I love a challenge, particularly one that involves pitting my messy old self against my proposed tidy new self. It's far too easy to stay as we are, especially on the chance we're particularly comfortable wherever it is we happen to be -- not that there's anything wrong with that. I just know that when it comes to myself, I feel a whole lot better about my evolution of self when I take the initiative to give myself a strategically placed kick to the posterior now and again. Because without a bit of tough love I seriously question how motivated or likely I'd be to step-up my game, rattle my brain, or improve my personal package. 

In particular, it's the yearly calendar change from December into January that finds me pawing the dust ready to charge the red cape--anxious and exited to get started on whatever it is I've lined-up for myself. Both grateful and appreciative for another grand opportunity to line-up some shiny new resolutions, tweak old plans, and try new things. I'm inspired to be inspired!

Lessons to Learn 101

 

So here we, newly arrived into 2012 and first on my roster is a two month long online class being given by the very fabulous Kristen Lamb. (You can find her blog at: http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com It's my favorite, favorite blog to follow.) From the start it's been quite an experience throwing myself into structured lessons with REAL assignments when something in my psyche has been insisting whining from day one of classes that this stage of my life entitles me to a writing schedule that is a little less structured. (At which point I again remind myself that I, me, myself VOLUNTARILY paid money and signed up for this course.) Nevertheless, because Kristen is not your english teacher from jr. high, but rather, a funny, wonderfully wise, always interesting instructor, this course has been anything but drudge work.  I face, I actually feel compelled to drop the F word here, as in FUN, but I'm concerned that to do so makes the class sound a lot less serious then it is.

And so without further ado long winded build up, I'm feeling inspired to share one of my first and favorite assignments thus far, and hope you will take up your pen (or trusty keyboard) and give it a try:

"Write at least 100 individual words that describe you. If you were a jar of pasta sauce, these would be the ingredients. Memories, favorite bands, favorite movies, favorite songs, foods, etc."

Simple, right? Not too brain-straining. So, give it a try.  How well do you know yourself? If you have the same experience as moi, you'll find yourself a tad bit surprised by some of the words that land on your list of "ingredients."

Here's a little push to get you rolling, this is me:

Barbara Forte Abate: writer, mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend, Godmother, word dreamer, mockingbird, books, cowboys, Indians, mountains, rollerblades, Jesus, Holy Communion, faith, teaching, sewing, painting, creative, dreaming, full moon, stars, thunder, lightening, rain, snow storms, reading, fashion, quirky, blackberries, buffalo, trees, blue jeans, white shirts, vintage clothing, jewelry, croquet, bocce ball, walking, quiet, prayer, solitude, peace, canoeing, This Property is Condemned, Barefoot in the Park, volunteer, history, architecture, old houses, ghost stories, To Kill a Mockingbird, Ave Maria, Vespers, opera, dance, piano, fitness, Italian family, country living, NYC, Cape Cod, winter, The Way We Were, The Rolling Stones, John Lennon, Imagine, Drops of Jupiter, Christian Pop, bible study, quilting, designing, yard sales, road trips, travel, 1956 Thunderbird, typewriters, dial telephones, potato chips, peanut butter cups, penguins, Batman, monopoly, Christmas Eve, cats, chipmunks, gardening, owls, falcons, old stuff, stones, leather, bicycles, Heaven, music, fire, perseverance, truth, dedication, tidy house, sculpture, coffee, pinball, learning, talking, optimism, healthy living, Project Runway, The Office, Moonstruck, corny, laughing, Saint Paul, weight training...

Once you begin and push past the three second interval when you don't think you can possibly come up with 100 personal ingredients of yourself on demand, it immediately becomes very very hard impossible to stop...archery, bridges, fireworks, nuts, bears, campfires, wood-smoke, cheese, lightening bugs, BIG salads, Michael Jackson, Rabbits...No,I mean really REALLY hard to stop.

So, what's your One Hundred? Jump in and share! Even if it's just a handful, a bakers dozen, or half a hundred...

All these years later, I often find myself wondering if  Barbara still holds a grudge...

Seventh Grade, The Bronx Bomber Comes To Town
I grew up in a small town in New York.  Postcard pretty: farms, rolling hills, mostly quiet, and generally peaceful. A new family moving in was immediately noted and carefully watched as they blended in. Maybe it was the leather jacket, the movie magazine tucked under her arm (when the rest of us were still reading Archie comics), or a combination of both, but from the first day when the new kid swaggered onto the school bus, my attentions were immediately captured and have held steady for over 35 years.

Unlike myself, who kept my writerly aspirations safely tucked away for my eyes only, waiting for my confidence to kick in, Janet made no secret of the fact that she was an aspiring screenwriter. Born and raised in the Bronx, she was an all out enigma in our small town and quickly became known as "The Star." When she arrived in English class toting a newly finished script, our teacher was enthusiastic in allowing the class to read and perform her masterpieces. Needless to say I was thoroughly enthralled with this leather clad epitome of all things cool. Our friendship came on fast and furious in such a way that has held on strong for the duration. We've come a long way from the days of skipping school to sit at Janet's kitchen table drinking tea and typing her scripts, and despite time and distance, she remains my top-tier writing champion. It's been a thrilling ride, supported each other from rock bottom rejections to the exhilaration of standing on the summit.  While my debut novel currently makes its way in the world, Janet, too, has had a myriad of writerly accomplishments: writing award wining plays, a movie script optioned by a renowned Hollywood director, and writer of a popular blog, THE NEW YORK SCREENWRITING LIFE:

http://thescreenwritinglife.blogspot.com/

Writing Friends From Afar, Yet Close As A Key Stroke
Social Media. Blessing or curse?  I'll be honest and admit that my first foray into social media was in consideration of what I assumed was a necessary evil for authors with stuff to promote. I didn't get it -- until I did. Certainly promotion is essential on some level in some places, but the true treasure to be gathered from those favorite Facebook groups, blogs, websites, etc, is the connection to REAL people traveling the same road, carrying a familiar cargo, and pressing on to similar destinations. Sort've like one REALLY BIG road trip.

I find it both remarkable and wonderful. These are not simply avatars passing on the internet, they are shoulder to shoulder, pen stroke to keyboard, comrades of the written word. Yep, right here with me, generous, sympathetic, and just as enthusiastic to accept the invitation to my party as I am to accept theirs.

A recent glowing example of newly discovered writer love came to me with the discovery of a most fabulous novel and it's equally fabulous author. Several weeks ago I found myself reading "Tender Graces" by Kathryn Magendie. Now when I say fabulous, what I mean specifically is that I LOVE everything about this book .  I'm talking Triple Crown: story, characters, writing style.  Now, in my pre-social media life, I would have loved this book, studied the author bio on the back cover, and wondered all sorts of things about this mysterious creature who could write so beautifully. Not so in the here and now where we can find books, love them, and "meet" their authors, as I myself did with Kathryn Magendie, an incredibly gracious writer who has much to share and does so most generously. Comrade of the pen? You betcha! (And a crazy cool aside, she was reading my novel, The Secret of Lies, at the same time I was falling in love with her book. A situation guaranteed to kick-up the thrill of reading several notches.)

Writer love is a most wonderful thing and I gladly trade my promotional aspirations for the far more durable gift of pen-to-pen friendships.  How about it, have you been thoughtful in passing around some of your own writer love?