you! Hope all is going well with your writing CAREER! :)

Margo--Hey, your family gets ham with their bread? You should get credit for being willing to go that extra mile. ;)

Yes. Sometimes I think it's a love-hate relationship, but they say there is a fine line between the two. And sometimes I'm dancing back and forth and smudging that line.

Thanks for the post. I'll have to use that as an excuse and blame Cupid.

Yeah I guess you could call it 'love.' Sort of along the lines of that book 'Beautiful Disaster.' There are just enough high moments to make up for the times we'd all rather be waxing floors (if we could find the floor under the layer of dust) except for that one...last...scene that's been bugging us for days.

I love how your husband calls your computer your 4th child. Happy Valentine's Day!

I had a rich career, for over 20 years, in a completely non-writing related field. But writing was like a secret lover I kept tucked between the covers of a journal or even the care I put into emails I sent to colleagues. Every now and again, I'd take the lover out for a stroll in a local publication and once even flirted dangerously with it by publishing a few short pieces.

Finally, as I stared down the final years of my 4th decade, I decided to become more public with the romance. Like all good relationships, sometimes I feel the hot rush of passion, other times, I realize it just takes a lot of work.

Thanks for the reminder that this pursuit is, indeed, a journey of the heart.

@Sioux--This story honest to goodness happened at my house: I made ham sandwiches for dinner (it was me, my two-year-old, and my stepson (11 at the time). I put the ham sandwich in front of him, and he said, "This is dinner?" Now he is not a smart aleck kid usually so I tried to keep my cool, imagining his mom cooking homemade meals every night of spaghetti, chicken and macaroni and cheese, etc, and I said, "Yes, at our house, this is dinner. It's a sandwich. You like it. Eat it." He smiled and took a bite and then he said--QUIETLY I might add, "I thought in the car you said we were ordering pizza." Then I started laughing--turns out we had been talking about pizza but it was for the NEXT DAY, and he thought it was supposed to be that night for dinner, so was a bit disappointed to sit down to the ham sandwich! :) LOL

@Monica--I have to say I would NEVER be rather waxing a floor. Thank God, we have Facebook and Twitter to procrastinate with now--twenty years ago, they had to do things like wax floors. ;)

@Marcia--oh yes, my husband thinks he is a comedian.

@Julie--beautifully said! :)

Excellent point, Margo! And I love that quote as well. Mostly because I think it's spot on--a strong voice is a love/hate kind of thing. You either love a voice or hate it--but you've responded to it!

And as a writer, I'd rather someone remembered my voice, for better or worse, than to say, "Cathy who??"

That's right, Cathy. There's no bad publicity!

Voice is so important! From our interviews lately, it seems like voice is number one thing agents look for in manuscripts.

I also agree with what Jayne said about editors. Magazine editors want a voice that fits with the tone of their publication--that's why they're always stressing the importance of reading it--because if a voice is too distinct one way or the other, they will pass.

I didn't know they taught voice in elementary school. They certainly didn't in my day! That's great, but how can voice be developed so early? I always thought it took years of toiling away at the keyboard.

I took the 6+1 intense training course to teach to the kids at school. I learned so much about writing. It was the first time I'd heard about using the least amount of words as possible to get across the message. Before that, I'd been taught to 'very' my papers to add word count.
In elementary school, voice gets sorta taught. There are scoring guides developed to assess the student's level of 'voice achievement' in their assigned topic assessment papers. They are scored at the state level, at least in Oregon.

This is a level 4, which is a passing score in the category of voice for students.


A voice is present. The writer seems committed to the topic, and there may be a sense of “writing to be read.” In places, the writing is expressive, engaging, or sincere.

Perfect timing for me today. A writer had to wall her/his heart behind a strong force to keep moving forward and to be stronger than the doubt that sometimes bubbles up. Keep the faith.

Ang: I think one of the points of 6 +1 traits is to start using "writer's vocabulary" to talk about writing, and hopefully, some of it will stick with them as they get older. Most kindergartners and first graders' voices sound the same because they don't have that big of a vocabulary or sentence structure to create their own voice. But kids who read a lot can and do start to develop a voice in 4th and 5th grade--it's exciting. And no, we didn't learn this when we were kids. :)

@Rose--I took training, too. I love the 6 +1 traits, and I use some of the tips in my own writing. That's how I came up with that workshop for writers. :)

@brenda--Glad the post helped you. I thought Jayne's quote was remarkable!

