Story Land Jamboree

 I love it when I meet someone with whom I relate.  There is a lady at the church where I attend. I don't know if she would want me to mention her publicly so I will simply call her "V." She has the sharpest wit. She is always there to help with church projects, even when she is moving slowly with her cane.  There are days when I can tell she's in pain but she just smiles and keeps on trucking with her humor intact. Recently, we had a church event and we're all rushing around and she had volunteered for a couple of duties that I knew would be taxing for her.  "How are you making it, V?" I asked her.  "Thank God for pain medicine. That's all I can say," she replied, dryly.  "Amen, Sister."  I was eating a quick breakfast and had brought my own meds to take and was spilling them onto the table before the event began.  "If your bringing drugs, you had better have brought enough to share," she joked.  I just love her. She...

I feel like a Catholic who has not been to confession in too long.  Only it is me, the penitent writer, who has not written much in so very long. So, I think my confession would go something like this:  "Forgive me Readers for I have sinned. It has been almost four years since my last blog/confession ..." Do I have reasons for being so long away? Of course, I do. My mother's stroke, my life-changing surgery, my mother's death, my dad's health, the pandemic, work stress, life stress, health issues, and a zillion other problems and distractions that plague modern people with little demons that tug them away from what they were meant to be doing.  Some people were meant to be growing gardens but never got the energy to do it for the last year or two. Some people dropped off their exercise routine and their dream of doing a 10K or a marathon has shriveled up and died. The "thing" is different for everyone.  My thing is writing. My non-fiction writing has nev...

 Welcome to my newest True Story episode!  I hope you enjoy this one-minute read to experience a slice out of a really weird life. Here goes:  True Story "The Conversation"  I was ripped abruptly out of night's velvet embrace by the sound of my husband's voice.  "What did you just say?" I asked, using a quiet, almost-whisper voice. It is the tone I pull out of the hat for midnight conversations, funerals, church, and gossip.  "I was answering you," said Keith.  I sat up in bed and peer at his lumpy man-shadow next to me in the bed. "What answer? I wasn't saying anything. I was sleeping."  Keith has been known to say some very strange things when he is half-asleep. I plan to reveal a few of those with time. On this occasion, he just burrowed further into his pillow and mumbled, "Yes, you were. You were talking in your sleep and I was answering you."  "So ... what you're saying is ... we are just two sleep-talkers hav...

 Hello to members of my Tribe!  It's been a long, long time and a lot has happened. Like all good friends, I would like to pick up where we left off.  I have published more than The Gifted now ... "The Gifted: Adversaries & Healers" turned into a trilogy. I have published short stories and been part of some great collections and have another trilogy started with "The Witch of Hadler's Woods."  If you want to know what I have been up to, then feel free to follow my Amazon Author's Page:  https://www.amazon.com/L-A-Story/e/B00VBWVG1S or my Facebook Author's Page:  https://www.facebook.com/lastorythewriter . Why am I coming back here to the Story Land Jamboree after all this time? Well ... because it seemed to be a good place to talk shop, to share funny stories about things that happen in my life, and to share my thoughts about ... well, everything.  I hope you are as happy to see me back as I am to see you all here.  I have missed you.  L...

Good afternoon, Members of The Tribe,  I hope you all enjoyed your Valentine's day. I enjoyed mine -- I really enjoyed walking around at work and randomly yelling, "Happy V.D., everyone!"   There were some laughs ... and some grimaces ... Hey, not everyone has a sense of humor.   My husband, who is a wonderful poet, wrote me a poem for Valentine's Day and I made a special dinner. We topped it off by watching the RUSH documentary, "Beyond the Lighted Stage." It was actually a really happy, fun little evening.  You all know I may babble about my personal life, but sooner or later, I'm going to come around and talk about something to do with creativity.  I think it is through these our art -  our creativity - that we connect with others in the human experience and we also learn about ourselves. Well, we will learn if we are Tribal, that is. (**See previous blogs to know what I mean by being "Tribal.") Do you know when I started becomin...

