Z is for: Zowie!

Celebrating the final letter of the A to Z. Wasn't positive I'd reach the end but so happy I stuck it out.

What the Challenge has done for me:

• I've returned to writing as a daily activity.
• I met some wonderful, inspiring writers.
• I've fallen back in love with blogging
• I proved to myself that I'm still up for a good challenge.

Thank you to all the A to Z organizers. Good came of this.

Y is for: Young at Heart

I suppose I often don't act my age. I choose to dress the way I feel comfortable, like what I like, and still value and enjoy a view of the world through childlike eyes.

The body ages, eventually to cross life's finish line, but not the soul.

I will continue to write the words that insist on being written and tell the stories that come to me in urgency.

And I'll look for the youth and goodness in everyone.

V is for: Vulpine

Merriam-Webster defines VULPINE as: of, relating to, or resembling a fox.

The Flip Dictionary says similar words for VULPINE: clever, crafty, cunning, foxy, ingenious, shrewdness, skillful, sly, tricky, wily.

There. I just thought you should know.

U is for: Under Writer

Hi. My name is Maggie, and I`m an under writer. Not to say I work in insurance, but that I use my words too sparingly. When most writers get done with a draft, they need to cut much of their words to lower the count. I have to come up with chunks of content, mainly in my descriptions. I must have taken `write tight` to literally.

When I write an article, this is a good thing. I liked short story writing, too, because I could say quite a bit in a few words. Novel length fiction, as much as I love it, is a challenge. One writer`s lovely description of a scene may be my babbling like a brooke to beef up the count.

Books I find helpful are Description by Monica Wood and the Flip Dictionary by Barbara Ann Kipfer. Sometimes I just need to slow down and really look at each word I`ve written. There is often a clearer way to say something without becoming verbose.

Are there any other under writers out there? If so, please send me a few words of advice.

T is for: Thick skin, tender heart

Writers must realize that rejections galore from agents and editors are only business, not a personal kind of thing. We grow thick skin, impervious to the sting of the form rejection. Mighty, tough.

Also, we write words sweet enough to bring a tear to Satan's eye. Tender, empathetic.

Mighty, tough, tender, and empathetic. I should also add that we writers are quirky, delusional and frequently not all together sane individuals.

And when we gather together as a pack, well, it`s not for the weak.

R is for: Retirement

I retired from decades of nursing three years ago next month. No regrets, only an occasional twinge of missing my friends or a memory of babies in the NICU. I could live without the work dreams, though, often frantic and confusing, that make me glad to wake up in my own bed.

Retirement has been different in some ways than I expected. I do have more time to do the things I love, but, somehow there is always the stuff I don't get to, even with good intentions. Writing is work, a lot of work. Not to mention the disappointments and frustrations. But, I do love it and consider writing a very good use of my time.

When the Northern Colorado Writers Conference comes around March 2015, I will have my current novel ready to pitch. Maybe this will be the one, who knows?

Will I retire from being a writer? Not until I don't know what any of the words mean anymore.

P is for: People of Interest

I love a good page-turner of a novel, don't you? As an avid reader, I admire an author's ability to weave us a plot we are unable to resist, one that puts us in the story, longing for a great resolution of the problems. But, for me, it's the characters, the people in trouble, in confusion, in dire need, that draw me way in. Love them or hate them, we have to see, feel, and know who they are and what they have or haven't done to get them where they are now.

A writer can't help but wonder where these fictional characters come from and why their story must be told. Are they based on people known by the writer? Delivered to them by a muse? Well, it's often an unsolved mystery of its own.

What are the essentials of a good character? These come to mind:

• appealing
• flawed
• relentless
• realistic
• determined
• lovable or hate-able
• dynamic
• imaginative

What can you add to the list?

H is for: High Hopes

My writing buddy and I spend a lot of time together at my desk. We still have hopes my writing will be successfully published and enjoyed- high hopes. What I`m considering right now is whether to retrieve my finished novels from their captivity, sharpen them up, and go with an independent publisher. Or maybe I should just chase agents and traditional publishers until the end of my days.

