Project Update

A while ago I told you how words could make a difference and the Village Earth Press's book A Gift of Hope in the Wake of the 2004 Tsunami and 2005 Hurricanes. It is now available for purchase on their Website (http://www.villageearthpress.com) or from Amazon or Barnes and Noble. A portion of the sale of each book is being donated to Habitat for Humanity International and Give2Asia to help with long-term rebuilding efforts.

Changing Dreams

I remember as a teenager and young adult in Iowa the fascination New York City held for me. I don't recall ever wanting to move to Los Angeles, or anywhere west for that matter, but longed to move to the East Coast. I'm not sure why I was so intrigued by New York City, but there was something about it--at least as I had conjured the city to be in my mind--that seemed to draw me there.

When I was about nineteen, I had the chance to move to NYC as a mother's helper. Not exactly the glamorous job I had envisioned, but I thought that once I moved there, I'd be able to find that glamorous job an begin to live the life I had long imagined. Long story short--I didn't go. Instead, I went to junior college, then college, and finally graduate school in Syracuse, New York. Then began a series of jobs, not a one of them glamorous and none in NYC. I did get to go there, and it was as exciting as I had dreamed it would be.

Then things changed. Somewhere I began to want different things. The bright lights and potential glamour of the Big Apple waned. Instead, I dreamed of a Jessica Fletcher-type life in a small town in Maine. Or living and working in Portland Head Lighthouse in Maine. Though I plead for anonymity, there is an increasing part of me that wants to be part of something. I think I'd like living in a really small town where people would know who I am. Of course, they could think of me as that strange woman with all those cats. But--they'd know who I am. If I could make enough money writing or editing, I think I'd go for it. It wouldn't have to be in Maine, just a small town somewhere.

This change in dreams and attitudes has also manifested itself in my writing. When I was a child and early in my writing career, I wanted to write that hugely successful novel that would become an Academy Award-winning film starring the "big name" of the moment. Now, I'm happier writing nonfiction, but I still have dreams. I want to write nonfiction that will make people look at a subject differently, with more curiousity and more understanding. I want to make a difference.

Back in the Saddle

Well, it's been a while. Though I've not blogged, I have been thinking about projects. It seems as though there are more projects than time. But, that seems to be me and everything. (If you doubt that, check out my knitting blog: http://knit-a-while.blogspot.com.)

So, what have I been thinking about? Initiative--or perhaps lack of intiative. I've been going through stuckitis, a not uncommon disease among writers. Unfortunately, I'm not sure what the treatment is. I have plenty of ideas, and have started some, but then I seem to lose interest--something else I hear is not uncommon. When I have that problem when knitting, I start a new project. That's kind of what I am doing with my writing.

Like many, I have a difficult time trying to decide what to give my family members for the holidays. This is especially difficult since they live 1200 miles away. So, to solve that problem, I'm making them a cookbook. I am also very happy to say that after the holidays it will be available for sale as an e-book on the http://www.sweet-tea-and-magnolias website. Ten percent of the sale price will be donated to America's Second Harvest.