Hello to all fellow members of the Tribe,  I hope you all made it through another week with the daily grind and still managed to eek out some creative moments to nourish your souls.  As you all are well aware ... (or all five of you that read this blog -ha!) this blog has evolved into a weekly discussion about my creative meanderings. It is my hope that you all can relate ... that you'll see my struggles and humor and know exactly what I am talking about.  I have heard so many writers refer to the ideas that come to them as "voices" in their heads. I can really relate to that. I have always thought of it that way, too.  Here's how the process works for me: It starts with a vision - usually just a scene.  For instance, In my fantasy short story, "Viridis," I had an image of this magical place where the gods reside. A place where humans couldn't view it except through special glasses because our fragile minds could not handle what we were really ...

Good afternoon to all the Tribal people out there,  This week, I had a conversation with an artist - and fellow Tribe member -- Dylan. He and I were riding in his car and got to talking about the ebb and flow of our creative lives. Right now, he said the issues in his personal life had led to a short attention span and he cannot seem to make himself complete any work of significant size.  I understand his frustration.  For a while, after the end of the longest relationship of my life, there was a period of several years when surviving -- being a single mom, working 2 to 3 jobs, and full time college student -- was all I could focus on. Previous to that, I had been quite prolific -- having published a poetry book and several short stories. The ideas and the characters buzzing around in my head were things I took for granted. I didn't realize they were blessings. Gifts.  Somehow, in the course of survival mode, I was drained of all else that I was. There was si...

Hello, and greetings to all members of The Tribe.  I hope all of you wonderful creative folks know that I did NOT forget you this past week. I'm a few days late on writing a new blog post because I have been down, man ... really down.  Why? Well, thanks for asking. I will tell you. It's embarrassing and immature, but it's the truth and if I am ever to relate to any of you ... I have to tell the truth.  I allowed an editor to critique my work. There. I said it. Oh, the horror!!! Here's the deal with critiques ... as writers, we all need them. If you are going to be a writer, you MUST get feedback from someone - preferably a copy editor and/or another experienced writer -- to help catch typos and grammar errors, locate possible plot issues, etc.  The problem with most of us is that we're so excited to have completed something that we just want to get it "out there" where we can share it. However, most first drafts are complete crap! Actually, secon...

Good evening and Happy New Year to all members of The Tribe! Lots of interesting things are happening around my place lately. My husband, Keith, who is a poet, recently got introduced to Twitter. I have had an account for quite some time. To say he is enjoying it is an understatement! It began as a way to promote his upcoming third book of poetry -- "Lifelong Road." (He's good, ya'll. Once it's released, you will definitely want to check it out.)   He set up the Twitter account to promote his book -- the same reason I set up mine. However, he found that he has enjoyed networking with other poets, writers, and music artists. My husband LOVES music (as I do -- it's one of the many things we have in common) and he enjoys finding new prog rock bands to check out.  Allow me a moment to step away from my main point as I have to state what should be obvious to all Tribal folks out there. The obvious is the the fact that everything is changing. Indie bands/musi...

Good morning all members of The Tribe,  I hope your Christmas holiday (or whatever holiday you choose to celebrate this time of year) has been a good one and not the cause of too much anxiety. If you DID have some awkward moments, then utilize it as rich fodder for use in your writing endeavors. Yeah, I mean the stories about the weird, confirmed-bachelor uncle who likes to sit too close to you and talk -- in excruciating detail -- about his taxidermy hobby, his knife collection, his daily bleach bath, and his never ending hunger for Jello. Go ahead and chronicle the exact moment when you realized Uncle Weirdo fits a serial killer's profile, then ease yourself politely away from his presence and run to your notebook or computer and begin your story. I was recently asked by a new reader: "What do you mean when you call your readers 'The Tribe?'" I explain this periodically. Many years ago, I noticed a certain awareness level in people. Not everyone has it.  ...

