Ideas are all around if I take the time to look for them. They come from unexpected places sometimes.
And then sometimes, it might seem as though they’re nowhere to be found. Have you ever felt like that?
I’ve just finished reading a book that I’d like to recommend if you are finding you’re in a slump or just need something to propel you forward with your work-in-progress. The book is called “Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert. One of the concepts in the book asks the reader to consider what happens if an Idea comes to visit. It wants to be friendly, to interact with the reader, and if someone is not able to accept it, that Idea will go away and visit with someone else. Quite possibly it feels as though it’s being ignored. That’s an interesting way to look at things, but to me, it explains quite a lot.
I’d like for you to meet Rosie. Rosie came to visit as the result of some chicken trading with one of our neighbors. The other chickens we have wouldn’t accept her, so we had to come up with separate living arrangements. However, Rosie seemed to want to go “walkabout” and every morning, she would meet me in the backyard somewhere, or wander through the pasture to the amusement of the alpaca. She has a three foot vertical leap. She can fly short distances too, which would not bode well for her should she drift or wander too close to the dog enclosure. Rosie is pictured here as she is figuring out how to travel from the top of her chicken coop, over the chicken wire, and out into the yard. She’s smart. I had to readjust that enclosure to keep her inside and safe.
Watching Rosie plants a seed in my imagination for a tiny aspect of something in my writing, because as chickens go, she’s got quite a personality, too.
I’ve just returned from a Southern Breeze SCBWI Writing for Kids Conference in which I carpooled with two of my writer buddies. On the dashboard of the car was this tiny figure, placed there by the driver’s son, as a token of love and remembrance.
A chicken. With personality.
And it’s really kinda cute, too!
What a wonderful thing it can be, for the Creative Universe to send me such a message.
And so today, I am working on character descriptions and plot outlines–putting pen to paper because that’s how the work gets done. Dear Rosie remains as a chicken, without human characteristics, but still, with the personality of a Very Interesting Chicken.
Everything I’ve learned and the inspiration I received at the conference will help to keep me going in a positive direction, too.
Wishing you creative travels on your journey.
Paula B. Puckett 