Two weeks ago, I signed up for a newly formed writing group that meets in SE Portland after work on Tuesdays. Last week, sad to say, I chickened out entirely. The combination of strange place, strange people, sharing my thoughts & writings with other people face to face, & lack of babysitting was a bit overwhelming, so I just let it slip by. In person sharing with a toddler in tow is a whole other ballgame than Internet sharing when said towhead is sleeping.
But I remembered this post from a few months ago on Jon Katz's blog, regarding the writing class he ran in his small town. For some reason, the picture stuck with me. I started a novel for NaNoWriMo....almost two years ago, & have barely touched it since. I felt that joining an actual physical group would help me finish it & tweak it, as well as a place to meet possible like minded friends. In order to not chicken out again, I RSVP'd to the meetup...then forgot about it, deliberately, until my Gmail calendar reminded me this morning. This avoided the whole "should I go, nah let's be terrified of people & come up with a bunch of excuses instead". I picked a random chapter, printed out a few copies, & found someone to walk the dog on short notice (Finn's an awesome dog, but he's a counter surfer so he gets kenneled during the day).
I showed up at a very cozy little cafe tucked in one of Portland's quieter, cuter old neighborhoods, having no real idea what to expect. I had the blonde kid in tow with only a monster truck & my phone (& snacks) as entertainment. To be true, I've more than once used the whole "no babysitter" thing as an excuse or a shield to hide behind to get out of meeting new people, but today I really wanted to see what would happen. My kid is effortlessly charming, outgoing, & cute to boot, so even if I was quiet, awkward, & weird, I could hide in Kade's "cuteness shadow". Besides, I've been a single parent long enough to realize & accept that nothing is going to get done unless I do it, & 99.9% of the time that means with kid in tow.
And you know what? It was exactly what I was hoping for, & nothing I was fearing (except that I could have come a tiny bit more prepared with the whole kid entertainment thing). I got excellent feedback on how to cut down on the word count-basically, if it doesn't add to the story or a character, let it go-& inspiration to keep going. The very first thing I was looking for was, sadly, confirmation that the story I was working on was worth finishing, that someone would actually want to read it. That was a major part of why I put it aside. C'mon, people are reading the Hunger Games now, not an uplifting adventure on horseback. I also got a sample of other people's wonderful writings, & get my critical juices flowing again.
How was the Rumpus? Well, except for a brief swing into being absolutely fascinated by the fake candle lights in the bathroom, he was in a word amazing. When I really need this kid to help out, he completely pulls through. In return for charming complete strangers (as usual) & being quiet for 90 minutes, we hit up the park on the way home...where he proceeded to wrap three much older girls into his orbit. Gods, but I love this kid!
No comments:
Post a Comment