Good Day to The Tribe,  This week I've been thinking a lot about duality.  It would not take Freud or Jung to figure out why this has been on my mind. I have a writing life as L.A. Story. Under my own name, I am working on what is shaping up to be a serial novel (probably two parts) called The Gifted . ( The Gifted will have two novels following - Criers and Beyond Shammua .)  Anyhoo, in the most basic breakdown of the plot, it is simply about good versus evil - in the world and in ourselves. Under my own name, I will be publishing supernatural/fantasy/scifi work. Okay, so that would explain why I am examining this, right? But, just like with an infomercial - THAT'S NOT ALL! I also write under another pen name. I gave her official life last week on Twitter. Under that name, I write ... um ... darker stuff. Horror. Why do I feel the need to hide this part of myself under a pen name? Well, my friends, there's the question.  Last night, my second oldest daughte...

Good Evening, Members of The Tribe,  I hope you are all living the lives of which you have always dreamed. I have been a busy little thing. I have been working on a first draft of my novel, The Gifted, and anticipate it will be completed by January 2015. Publication? Well .... (scuffs toe at the dirt) ... we'll see. I will have a LOT of polishing to do.  Since my last post oh-so-long-ago, I have moved into a new home, begun a new job with a new company, and have made some life-changing choices.  For the past few years, I was excited when I managed to create a word or two. I wrote lots of poetry because it was an easier form for me to enjoy -- creatively speaking -- than my fiction. Yeah, I know, I know ... poetry is a noble art form and all that. I won't argue. I love poetry. I love writing and reading it. Jeez! Calm down ... It's just that I have always wanted to be a fiction writer. A novelist.  For too long, I have not been living up to who I...

Greetings to the Tribe!  I hope everyone has had a terrific week and that your metabolism equals your appetites. Mine? Not so much.  I have become convinced that Satan is real and he wants me to stay tubby. It never, EVER fails ... I will decide to go on a diet Monday and THAT VERY DAY someone who I haven't seen in 1,000 years will bring over one of her world-famous desserts. Everyone knows that if I do not get to have some of that dessert, I will expire immediately from deprivation.  As a result, I decide to start my diet the next day and one of my generous office friends will bring doughnuts to work from the best bakery in town. Happens. Every. Time. My week will go this way until Friday. As EVERYONE knows, you cannot diet on Friday because that's the National Off-Diet Indulgence Day. If you didn't know that, then you're welcome. Mark it on your calendars. Now.  This leaves us with Saturday and everyone knows you never diet on Saturdays. It is too hard to p...

Good morning, dear Tribe!  I hope everyone has had a good week. I have been doing okay as I have set off on the adventure that is my life -- working for paychecks that are already gone before they reach my bank account. So many bills, so little time .... ahh, but life doesn't have to be that way, does it? It's all about keeping one's sense of humor. I have to laugh. Life is ridiculous sometimes. It's wonderful and ridiculous and it is the little things that can bring us so much joy.  This past week, the thing that amused me most was how I knew I was aggravating people who had to repeat things to me. Someone was telling me something and I was looking right into her face and I would have to have her repeat half of what she said because my mind was on something else. If I am working on something else, or have other things on my mind, then it is hard for me to focus on any one thing. It can make for interesting situations. The "conversation" can go something...

Good morning, Tribe.  I hope you have begun your first weekend in 2014 with style and enjoying the things you love. Cap'n K and I (Cap'n K is my husband Keith) began with our Saturday morning tradition. We like to start the day slowly as we enjoy a cup a coffee together -- sitting up in bed -- quietly chatting about whatever feels important. We do this before our own interests separate us for the day, but we always come back together and regroup in the evening. Today, I plan to go to see the art exhibit of a good friend of mine. In preparing material for today's blog, I realized two equally amusing ideas were converging in my mind.  1. My mom's rain of custard. 2.  I have decided God is getting me back.   First, you need some background: There are people who think I'm reasonably intelligent. (I KNOW it's hard to believe, but it's true.) However, just when they begin to expect great things from me ... well, then I'll go and do -- or say -- somet...