What a great site!
Problem: the link for sign-up doesn't work for me.
I am able to follow on Twitter.
Would like to sign-up with my Google info but I don't get a screen for sign up just an error message.
Thanks for attention to this!

Patricia:
I noticed that, too. :( I thought/hoped it was my computer. I will check with Jessica and let you know what she says. Thanks for checking it out. :)

Hello Ladies sorry for the challenges signing up on BlogNostics. Our design team has corrected the problem and you should be good to go.

Jessica

Margo,

You did a wonderful job with the article and really captured the essence of BlogNostics. You really made us shine even brighter then we could have imagined.

WOW is a very supportive community of Women Writers and we are honoured to be amongst such talented and creative Ladies.

Kiss
Jessica

Thanks, Jessica, for getting it fixed so quickly, and it was super easy to make BlogNostics look great. I think it is fantastic! :) Best of luck with the contest and everything you have going on there!

What a great concept! I just signed up! See you there!

Thank you WOW for a wonderful article and thank you Jess for the wonderful write up on me. I'll be looking forward to reading what we get in! GOOOO team BN

Fantastic interview, ladies!! I'm so inspired by Jessica and BlogNostics' mission. I love that you support all areas of the arts, and I'm very interested in checking out LINES and the multimedia aspect. It sounds very revolutionary!

I just signed up for the site and am looking forward to checking out all you have to offer. xo

Angela,

Thank You for your kinds words and signing up on BlogNostics. We hope you like pursuing the site if there is any thing you need just let us know.

Jessica B

Great idea to keep the goals in front of your face and a constant reminder. I do need to think of a clever way of keeping my goals before me and more importantly my motivation burning as bright as it does at the beginning of the year. Best to you in 2013.

You too, Julie. I hung the poster I made in the hallway going downstairs (where my vision board is also hanging), but still, I just pass right by it without really looking at it. So, I thought I'd try this. Maybe it will be my "magic bean." I have a tendency to get distracted by things that are not on my goal sheet. :) Happy New Year!

Ha! Loved your intro. :o) Thanks for sharing this info!

And thank you for remembering Karlyn. I feel very sad about her passing...we were working on a project together for the New Year that I think I told you about. She wanted to start a critique service, and like most things, I procrastinated but planned on launching it in 2013. Perhaps I will still follow through but I'm bummed she won't be participating. She touched so many writers' lives over the years through teaching. She will be sorely missed by all of us here at WOW.

Ang--
You are welcome. Even on this busy shopping day, we have a few people registering and taking advantage of the free class. :)

As for Karlyn, now you can do the critique service in her memory. :)

I still remember a book I read in 5th grade about the Revolutionary War couched in a fiction book.

As an adult, I read Barbara Kingsolver's book,"The Lacuna" and was so intrigued by her description of Frida Kahlo,I read an additional biography of this intriguing artist.

Yes, books--especially fiction-- have the wonderful capacity to paint pictures and create vivid and memorable learning opportunities.

Hope this book flies to success with kids.

WOW! Thank you, Cathy, for the nice review, and Angela for allowing me to be featured on the blog I so love. :) I appreciate all your kind words. Some people have asked me how young the readers can be--the publisher recommends 9 to 12 (or 13) year olds--third through sixth (or seventh grade). There are a few sad things that happen--it is a "war" book. My friend who is a teacher read it to her third graders, and they liked it a lot--but she said some of them were near tears a few times. Just wanted to let everyone know that. :) THANK YOU, again!

Julie--one reason I wanted to write a historical fiction book is because I loved them when I was a child and a teacher of fourth and fifth grades. Kids learn so much and want to learn more after reading historical fiction. But you are right--even as adults, the bug can hit us. :)

Margo,

Dying to read your book. Being from Pa my kids read chapter books about Gettysburg in school but Vicksburg would be something new.

Congratulations on your novel, Margo! We are all proud of you. :)

Great review, Cathy! I agree, this is a fantastic book. I'm reading it right now. I love the heroine, Anna. :)

Ladies, I fixed the Rafflecopter form. A reader e-mailed to say there was a box you had to write something in, but that's gone now and all you have to do is click enter. I apologize for the inconvenience. Happy entering and reading!

Thanks, Jodi, Marcia, and Ang! :) It's super exciting to finally be holding it in my hand.

Mmmmm. Historical fiction, middle-grade, and Civil War -- three of my favorite things. I'll be checking this one out! Thanks for the review and the giveaway.

Uh, does Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn count as Historical Fiction??

