The cottonwood is one of my favorite trees here on our three and a half acres. It has been hit by lightning, attacked by the wind, and beaten mercilessly by woodpeckers. When we moved here 45 years ago, it was probably about 12 feet high. Now it reaches for the clouds with scarred and aged arms. Kind of like my husband and me.
I remember rolling my eyes when my mother would wax rhapsodic about the views from the windows of the country house where I grew up. Now it's me who does it on nearly a daily basis. Sunrises and sunsets are two of my favorite things--harbingers of hope for both the day ahead and a better tomorrow.
I have grown too contented.
It makes writing hard because, while I was never particularly good at creating conflict in stories, I'm even worse now. Too often, when I read, I'm the one rolling my eyes at the conflicts in stories. I'm thinking, Have a conversation, for heaven's sake! or If she hasn't gotten over it in the 20 years since it happened, she's not likely to because of how his jeans fit, is she? or Compromise! Ever heard of it?
.jpg)
When I finished Book 3 of the Second Chances series a couple of weeks ago, I found myself out of contract but not ready to quit. So now I'm officially writing women's fiction, which I've done before and loved. I have a setting I love, a heroine who sounds suspiciously like a younger me, and a dog named Chloe. Off in the distance in the bars of sunlight, there's a man, too.
Last month on this blog, I wrote, "I'm so excited," about the story I was dreaming about. I'm on Chapter 4 now, and I'm still excited. There are cottonwood trees and squirrels around Harper Loch, bars of sunlight on the water, and scars and age lending depth to Maggie North's story.
Although there may be a problem with conflict...
Ah, Liz... so glad you're back to women's fiction. It is your bailiwick. Enjoy the journey!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nan. As you know, I'm having a really good time with it!
DeleteWF is more about growth than conflict...or growth comes from overcoming conflict? At any rate, you'll love writing this new story. A passion project! They're the best kind.
ReplyDeleteOh, they are! I always just think of WF as the journey more than an arc, even though they might be close to the same thing, and the romance isn't the only italicized thing on the page. :-) I'm also having a great time with first person, although I keep mixing the tenses up, just like I do in third. Sigh.
DeleteI think I'm getting too old to write. I just read a work where the girl was constantly bickering with her intended lover. It was useless chatter, and I grew tired of it since it seemed to be the conflict for the story line. WF seems like a way to avoid it. Best of luck with your writing.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Judy! I think we’re coming from the same place.
DeleteLovely post, Liz. You have the voice for women's fiction so I'm looking forward to that book. I miss the oak tree in the yard of the house we moved from last year. It was huge and so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joan. I hope I can make it work. I miss every tree that comes down because I know I'm too old to watch new ones grow up.
DeleteI understand your point, but the thing is, so many times in real life people do let little things get in between them. They don't communicate well. If you weren't raised in a family with good interactions, you may not understand how to make things work in a relationship. I have a friend who writes a letter to her husband when she's mad at him, instead of just talking to him. It baffles me. However, miscommunication takes place on a daily basis in most relationships, on one scale or another. People avoid conflict or having the hard discussions. They don't reveal their emotions, or don't even understand them themselves. I try to keep that in mind when I read a story where a simple conversation would make things so much better. Just a little food for thought.
ReplyDeleteYou have a good point, Mary. And I've written a few letters like that, too. I'm just impatient, I think.
DeleteSunsets and conversations. I love this post!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Suzanne!
DeleteYou have such a natural poetic voice- That is something I struggle with- I guess it is a good thing I am not dependent on my writing for income. Good luck with your new book- It sure is a lot easier when it's fun.
ReplyDeleteIt is, isn't it? And what a nice thing to say! And, yeah, I get what you mean--I could never make a living at it, either, even in earlier days.
Delete