I will seek advice from those experienced with independent publication. I self-published years ago through an established print on demand because I wanted my novel based on Internet safety issues to get out there. I don`t regret doing this. I sold and donated books and got them to many who needed to read this story to illustrate how easily a child can get into a bad situation. Mission accomplished.

Things have changed in publishing since then, and so have I. In spite of my more realistic attitude, I still hope, but now I know that hope sometimes needs a little help.

E is for: Enjoy the Prompts

Life is a huge collection of writing prompts. That's why every creative writing teacher I've ever had strongly suggests carrying a notebook everywhere I go. If someone handed you this picture and told you to write a two hundred word story about it, would you, could you tell a tale?

Images are all around us. We just need to pay attention and let our imaginations take over. Who do you think is under this umbrella? What are they talking about? Where are they? Why are they together?

Try picking out a random prompt: something you see out the window, a picture in a magazine, people walking down the street, sitting on a park bench. Go ahead. I'll wait...

A is for: Author! Author!

As I mentioned in my last post, I spent the weekend at the Northern Colorado Writers Conference with writers of every kind who talked to me and taught me. I`m wild with ideas. I feel as if I can`t go fast enough to keep up with my mind. Love feeling this way again. Bye-bye, long winter of my discontent.

My biggest takeaway from the conference this year is my boundless admiration for authors everywhere. These writers followed their hearts and dreams the distance. They jumped through every publication hoop, independent or traditional, learned their craft, dotted that I, crossed that T! Killed off their darlings!

I bow down before you all for what you`ve accomplished and given to rabid readers everywhere.

I want to be you when I grow up.

Tale of two blogs

What's worse than creating a blog and not taking the time the write on it? How about having two blogs and neglecting them both. And forgetting there were two of them. I'm lucky I haven't been turned in to Blog Protection Services.

I figured out I could eliminate this one, printed it up to keep the posts, found and clicked on 'delete this blog.' Okay, good decision. With a bit of creative excitement, I went to the other blog, Soul to Page. I clicked on the dashboard to actually post, when what to my wondering eyes should appear a message stating I had no blogs. Uh-oh. Did I delete the wrong one? No. Could I access Soul to Page? Yes, but I had no way to make any changes or post. Long story short, I signed in and out of accounts and did all suggested tasks to no avail. Fortunately, I was able to resurrect this blog. So, here we are. Welcome back to A Word Girl.

I attended the Northern Colorado Writers Conference this past weekend and am one recharged writer. Much of what I learned or re-learned requires posting stat.

Please come back soon.

Writing Along the Spectrum

I'm currently working on a novel for young adults about a fifteen-year-old girl with Asperger's Syndrome. I know males with this syndrome but not females. This is a subject near and dear to me, and I've immersed myself in research on the girls and women with AS who have so far been much less discussed than their male counterparts.

The information I'm finding is fascinating to me. Asperger's place on the spectrum of autism is of more interest to the world as an increased number of cases are being diagnosed. So, what is AS?

Definition By Mayo Clinic staff :

"Asperger's syndrome is a developmental disorder that affects a person's ability to socialize and communicate effectively with others. Children with Asperger's syndrome typically exhibit social awkwardness and an all-absorbing interest in specific topics. Doctors group Asperger's syndrome with other conditions that are called autistic spectrum disorders or pervasive developmental disorders. These disorders all involve problems with social skills and communication. Asperger's syndrome is generally thought to be at the milder end of this spectrum. While there's no cure for Asperger's syndrome, if your child has the condition treatment can help him or her learn how to interact more successfully in social situations."

As we all know, the high school years are difficult enough to navigate for most kids without extra considerations. When my fictional protagonist, Cammie, came to my mind, I knew telling her story was something I would love and need to do.

Stay tuned for more about my work in progress:
A LIFE ANOMALOUS.

Welcome to A Word Girl

In case you're wondering, the small girl in the picture is me, Maggie, decades ago. She represents A Word Girl's inner child, one who loved books above most else in her confusing little world. How could I not grow up and write for her?

Please stop by A Word Girl now and then to see what insight I have to offer from my writer's soul, where dreams have no expiration date.

Maggie