Writing Before Sundown




January sundown, La Jolla, California

 
WRITING TIP



Gentleman Friend and I had just spent a much-too-short week in La Jolla, just north of San Diego. The weather was so sunny and warm there, even the locals were giddy.


Thank goodness for the message from Sarah asking if this blog had become a victim of the cold weather. Between my holiday and California afterglow, I had not realized how many weeks had passed without a posting from me.


Donna sent a message that she feels like hibernating.


If you are feeling a little too comfortable with snuggling somewhere warm, beach or sofa with bankie, join me in vowing not to let the (sorry, I apologize for what's coming) sun go down on another week without producing some writing.


Here's the thing:  Gentleman Friend and I timed the sunsets. From the time the bottom rim of the sun touched the horizon until the sun totally disappeared was barely more than five minutes. Time's a movin', folks. We better make use of it.


In the next few weeks I will be updating the Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook. Also, Becky asked when there would be a Second Edition of  The Prayerful Writer: A Daily Devotional That You Create so I will be working on that too. Because I have the attention span of a gnat, I have created several pages of yellow legal pad lists breaking these two projects into small tasks. The lists are scribbled and go in all directions, but the steps are listed and prioritized. If you have ever been in one of my classes, you know I believe in thinking as little as possible. Thinking only gets you bogged down.

Oh relax, you know I'm partly joking about not thinking. I do plenty of thinking, just as you do, just as all writers do. When I make those lists, I am thinking so hard I have to fortify frequently with chocolate. But when the day starts, I don't think; I check my list. It might say Make list, but at least I have an immediate plan of action.

You can use my method if it appeals to you; if it doesn't, let me know what method works for you in attacking a large project.


WRITING PROMPT


I bask in . . .  What do you bask in? Of course, the first thing we think of is sunshine, but there could be many other things. I think I would bask in having the kitchen counter free of stacks of mail. It's never happened so I can't be sure. Right now chocolate comes to mind so look below for a chocolate recipe. And before the sun sets at the end of this week, write about what you bask in (or in what you bask).


CHOCOLATE INKWELL


Let's think ahead to Valentine's Day. Wouldn't it be nice to have a millionaire in your life on Valentine's Day? Voila! Done. Here is a recipe for Millionaires. It's from my favorite cookbook, Southern Living, Our Best Recipes, Vol. Three, 1987.


Millionaires


1 (14-ounce) package caramels
3 to 4 tablespoons milk
2 cups pecan pieces
butter or margarine
1/4 (4-ounce) bar paraffin
1 (12-ounce) package semisweet chocolate morsels


Melt caramels in milk over low heat; add pecans. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto buttered waxed paper. Chill. Melt paraffin and chocolate morsels in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Dip candy into chocolate, and return to waxed paper. Chill. Yield: 3 1/2 dozen.

Find more writing tips, prompts, resources, questions and answers at http://www.angelinyourinkwell.com/.

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Do It Now and Chocolate Sandwiches

WRITING TIP

Here are my daffodils gone wild that I should have included last week. Took a while to find the photo. I haven't quite mastered Photoshop. Actually, I can't even use the organizer, probably the simplest part of Photoshop. Now, I can't take a class to learn. My version is obsolete. There's a lesson there: Do it now. Whatever it is -- do it now.

Susan Sanders is a great example of what happens when you do it now. I met Susan when she came to a life story writing class I was teaching.

A little more than a year ago, Susan's partner of twenty years passed away after a sudden illness. Susan had been keeping journals for years; but after Kathy Ruth's death, Susan started new writing, and in one year, wrote and self-published a 208-page soft cover memoir -- Quicksand, A Love Story.

Susan was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. The back cover of the book describes her this way: "... this Southern woman was different. Yes, she was married. Her husband was a doctor. She was a psychotherapist. But, she was also gay.

Okay, if you are having a little jolt of discomfort because you are reading about a gay woman here, let me tell you about something that has been in the news lately. One important way to keep your brain active and lively as you age, is to engage in discussion about new ideas, even ideas with which you disagree. You may never agree, but it will give your brain a workout. Or maybe a memoir by a gay woman is fine with you.

Either way, when you read Susan's story, you can't help but relate to the universal themes of love and grief. And, through Susan's efforts there is now a gay-lesbian grief support group in Kansas City.

Susan will be signing her book on Saturday, May 8, 1-3 pm, at the Border's on Metcalf just south of 119th in Overland Park, Kansas. The book is funny and sad and enlightening. The signing is worth attending just to meet Susan and to hear her southern accent.

Susan told me she had been trying to figure out how to shape all the writing in her journals into a memoir. She said that a line from my Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook (available at www.angelinyourinkwell.com/buy.html) was the key to the process. The line (p.16): Imagine yourself at lunch with a friend.

So -- what is the Writing Tip today? Do it now.

WRITING PROMPT

Answer the following question. Imagine yourself at lunch with a friend. The friend asks, "How did you become the person you are today?"

CHOCOLATE INKWELL

This is a recipe so simple you can do it now. I think this recipe is from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine. (When will I remember to name and date pages I rip from magazines?) If your morning was like mine -- furnace repair and health insurance company telephone recordings -- we deserve this comforting treat, don't you think?

Milk Chocolate and Peanut Butter on Pound Cake Sandwiches

Butter 4 slices pound cake. Place 2 slices, buttered side down, on a work surface.
Top each with 1 1/2 teaspoons creamy peanut butter and 1 tablespoon melted milk chocolate.
Top each with 1 slice pound cake, buttered side up.
Heat a medium skillet over medium. Add sandwiches and toast, flipping once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side.
Slice each sandwich into 4 pieces and serve warm. (Serves 4)
My note: Oh yeah? Make that Serves 1.

Find more writing resources and fun stuff at www.angelinyourinkwell.com