After Cathy's review, I may have to move this book up to the top of the pile for the next to read!

I've read a lot of historical fiction novels. I guess my most recent read would be Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. I think it was more historical than fiction. ;)

Thanks for the contest.

http://joycelansky.blogspot.com

The latest historical fiction novel I read was a spy novel set during WWII, The Proxy Assassin.

I would love to read Margo's book. I'm a huge Civil War nut. I have many books in my collection--fiction and nonfiction.

Thanks for the chance to win.

@Rosi: Those are three of my favorite things, too. :)

@Becky: Yes! I don't see why not--set in the past and fiction and learning can take place. :)

@Lynn: :) Thanks! I have a pile of books on my nightstand and an electronic pile on my Kindle. :0

@Joyce: Vampire hunter--Maybe we should write something about George Washington and zombies. . .

@Cheryl: you are welcome!

Mine is when someone asks what you do, you tell them, then they reply, "Oh, I always wanted to write a book." Really? Do you tell surgeons, "Oh, I always wanted to perform open-heart surgery?" :)

Margo,

As for dealing with non-writers, my best advice is to just take a deep breath and count to ten. That said, my husband is of the opinion that it is not filtering when you count to ten out loud. Seriously? Cause it really seems to be a lot more effective when they know I'm doing it.

--SueBE

Good call about the "golden rule" of leaving comments! I'm a web designer right now, preparing to get my novel published, and I'm often amazed at how little people know of the social media world, throwing buzzwords around they often don't understand ;)
This article made me smile :)

Hah! That conversation with your friend is SO funny, and typical! I get the same thing all the time.

My neighbor--who thinks I'm a hermit and does nothing all day--always says, "So what are you up to?" And I tell her I'm working on a publishing deadline, and she says, "Still? So what else is new?" She has no idea how much work and effort goes into the process, and there's really no explaining it.

I don't think non-writer friends will ever understand. Maybe we should write a tongue and cheek manual for non-writers? Ooh! We should make a infographic and post it on The Facebook. ;)

Very funny post, Margo! :)

Deadlines... what is the big mystery? Most working people have certain tasks they need to complete by the end of the day or the week--sometimes they work overtime and if they want to take time off they need to request it so why do people think we are any different?
Last week my eldest sister came out to visit, she never sets an itinerary... One day they rest of the family decided to drive six hours to tour a ship and then stay the night. I couldn't go due to several deadlines--their response was, "who cares, you need some fun." In other words, drop your reponsibilities? Play hookey?
Today I get a message on my cell phone from the same sister. It begins with a big sigh and she says, "I know you're really busy but I'm just sitting here going through pictures..." Okay--so now I get the guilt trip!
But, the night we actually scheduled dinner she decided to go do something else!! Why is it that as writers we are expected to always be the flexible ones?
Thanks for the opportunity to vent :)

My favorite (or non-favorite) was my Mother. When I told her I was taking time off from my job to write a novel, she said, "Oh, that's nice. Everyone should do that once in a while." I'm assuming she meant taking time off, not writing a novel, but who knows?

What I usually get is what Karen posted: "Oh, I've always wanted to do that. I've got this great story in my head." Really? Then why aren't you writing it?

I may put Angela's remark up on my wall: "I don't think non-writer friends will ever understand." Mark and re-read regularly.

Honestly, Robyn, I think you hit the nail on the head. People think that just because we work at home we're not doing anything. Do people understand how HARD it is to work at home?? You have to be so incredibly disciplined because everyone around you comes home to relax and have fun, and we're working right next to them. Just because we're physically at home doesn't mean we can take time off whenever we want!

You're right, Angela, people who do not work at home really don't understand what it is like to try to write while the family is enjoying a movie and popcorn in the next room. I think this is one big reason why it is so important to interact with a group like WOW or some other writer's group--we need to surround ourselves with others who do understand.
(I like Eugenia's idea of putting your remark up on the wall!)

Margo,we get on "The Facebook" and chat with our WRITER friends (probably NOT publicly)and rant and rave (using some very "creative" language).

Or we call our mother, because a mother will give us the boost we need, because she's our mother and come on, we need some love. Except then MOM admits she hasn't read the last five stories/books/articles we sent her.

Sigh. I feel your pain, sister. (And I'm on Facebook if you need a chat-;-)

Thanks for the writer love, ladies, I knew I could count on you. @Cathy, when you chat with me on THE Facebook, I promise not to ask you if you're still writing books. @Robyn and @Angela: Totally agree--sometimes those closest to us are the worst offenders of the fact that we have a flexible schedule.