I LOVE making New Year's resolutions. I have oft documented how much I enjoy the idea of a fresh start. So many people I know never make a resolution because they know they never intend to keep it. In fact, I have had people actually get a little hostile toward me whenever I ask them if they are going to make a New Year's resolution. They often provide me with some snarky responses. Forget that crap! I say GO FOR IT! Let's all just take a childlike leap of faith, throw caution to the wind, and just resolve the heck out of 2014!! I saw one of my Facebook friend's posts this morning. It was a cartoon that basically stated if you are going to fail, then fail BIG!  Let's just pull out all the cliches and dust them off. Let's paint 2014 Town red, take no prisoners, let's party like it's 1999, and let's blow 2014's doors off!  I will believe I can do it! Will it last more than 24 hours? Um. Maybe, maybe not. But, until the resolution is broken, t...

Greetings to the Tribe!  I hope everyone is enjoying a great holiday season. (I'm sorry if holiday greetings sound trite or overused to some people, BUT kiss my fanny, I really mean it, anyway!)  In my local area, a few years ago, I used to have a weekly humorist-style column in the local newspaper that became rather popular. It was known as "The Story Hour." I have decided to get in my often amusing stories about my family -- and/or my own self-involved neuroses -- right here at the Storyland Jamboree blog. So .... if ya'll are game, then so am I. Today I may post more than one just to get us started. This blog started off as a writing inspiration blog and now I have decided that the best way to get myself writing is to do what comes most natural to me -- making fun of myself and those that I love.  To get us started, let me introduce you to my husband, Keith. See Keith? This IS his happy face, by the way.  I told the following story on Facebook a few mo...

With little or no preamble this evening, I thought I would just let go with a stream of consciousness rant I penned earlier today.  I have found that silence has a unique presence. We all need daily doses of it to inoculate ourselves from being afraid of it. We crave sound these days because it is a distraction. We don't want to think and feel, or act upon, all the crap we see going on around us. If we spend some time in silence each day, we just might begin to loosen the cogs in our cognitive functions -- we might start THINKING for ourselves and awaken from our mind-numbing routines of work, home, sleep, eat, gossip, passive entertainments -- usually of the frivolous sort -- and DO something important. The simple act of reading a book, or taking a walk, or visiting a friend and having a real conversation, has become overwhelming for so many of us. I think the thing that frustrates me the most about humanity these days (and I speak for myself, as well) is the spectacular was...

Greetings to The Tribe! I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween festivities and have made a smooth transition to November as we journey toward winter. Lately, I have taken up exercising on a regular basis for perhaps the first time in my life since before forced to take physical education in school. I have been told that the best way to ensure that you will adapt exercise regularly to your lifestyle is to make sure it is something you enjoy. That's funny. To me, "exercise" and "enjoyment" are mutually exclusive. Much to my surprise, I found that there is a form of exercise that I actually -- GASP -- enjoy. I have taken up swimming. I have found that, in the pool, I am graceful. In the pool, I am at least 30 years younger and the boundaries aging has forced upon me no longer exist. So, I thought ... well, now I am exercising my body - why not my mind, as well? My little sister, Betty Jo, gave me a book recently called, Do The Work by Steven Pressfield. My ...

She was a just a baby herself. In love, and looking to get away from a domineering mother, she saw her future in marriage at the age of 16. She had her first child -- a daughter (me) -- at the age of 18. Three more daughters followed later. My mother is an extraordinary woman. She is far more extraordinary than she knows. She has always had self-esteem issues. (Sometimes I see a lot of myself in her, in that regard.) She constantly underestimates her value in the eyes of those who love her. She gave up her youth for her girls. However, she did not give up her dreams. She was intelligent and had a love of medicine and science. When I was in high school, she got a grant to go to school to be a nurse. I remember when she got the news of her grant. She stood in our small kitchen area and told us the news with tears in her eyes. It was the fulfillment of a dream and the beginning of a fabulous nursing career. Even though she is now retired, I still run into people who recognize her name...