Some people ask me to elaborate on whether some posts are based upon fact or fiction and I ask if it really matters or not.
They say I haven’t answered the question and I nod and smile.
They add follow questions about divorce and where things lie and I nod and smile again.
“You still haven’t answered. Why won’t you confirm whether it is a story or real.”
“And I may never or I might, doesn’t really matter to you or to me whether I do. That story can be whatever you want to make of it.”
Your Writing Must Be So Interesting
Someone slipped into the blog and spent some real time reading and searching for something, though I can’t say what it was they were looking for.
Makes me snort, some of the charactes who slip into this joint and spend time searching for something. If you know me and are interested you ought to take a moment to ask me whatever question(s) you have.
Granted I may not choose to answer but that is because not everyone is entitled to answers. There is no obligation, especially if those who are searching have chosen not to have a conversation.
You might be amazed how much you can learn by being direct and asking a question.
Put On Your Boogie Shoes
If you believe that the universe sends you signs and signals you might hear KC & The Sunshine Band signing Boogie Shoes as a sign to step outside of your comfort zone.
Or maybe you’ll say there is nothing special about it coming on because it was next on the iTunes shuffle playlist.
If you are me you won’t spend much time thinking about whether it is or isn’t because you are too busy trying to just write. Too busy trying to add layers of substance to the prose you are putting down on paper.
Or maybe I ought to say I am doing my best to just write what I feel and to share the tales my heart has been telling without concern about how they are going to be received.
Because good things happen when I don’t allow paralysis of analysis to influence whether I press publish or not.
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Write from the heart and edit with the head means take a moment to make sure you haven’t published a post that is riddled with typos and grammatical errors.
Someone accused me of having intentionally misinterpreted what they wrote about the assassination of the United Healthcare CEO.
They were irked when I told them the problem originated with their poorly constructed post and further irritated when I pointed out the typo in their response to me.
I wasn’t trying to be a jerk or to suggest I don’t make any errors because I find my share of mistakes in my content. However I understand the importance of clarity and how easily things can be misunderstood.
When they asked me how I would say it it didn’t require much effort. “Healthcare is in dire need of reform but murder will not create that reform. It’s wrong and ineffective.”
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Write from the heart and edit with the head means you need to put out material that doesn’t bore you or the reader. You need to put emotion into it and give them something they can relate to. Give them something their imagination can take and run with.
Perhaps a quote and then something aligned with it.
As for me, well I am still running with the moon and doing the best I can with whatever tools and resources I have during whatever moment I occupy in time and space.
What I know for certain is there are people who come into our lives who turn them upside down and inside out. If you open the eyes inside your chest and clear the clutter from your soul they will help you wake up and remember who you are and who you might have been.
They’ll help you realize that there is more to life than just going through the motions and force you to contemplate a different way of looking at life than you currently employ.
Technically I used those words elsewhere but I am repurposing them for this post. I’ll wrap this up with something I wrote about my daughter and I nine years ago when she was 11.
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She is 11 going on 30 and intent on finding her way and place in the world at breakneck speed. She has a million questions and thoughts about life and hits me with as many as she can.
I smile and tell her I’ll answer some but not all.
“I have been heart broken and heartbreaker. Horses are expensive, how about we stick to bikes for now.”
She looks at me and tells me my answers lacked details.
“Want to know something that the women of my life have all complained about?”
I wait for her to lean in closer and then I whisper in her ear, “I don’t give out many details.”
“Daddy, girls like details. I know you know that.”
I smile and tell her that is precisely why I don’t give many.
“Grandma is right, you like being a pain-in-the-ass.”
I smile and nod my head.
“Here is another detail, when you start dating at 98 I’ll still be around to punch the boys in the nose.”
She laughs and rolls her eyes at me.
“You are ridiculous, you’ll be dead when I am 98.”
I laugh and hug her.
****
That Gaiman quote that I opened this piece with is a favorite of mine because it is so relatable for me.
Good writing days are of paramount importance and not always predictable. Sometimes the words flow freely and some less so.
But even when you feel like you are in a rhythm you cannot guarantee you will like the content you have produced or that it will resonate with other.
Still you have to try and you have to accept writing is subjective and what you think is great/awful may be viewed differently by others.
So you write with your heart and edit with your head and hope the mix is magical.
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