Too true on the comments! They are golden! <3 I asked my husband to put a hit counter on my blog because I wanted to know how many people had clicked and read. Other than comments or a counter, there's really no way to tell! And comments are infinitely more love. <3

I guess I probably should have named this a writer's pet peeves (plural) since I seem to have more than one I feel strongly about. . . hopefully you only have one or even none in your life.

Oh boy! I loved this post! Made me laugh! Personally, I'm jealous of those who can write as a career and want to hear more about how they accomplish this! Awesome job, Margo!!

My career is not writing however I do participate in National Novel writing month and the only year I did not hit the 50k mark was the year I had a miscarriage. ( I lack the discipline of professional writers to sit down and rewrite my nano's)However my pet peeve is the non-writers who tell me yeah so anyone can do that. Really anyone have you? A full and complete story of at least 50,000 in 30 days. I may not have the discipline of a professional but that doesn't make me less of a writer. These are the same people who complain about having to write an e-mail. I get the same attitude with Art too.

Oh, so many.... the people who assume that once you write a book and are instantly rich and famous...let's try broke and obscure. My mother-in-law who can't write to save her life (oh, her writing is SO, SO bad), but she decided to write a book and kept asking me "how many words are in a book?" And then she refuses to read some of what I write, refuses to discuss it, so I keep this bit of my life hidden away (I write a lot about stillbirth & grief--I had a stillborn full-term son 8 years ago, but my in-laws prefer to pretend it never happened. So there goes my life's mission into the deep dark hole of things that must never be talked about.)

I won't go on...

So I'm leaving a comment, a little nugget of gold for you. Because I could relate. I am always blown away when people from real life say they read my blogs. Huh? Why no comments? I think it's because they believe bloggers are strange and commenting on blogs is strange.

I can't even get them to subscribe to my newsletter and be entered for a change to win a kindle fire or a Google Nexus. They seem to think putting their email addresses anywhere will cause their in-boxes to be filled with spam and/or emails from sexual predators. :) The big bad internet is a scary place. heh heh

I proudly informed my husband that I had received my first offer of publication for a story. He said, "Go ahead. Let 'em publicize it."

First of all, he acted like I needed his permission. Secondly, the man does not know the difference between "publish" and "publicize." He's just not that into my writing.

My mom was nervous about picking up a prescription for my niece. She had to show her ID to the pharmacist. "I was afraid they thought I was making THE METH." No, Mom. I doubt it.

I always encounter the "I have book in my head. One of these days I should write it down." I think they really think all they have to do is take a little time, a few sheets of paper, and a pen, and they'd be done, and don't understand themselves why they "haven't bothered". They don't realize they've only envisioned the story like a detailed video and that the reason they haven't and maybe can't write it down is that they have yet to consider one actual word.

I have this book in my head, but when I try to get it out all I get is mental stuttering. I do just enough writing for my job - fact sheets, technical comments on agricultural policy, economic briefs, that I just haven't been able to motivate myself enough to write the stories in my head. But, I do appreciate those of you who do. It is an exception skill and talent that I envy.

@Anonymous: One of these days that story in your head will be ready to be written down. I think that happens to a lot of us. And then when the words are ready, they pour out. I hope that happens for you.

@Val The story about your mom and THE METH is fantastic. However, and don't tell your mom this, I had a friend who did TSA work in Regan International Airport for a while and drug runners actually choose retired couples to run drugs for them because they seem the least likely to do this. . .:)

@Sally However those same people will forward you every joke they get in their inbox and every YOU ARE WORTHY I LOVE YOU MESSAGE YOU ARE A STRONG WOMAN SEND THIS TO 20 PEOPLE YOU KNOW OR YOU WILL HAVE BAD LUCK message they ever receive.

@Virginia So sorry for what you have been through, but I'm so glad you have the power of words to work through it and possibly help others going through it to. Maybe one of these days, your in-laws will read something that helps them too.

@To all of you--thank you for your comments. You are all making me smile!

I so so so love this. My two pet peeves -- whenever I tell someone I'm a writer they always say, "I"ve always wanted to write," and then proceed to ask for writing advice and my non-writing family doesn't understand that I have a job and I am not always available because I have deadlines to meet. They think because I sit at home all day that I'm not really working and can re-arrange my schedule at their convenience. My mom is the worst. She keeps hoping I'm going to give up my little hobby and get a real job.