I Feel Good! I'm Going to Write Now

 It's what I call myself. Once I got the courage. When the writing group published our anthology, I called myself an author. But imposter syndrome is real.

The doctor finally prescribed a medicine that has nearly eliminated my pain. Miracles happen! Well, they do to me. Last night, I experienced a good night's rest, a first in about a year. Today, I didn't mind doing the laundry. Even after running a couple of errands, I didn't feel exhausted. 

You can't imagine how relieved I am. To get out of bed and be able to walk down the hall on feet that do not feel like railroad gravel is amazing. I can't describe getting out of a chair without my knees locking and screaming at me to sit down. Of course, walking anywhere for even a half-dozen steps seems like you won the lottery. 

My hands? You know the clunky things I used to write with... yeah, fingers. They're not hurting as much and they haven't been swelling. I have worn elastic fingerless gloves for at least a year now, not every night, but most. Haven't worn them at all this week. My fingers still hurt, but moving them is easier, and they hurt much less. 

I could even write a bit a over the weekend. That was the best feeling of all. I craved to write so much; only to find my hands hurt, my hips were excruciating, and my brain seemed to have taken a long trip. Pain steals every ounce of energy and joy. When I did write, I managed a few hundred words and have to stop and the writing was horrible. 

I am optimistic that the medicine will help me get back to writing regularly. One thing is for sure, I've done a lot of reading. I'm at 39 books on Goodreads and in the process of reading another right now. I've also been reading my Bible a lot more. I do a daily study in YouVersion every day but I also read my own Bible. 

If you're not into reading the Bible, I'd encourage you to do so. Even if you're not a Christian. If you're educated, profess to know a lot, and haven't read the cultural icons of the nation you live in, or in fact, the world, you're not educated. Most of our US Presidents have read the Bible. I suspect many world leaders have read it. To ignore something that has deeply impacted the government of our country and may others is just stupid.

Sermon over. 

Are you writing? Are you a writer? Do you suffer from imposter syndrome? You may be entitled to ... never mind.  

I feel so much better!

 

Thoughts and Books

Five days into the new year and I've done to too little writing. I got off to a rocky start this month. For weeks, severe back and leg pain have kept me tethered to a chair which only makes it worse. Getting out of bed was difficult. The recent shift in weather from rainy to less rainy improved this. I‘ve been better for two days now although my hips keep catching, forcing me to pause before going forward.

I sound like an old jalopy. The fenders rattle, the paint is flaking, and I’m held together with duct tape and bailing wire.

For a few days I’ve been considering my WIP: All That’s Holy. I want to find the problems with the story line and get the plot back on track. I lost my way on it and each time I try to get back on target I become frustrated with it. What I want to do this week is to write a summary of the story. I don’t know if I can do it but I’ll try, barring some kind of chaos, that is. One must always plan for chaos.

This will be a short post but I want to mention a book I’m reading. I checked it out of the library when I saw it online somewhere. Steering the Craft - A 21st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of the Story by Ursula Le Guin.

I’ve not read Le Guin before this but 13% in and I like what I’m reading. She continues to carry the nautical theme throughout the text. This is like a mini writing workshop and she has exercises at the end of each chapter. According to the introduction, she based the book on a workshop she held and the students who attended, even using her notes from the event.

Another novel I‘m reading is The Dead Travel Fast by Deanna Raybourn. Ms. Raybourn has two other series I’ve been reading and they’re outstanding. The first one, the Lady Julia Grey Series is great and clean. No sex scenes. Why is that notable? The amount of erotica floating around these days almost makes it necessary to wear waders to the bookstore. If you’re into that, OK. I'm not. I need not enrich my sex life and if I did, it wouldn’t be from someone else’s imagination.

The second set is The Veronica Speedwell, and this one is more…  risque. No sex but the main character admits to regular affairs and is open-minded about such things. Again, the mystery carries the story and there are no lurid scenes with a blow by blow account. There’s not even any swearing.

Raybourn’s works are great. The Dead Travel Fast differs from the others because it is about vampires. Is there a vampire? I don’t know. I'm not halfway through it yet.  All the novels take place during the Victorian period and Raybourn carries the settings off well.

If you’re looking for a good mystery, with an interesting setting, and amusing characters you can’t miss with any of these.

I’m ready to call it a night. I’ve swept floors, made beds, cleaned the kitchen, and washed two loads of laundry. We’re so happy that was all there was to wash. My back hurts from sweeping. I also helped Sarah with homework and that is a chore. I'm thankful that the house is spotless tonight.

