Slowly

Slowly, I'm getting back into the frame of mind to write. I forget why I left that state of mind...maybe it was because I quit reading children's fiction for a while as I pursued acting?

I think that someday I'll have to chance to act, but like I told Stu yesterday - if I don't feel prepared, I won't do it. I can't just jump in and learn by mistakes. There will be mistakes, to be sure, but an education and then experience will hopefully result in fewer mistakes. So for now, I'm putting the acting to the side (not to the back...I'm still going to work on memorizing monologues) and getting back to writing.

I've been thinking about Violet's Monster: Volume I and I think I'm closer than I've ever been to figuring out the villain, his motives, and where Violet comes in. And also, her whole relationship with her mother. I'm not quite there, but slowly, so slowly, I'm getting closer.

I've just read two books that reminded me of the power of words:

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins...the ending is terrifically irritating (there are the sequels to read), and in the middle of the book I got this creepy feeling of taking part in the story...the story is completely fascinating, of course, which is why everyone is reading this series, but when you realize what you are doing...it's a bit...horrifying? I don't know. Maybe other people don't feel the same.

Chime by Franny Billingsly. I've seen Super 8, which is a beautiful story about guilt, forgiveness, mercy, and love, and this book, while a completely different beautiful story, deals with the same themes. Reading a broken, splintered narrative from a girl who is being driven mad by guilt and then seeing what love and mercy do to heal this girl...well, it's phenomenal.

Those, along with The Water-Shaper by Laura Anne McCaffrey, have helped me see the power of story this year. It's something I hope to keep with me while I attempt to finish Violet's Monster: Volume I.

Slowly, it will get done. 2 years and counting...