SHOP FOR WRITING IDEAS

WRITING TIP

Decorative Sign in Marshall's department store

Anything with the words story and home is sure to catch my eye so when I saw this sign in Marshall's in Martin City, Mo., I said "Awwww" and took a picture with my phone.

Then I started thinking about it. Or as Young Advisor says, I argued with myself  about it.

Was the phrase true or not?

What do you think? Does your story begin at home? When and where is home? Does the chronology of the story begin at home? Or can you start it elsewhere? How do you choose where you story begins?

I would love to know what you think.

LAUNCHING PAD: a jumping-off point for your writing

________________ is where my begins. As you begin writing or organizing your own  memoir or life story, what will be the first story or first chapter?

When I first started teaching memoir and life story writing classes, I was asked to lead a class at an assisted living community. The first day of class the residents settled on chairs and sofas in the pretty public living room. Assuming they would begin their stories with their early years, I led them in a discussion about things like first jobs and worst jobs and early school days.

For the second meeting, we went to a room with tables where they could write. A lady who appeared to be the most elderly in the group read what she had written as a first chapter in her life story. She wrote about the assisted living facility, her home now. She wrote of how much she liked it and what she liked about it, what her room was like and the meals. Her writing painted such a beautiful picture of her present life, I knew she was a woman of great love and that she had created a wonderful gift for her family -- the assurance that she was happy in her present circumstances. After that week, she went on to write very funny stories about her childhood, but she had chosen a perfect place to begin to interest her reader and to reveal much about her character.

Where will you begin the story of your life?

To help with ideas, you might want to use the  Life Story Writing Workbook I wrote for you to use whether you are writing alone or in a group.

CHOCOLATE INKWELL - Chocolate helps the thought process. What would I do without Judy to help supply chocolate recipes? I remember she had these at a meeting, but I cannot quite remember who the hostess was. I asked Judy why not just make regular brownies. She said, "You could, but these were cute."
Let's give Judy the title of DCS -- Designated Chocolate Scout. (Thank you, Judy. I appreciate it. As do all chocolate lovers.)

Brownie Cupcakes

2 sticks of butter.     4 squares of Nestle Choco-Bake unsweetened chocolate.   Melt and cool.

1 3/4 c. sugar

l c. flour

4 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. nuts, chopped

Mix by hand.  Fill cupcake papers 3/4 full.  Bake at 325 for 25 to 30 minutes.  Makes 18   Enjoy.

After baking sprinkle powdered sugar on the tops. 

They are so easy and they also freeze well if you have any left over.  

For more tips and resources, visit www.angelinyourinkwell.com.www.angelinyourinkwell.com

All rights reserved 2014 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

I AM NOT DIANA NYAD

WRITING TIP

When last we met, I was organizing years of accumulation of boxes of photographs. The closet where most of the photos were stored, looked like this.

 

and this.



My office looked like this.

 

And this.

 

And this.

 

 

When I had the closet emptied and everything piled around my work table in the office, my closet looked like this.

 

 

 

This is where I am no Diana Nyad, the 64-year-old swimmer who, on Monday, September 2, 2013, completed a swim of 112 miles from Cuba to the Florida, accomplishing a 35-year goal.

 

My goal was considerably smaller, and it didn't take as long to accomplish, but there is a similarity. Both activities called for steady persistence.

 

I stuck with it, and after a few weeks my office looked like this. (I loved this look so much, I was tempted to just leave the table up instead of returning it to the basement.)

 

 

 

And my closet looked like this.

 

The albums on the left I gathered from their hiding places in the basement and family room. They were already filled with old photos of ancestors, our early married years, and our daughter's baby pictures. They are arranged in chronological order beginning on the left. The boxes are titled with subjects such as Vacations, Holidays, Birthdays, Friends.

 

As I was working on this, I related my experience to a group at lunch. Okay, I didn't "relate" it, I bragged about getting organized. One of the group trumped my organization with her organization. She "related" to me that she had put all her pictures into Heritage Albums and created an album for each of her children. And written an accompanying genealogy. That is fabulous and her children are lucky, but I know that isn't the plan for me.

 

I am satisfied with my imperfect job. If you have read my "Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook" or attended one of my classes, you know my motto is "Good Enough is Good Enough."

 

I plan to label each album on the spine with the years it covers, and in that stack of boxes, there is a small box of slides that need to be viewed, printed and filed, or tossed. Whether or not, I get that done, it is still good enough.

 

The Writing Tip? In our writing, we can all be little Diana Nyad's. Keep working on your memoir. Keep adding to your life story. Keep writing your novel or poetry. Keep at it and you will experience success.

 

Next time, I'll tell you what other wonderful things I learned while doing this project.

 

LAUNCHING PAD

 

I once sat at a table where . . .