I'll wish you all a good night and hope you have a great writing week.

Writing Things

Courtesy Pixabay.com

September has been an unusual month and I'm just 9 days into it. I've not written much of my own since the last post. A variety of issues: unrelenting pain of the joints, skin, and tissue, birthday celebrations, and a house in dire need of cleaning have all played a part in my failing to write and perform said cleaning. 

I had a good day this week where I rapidly put away most of the laundry from last week and finished up my granddaughter's bedroom redo, i.e. hanging her pictures, plaques, and decorative items on the freshly painted walls. Also, there are now three loads of fresh laundry keeping company with the laundry which remained from my... well, this is getting as tiresome as the laundry. Just know there's still a pile of laundry. And my feet now are extremely unhappy with their enforced half day march.

I have been making an effort to read more since all over body pain makes it virtually impossible to do anything but lie in a chair that does little to alleviate pain in the pressure points. I've got several books started. Several others I've stopped because.. well, they just didn't hold my fog shrouded interest. I've taken steps to help with this by taking books to the bathroom. One always finds one can concentrate better there. Sadly, the accommodations are not equal to the Lazy Boy. Still, one might get a chapter read at times. It is unfortunate that I can't read in the shower.

Another thing I've been doing is editing the short stories for the anthology. I'm able to sit for this, but I found the long bouts at the computer to be not so good for my back and neck. However, the writers have turned them all in and now we're in the editing/revising stage. We only have two people editing so it is going to take a while and the pain involved will have to be borne. I'm doing the first round, a line edit. They revise. The next editor gets the next round. I will probably have to reread the finished product to ensure everything is formatted, but I don't want to put the horse behind the cart. 

I actually managed a visit to the library the day I had to pick up a prescription from the doctor's office. If you really want to know, see  Update to Medical Woes. I have to mail that in but I've not done it yet. Again, just getting up and doing simple tasks has been difficult with the overall pain. 

Anyway, I checked out several books I wanted to attempt to read. I am reading Spunk & Bite by Arthur Plotnik. Obviously, any writer should get the humor in the title. The cover states it is "A writer's guide to punchier, more engaging language & style." I've found it amusing and I'm actually enjoying the author's ideas of "punchier language". He practices what he preaches, to the extreme to prove a point. The title of the first chapter is E. B. Whitewashed  and he tells about the creation and subsequent incarnations of Strunk & White The Elements of Style. I recommend both books. 

I'm also reading Bloody Mary, by J. A. Konrath, that I got free for Kindle some time ago. I haven't read Konrath before, but I like his writing. This particular book is good and will probably mean that I'll read more of Konrath. That's the beauty of free. I think I've figured who the perp is and I'm not at the halfway point, but his intro promised a twist in the middle so maybe not. He writes so well and the pace is so quick that it is easy to forget how long you've been reading. I couldn't put it down last night and stayed up past my bedtime, which could account for my oversleeping this morning and having to rush to get Sarah to school. Obviously, the brain fog only extends so far.

I checked out two other books that looked interesting, but I'm not sure I'll get them read or even started. 

Fiction First Aid by Raymon Obstfeld: I like the format and the chapter titles sound interesting, so I really want to at least read some of it. It is the kind of book I'd buy for my reference shelf.

Murder and Mayhem, A Doctor Answers Medical & Forensic Question for Mystery Writers  by D. P. Lyle, M.D.: I have to say this book would be handy for any writing. It covers a hospital full of medical issues in question/answer format. You may get a little first aide along the way. I've only scanned some of it. I told my son today that I wasn't sure I could actually read the whole thing. It is quite gruesome in places, a necessity if you're doing research. There is a disclaimer in the preface that says the book is not to be used in the commission of any criminal activity. I believe he's also written a sequel. There are apparently so many ways to die it can't be covered in one book.

How To Write A Damn Good Mystery by James N. Frey: I've read something by Frey before but can't remember the name of the book. I've wanted to read this one for a while but ... never mind. So, I checked it out. If it seems useful I'll buy a copy from Amazon. 

Don't be shocked by the volume of volumes.  I used to check out twice this many books before I drifted into the Fibro Fog Bank. These days I take it a book at a time, but it is horrible for a book lover to do that. I want piles of them around me, reading a bit from each daily. I simply have problems concentrating for long periods of time on certain types of things. 

My next trick will be to work on a couple of my pieces. I'm going to stop worrying about how much writing I do and just worry about getting any writing done. 

Right.