It was a thrill to have a book signing at my local B&N almost six years ago! The month of my 50th birthday had been a busy time in 2006. I was quite the local celeb; in newspapers and all that jazz! Talk about your 15 minutes of fame - it was a dream I NEVER had! I've been writing in fits and starts since then; at times I'd get frustrated by that. Then it occurred to me that I won't publish again until I have something of importance to say. Much as I like to talk, I'm not crazy enough to think everything I write is of interest to folks, or good for public consumption....
However, as Bob Marley and the Wailers said, "I've got so much things to say!" (always loved that song!) My magnum opus (at least in my mind) is titled Hosea's Wife, a novel. I've been plotting, outlining, planning, thinking, dreaming, and scribbling it out for almost 10 years! I'm totally getting that it takes a LOT OF DISCIPLINE to write a novel. (oy vey, that's so not me!) Then there's a collection of short short stories and poems that belong to The Woman in My Attic - 12 years in the making and counting. I've got an unfinished manuscript titled This October - a very special piece about and for women... "the sisterhood" of us. (I posted an excerpt from it on this blog called I Am My Sister's Keeper). I think men might find it beneficial, too. And then there's a children's book with Penny's Worth as the working title. There's a short, short story completely finished titled, The Taste of Sin - it is being considered for inclusion in an anthology. I have a few other poems that are published in anthologies and quite a few throughout the internet, under my former screen name, Alyce. So, yeah, I've got a lot stuff from 10-12 years ago that I rather flippantly posted online (poetry websites, etc.), and even more unfinished business in the works. I have no idea if they will ever see the light of day.
Come, Joy! (PublishAmerica, 2005) is a collection of poems that had been written over a period of seven years. It emerged from a time of intense inspiration. I didn't set out to publish it as a body. However, at the urging of other writers to publish, I found that the body was there already. And as I posted in another place, one of my girlfriends, Gay Johnston, found the journey. I simply gathered together about 70 poems that were speaking to me in clear, distinct ways, and gave them to her. I even added a poem that I didn't think belonged with the rest, and told her there was one that I felt was out of place without saying which one it was. After about a week, she met with me and showed me four categories/chapters she found. Sure enough, she also identified the poem that didn't fit!
It was a beautiful, busy time, that year 2005-2006. Doing the work , as I'd heard Maya Angelou say in an interview years ago, was all important. Getting the work done... became my reward, my joy. If I never wrote another word, or published another book - I did the work! I got it done. Writing is indeed something I enjoy, but I'm not good with deadlines, I tried my hand at freelance journalism with online and traditional newspapers. Very grateful for the experiences, but I know I'm better writing as the Spirit moves. I'll wait for the divine directive to publish again as well.
I'm gonna sign off now, and share these pics I found tucked away in a file I thought I'd lost....
Kinda makes me want to finish at least one of my incomplete manuscripts! As you can see by all my teeth, I was a happy gal! Kinda makes me want to do it again...
Sharing a little bit from the book... as Shelby comes from the stacks!
Great work!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
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