 

Because I love the image of that empty table, I am thinking about tables: empty tables, full tables, tables of food and friends, or stacks of mail and bills.

 

I once sat at a table where my grandpa, wearing clean overalls for supper, dipped the end of his celery stick into a little mound of salt he had poured onto his plate. Next to the mound of salt, was a small puddle of molasses into which he dunked his bread. I tried to sneak a reach across the oil-cloth covered table tor the condiments so I could create a plate like his, but my mother stopped me with a frown and shake of head. Now, why wouldn't she let me eat like Grandpa?

 

Write about a table where you sat. Or write about a series of tables. Maybe you were a waitress or waiter. Maybe you had six children to control around a table. When you were a child maybe you got under the table when it thundered.

 

Start your own Diana Nyad-type project. Write about your life. It's easy and fun when you use the Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook. You can order the workbook at www.angelinyourinkwell.com/buy.html

 

 CHOCOLATE INKWELL

Brownie Candy Corn - It isn't even October yet, but I have been looking at Halloween recipes. Isn't this one cute? Looks like giant candy corn, but it is actually brownies. Or, the recipe says it can be made with Rice Krispy treats. The recipe? Well, I didn't include it here because it contained one of the words that causes me to skip over a recipe -- fondant. However, the result is so cute, I thought it was worth including. I'll bet you can figure out how to make it without using fondant. Or -- hey, maybe fondant isn't scary to you. The recipe includes directions for making marshmallow fondant. And, you already know how to make brownies or Rice Krispy treats.

http://candy.about.com/od/halloweencandyrecipes/r/candycorncakes.htm

 

 (c) 2008 Elizabeth LaBau, licensed to About.com, Inc.

All rights reserved 2013 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

 

WRITING TIP

WRITING IDEAS TO LAST A LIFETIME

(Lifetime -- that's a clue)

 

 

Recently I cleaned out and organized the bookcases in my office. (That little adventure is detailed in a couple of previous blog posts. And, yes, I am aware that referring to organizing bookcases as an "adventure" reveals what a pathetic life I lead. But that is not the point.)

 

 

That felt pretty good so I decided to tackle the years of photographs tossed into boxes and closets. Not just years of photographs -- a lifetime. The boxes include baby pictures of me.

 

(Yes, they had cameras when I was a baby.)

 

In fact, there are photographs of my mother when she was pregnant with me. Or as they said then, PG. Or was it pg. Actually, the subject was considered unsuitable for print so we will never know. Take your pick. 

 Here are some of the boxes. That looks like a photo album in the cardboard box, and it is. Still wrapped nicely in plastic. Never opened. Ready for 200 photos.












And here are some pictures that didn't even make it into boxes.

 

What could be in this hat box? I thought all my hats were hanging on my office wall. Why gracious me. It is crammed full of more photographs.



And then my Gentleman Friend said, "You want me to bring up the boxes from the basement? There are lots of pictures down there." I said maybe I would hold off on those for a while.

 

This was going to take more than one 200-picture album. I hit upon another plan. This plan would replicate the three-stage writing process.

 

Several clear plastic boxes with lids from Walmart were labeled according to subject: Christmas, holiday, vacation, house and yard, daily activities, friends and family, baby pictures, and a few others. You get the idea.

 

In the first stage, I am doing a rough sort. Bad photos, duplicates, and who-cares photos are discarded. If I can remember or figure out the year and event, the picture is labeled on the back in my not-pretty handwriting. Sometimes I later figure out I have labeled something incorrectly and I cross out and re-label. I wish it were neat and perfect, but it is not. I am too old to try to be perfect, not enough time left. (I mean that in a fun, freeing way -- not a morbid I'm-gonna-die-someday way.)

 

Last night, I finally brought up another box and armload of pictures from the basement.

 

After those are sorted into their subject boxes, I plan to do Stage Two. Some of the subject boxes will need to be divided into two or more subjects. For example, I have all the vacation and business trip pictures in one box. Each of those subjects will need a box of its own. I will quickly go through the pictures again and get rid of more and maybe do more labeling on the back.

 

My plan for Stage Three is to pile the photos in their labeled plastic boxes in rough chronological order, put on the lids, and stack them back in the closet. Young Advisor had this idea and liked it. The photos are accessible.

 

Seems like an easy, middle ground approach. Better than pictures thrown into boxes, but not something impossibly arduous.

 

However, in the middle of the night it occurred to me that closed plastic boxes probably would not be good for long-term storage of photos. I need something acid free.

 

I need a Step Four -- a trip to Archiver's to look for suitable boxes. Or, if any of you have a suggestion for permanent storage boxes, please send it along.

 

So, basically what I have done is apply the three-step writing process to organizing my photos. First, I thought about how to approach the task (pre-writing). Then I created a first draft (rough sorting of photos), and finally, I edited and polished (final sorting, discarding, and arranging).

