I spent the day gardening on a beautiful day, but all the while I was thinking, thinking, thinking. I have to have another story written for Black Coffee Fiction http://blackcoffeefiction.blogspot.com in rough draft by tomorrow night for my critique group and finalize it by Friday morning.
I always have had a general idea about the story, "Love in the New Millennium", but I needed a new love for Sheila, the character who has come to life since "Love in the Sixties". She is in her fifties,divorced, and lonely now. What kind of man should I introduce her to?
So much of the fiction I write is based on my own life. Certainly Gary is a wonderful man, but I wanted someone just a little different, so I must design Sheila's new love.
Tonight, I took a long walk and pondered the problem, and started a mental list of the men in my life, and a pleasant list it was, for the most part. I finally settled on a boyfriend from my Chicago days. He showed up much later in my life in an odd way and that is the story I will tell though I will probably use some of Gary, too. I can take the best of all the men I've known and turn out a perfect male, with only a minimum of training. Isn't that what every woman wants?
Sometimes, I talk to young writers who spend time discussing how they find ideas. Too often they look to television and movies but those aren't their own ideas, just reflections of someone else's imagination.
"Have experiences!" I tell them. "Travel. Meet interesting people. Get into trouble. Learn to get out of trouble. Write it all down."
After a long life of adventures, all I need to write a short story is a long walk and memories.
I always have had a general idea about the story, "Love in the New Millennium", but I needed a new love for Sheila, the character who has come to life since "Love in the Sixties". She is in her fifties,divorced, and lonely now. What kind of man should I introduce her to?
So much of the fiction I write is based on my own life. Certainly Gary is a wonderful man, but I wanted someone just a little different, so I must design Sheila's new love.
Tonight, I took a long walk and pondered the problem, and started a mental list of the men in my life, and a pleasant list it was, for the most part. I finally settled on a boyfriend from my Chicago days. He showed up much later in my life in an odd way and that is the story I will tell though I will probably use some of Gary, too. I can take the best of all the men I've known and turn out a perfect male, with only a minimum of training. Isn't that what every woman wants?
Sometimes, I talk to young writers who spend time discussing how they find ideas. Too often they look to television and movies but those aren't their own ideas, just reflections of someone else's imagination.
"Have experiences!" I tell them. "Travel. Meet interesting people. Get into trouble. Learn to get out of trouble. Write it all down."
After a long life of adventures, all I need to write a short story is a long walk and memories.
No comments:
Post a Comment