 

Of course, you know what has happened. In the process of going through all these photos, memories have come rushing in. Writing ideas. To last a lifetime.

 

You don't have to set out to organize a lifetime of photos, just reach into the box and pull one out. You have a story. You can write it as memoir, fiction, essay, nonfiction or anything you desire.

 

LAUNCHING PAD

See that black and white photo in the lower middle of the last photo? That's my maternal grandmother. Until she died when I was fifteen, I had not thought about the fact that she had a name other than "Mom." To friends, family, casual acquaintances, she was Mom.

What did you call your grandmother(s)? Why did you call her that? What is the first memory of her that comes to mind?


CHOCOLATE INKWELL

I just discovered www.Bakerita.com. Wonderful recipes and photos by Rachel, a nineteen year old  San Diego, California student. The good part is her recipes are simply fabulous and do not call for any Cool Whip. I really dislike a blob of Cool Whip masquerading as dessert. HOWEVER, using Cool Whip  is quick and easy and so much easier on the digestive system. (Your pancreas has to process all that fat, you know.)  For that reason, I would add a disclaimer to the following recipe: it would be easy to substitute a cake mix and Cool Whip for the made-from-scratch cake and whipped cream. Or make the cake from scratch and substitute Cool Whip. Of course, you would also be substituting yumminess. It's your call.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

photo courtesy of www.Bakerita.com

Oreo Cake

Yield: 12 slices

Ingredients

For the cake
• 1 1/2 cups (6.25 oz) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (7 oz) sugar
• 1 cup cold water
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 (.75 oz) cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
For the Oreo whipped cream
• 50 Oreo cookies, finely crushed
• 4 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

For the cake
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. In large mixing bowl combine all ingredients. Beat with electric mixer on medium to high speed until well combined. Pour batter in a greased 9-inch baking pan (or two, if you don't want to split the cake later).
2. Bake 20-25 minutes (12-15 minutes if you're doing 2 pans) or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool completely, and place in the freezer for 1/2 hour before assembling.
For the Oreo whipped cream
3. Carefully cut 6 Oreo cookies in half; set aside. Chop remaining cookies into 1/4-inch pieces; set aside.
4. Make the Oreo whipped cream in 2 batches. In bowl of standing mixer fitted with whip attachment, whip 2 cups cream on medium-high speed to soft peak, spoon into large bowl. In same mixer bowl, whip remaining 2 1/2 cups cream, sugar, and vanilla to soft peak. Fold into already whipped cream.
5. Place about 1 cup whipped cream in a different bowl and refrigerate until ready to decorate cake. Fold crushed Oreos into remaining whipped cream.
For the cake assembly
6. Remove cake from the freezer. Slice cake in half horizontally to create 2 layers. Place bottom layer on serving plate. Spread about 1/3 of Oreo whipped cream onto cake. Top with second cake layer and use remaining Oreo whipped cream to frost top and sides of cake. Chill in refrigerator for about 2 hours to allow cookies to soften.
7. Place reserved whipped cream in pastry bag fitted with star tip (re-whisk if necessary). Pipe 12 whipped cream rosettes around perimeter of cake and garnish with reserved Oreo cookie halves. Serve.

For more ideas and helps for writing your life story, visit www.angleinyourinkwell.com. Click on FAQ for answers to your questions or click on Buy to get a copy of my Write Your Life Story in Eight Weeks Workbook.

At www.angelinyourinkwell.com/buy.html,  you also can do two good turns with one click of your mouse. Buy my original, exceedingly clever photo birthday cards: make a friend happy and help support Meals on Wheels for seniors. What could be better?

All rights reserved 2013 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Houseclean Your Brain

WRITING TIP

A while back -- quite a while back -- I showed you this picture of my office cleaning in progress. It hasn't taken me all this time to accomplish it. I finished it a few days after the last post, but I did take my time and thoroughly enjoyed the process. A cup of tea, dusty books -- what's not to love?

Photos for Chocolate Covered Strawberries

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Makes servings USMetricAdjust Recipe (Help)

The second picture is of the completed project. I know what you're thinking. Wow! It still looks like a mess. I'll have you know that six grocery bags of books were removed and donated to the library. At least another three bags were sent to recycling and maybe five more sent out to the trash. Yes, the shelves were packed upright, sideways, and on top of each other.

Now I have the old books I really could not part with. And I can see them. They are at my fingertips, ready for me to revisit.

Even though it doesn't look like it, the top shelf and walls were purged too. My favorite things remain. Vintage hats, a page of Betsy McCall paper dolls, an empty Valentine's candy box (even bad chocolate is good when eaten from a heart-shaped box), and, yes, that is a calendar from 2010 -- it has pictures and quotes about chocolate on it.

Now when I enter my office, my brain feels refreshed and ready to go. If I'm feeling a little down, I look at the mementos from friends and good times, and my energy returns.

It's like housecleaning for your brain. Cobwebs swept away creating space for new ideas.

LAUNCHING PAD

The Advanced Life Story Writing Group met this week. I gave them their Launching Pad for February so I'll just share that with you -- since we're talking about Valentine chocolates. Here it is: What is your favorite Valentine candy? Or, what words or sentiments would you write on those little candy hearts that appear at Valentine's? Some clever writer in the group e-mailed to ask if swear words were okay. (Yes, that was Donna.) Well, sure. Tell that current or ex-Valentine sweetheart what you really think.

Chocolate Inkwell

Chocolate Covered Strawberries - These look beautifully Valentine-y. You probably already know how to make chocolate covered strawberries, but read on. This recipe from www.allrecipes.com gives you a little trick for creating really pretty strawberries.

• 
• Chocolate Strawberries

 

Makes servings USMetricAdjust Recipe (Help)

16 ounces milk chocolate chips

2 tablespoons shortening

1 pound fresh strawberries with leaves

Directions

1. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and shortening, stirring occasionally until smooth. Holding them by the toothpicks, dip the strawberries into the chocolate mixture.
2. Insert toothpicks into the tops of the strawberries.
3. Turn the strawberries upside down and insert the toothpick into styrofoam for the chocolate to cool.joyed the process

Do you love to teach? Wish you had a life story writing group? There are writing groups in cities surrounding Kansas City, Missouri and in other states which have been started by someone who loved to teach, gathered a group looking for fun and affirmation of life, and using the Write Your Life Story Workbook - Second Edition. Discounts apply to orders of eight or more books. E-mail me, carol@angelinyourinkwell.com, for more information. Go to www.angelinyourinkwkell.com and click on Buy for information about the workbook.

All rights reserved 2013 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®

Get Your Writing In Order

WRITING TIP

 

Here is what I should be doing.

 

 

 

But I also needed to do something about this.

 

 

Books always trump laundry so here is what I have been doing: sorting, discarding, and arranging some of the books in my office.

It's been great. I sit at the long folding table with a cup of tea, bring down a small stack of books, and flip through them. It's like revisiting old friends. The hard part is trying not to stop and read. I thought I solved that by making a stack of books to re-read. As you can guess, that didn't work. I edited that stack and gave a few books a MLB (most loved books) section of shelf all their own.

I have a big birthday approaching (Noooo, it is not 30.) so along with reviewing the books, I have been reviewing my life. I have to admit, there were a few days I didn't feel so good about the whole thing. But, eventually, after giving some hard thought, and some honest thought, to what I had really wanted from life, I settled into a place where I now feel pretty good.

When we get past the basics of food and shelter, or maybe even before those, what we all crave is love -- love to give, love to receive. The big things, of course: family, friends, good health. But the small things too: good books, a cup of tea, and a bit of order in our lives.

Is that a writing tip? I think so. Write with love. Write about what you love. And put the date on every little note you scribble to yourself. You will love yourself for it later.

Next time I'll have the orderly bookshelves to show.

WRITING PROMPT

Disorderly conduct. In what ways has your conduct ever been disorderly? Ever have a tantrum in public? Leave your clean sheets in the laundry basket until time to change the sheets again? Fast food wrappers on your car floor? Little scraps of notes of your life story scattered among various notebooks? I once received a warrant in the mail for my arrest. Is Albuquerque the only city that mailed warrants for too many traffic tickets. A court appearance improved my driving habits immediately. What about you? Where is or was the disorder in your life?

CHOCOLATE INKWELL

Wonderful hostess and dear friend, Brenda, invited a group of us to her house for a yummy lunch this week. She had prepared two favorites of every person on the planet: homemade chicken noodle soup and chocolate cake. Here's how great a hostess she is -- when I began doing a little dance in anticipation of chocolate cake, she offered to let me eat cake before soup. I might have taken her up on it except that I also love soup.

Here is Brenda's recipe. I think I may have shared this recipe before when my friend, Judy, told me about it. Brenda's cake was baked in a bundt pan and then sprinkled with powdered sugar. For some reason I had thought this cake could not be made in a bundt pan, but it worked fine and was very pretty.

Cherry Chocolate Cake

1 chocolate cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
3 eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Mix ingredients and pour into greased and floured bund cake pan. Bake about 45-50 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Note: Use your creativity in choosing any flavor cake mix, pie filling, or a teaspoon of flavoring such as almond or vanilla.

Want to be a part of preventing hunger among senior citizens? For every set of my photo greeting cards purchased, $2.00 is donated to Meals on Wheels. See the cards at www.angelinyourinkwell.com/buy.html. Share the love.


All rights reserved 2011 There's An Angel In Your Inkwell®