Throat, Promise, Forget, Splendor, Hex and....Pee

Throat,

Promise,

Forget,

Splendor,

Hex,

Pee

6 words, 6 very different words.

But those 6 words made for one of the BEST afternoons among authors, writers, & fans.

Oh yeah, you heard me.

I wasn't sure what an afternoon at the Homewood Public Library would showcase on a Saturday. I can promise you that those 6 words were not what I would have guessed beforehand.

The lovely members of Southern Magic hosted 5 sensational authors:

R.A. Nelson (The 6'3" sweetheart who works at Nasa by the way)

Chandra Sparks Taylor( the ever so lovely mother who is ever so brave with her manuscript revisions)

Jennifer Echols (an engaging blonde with wit that will have you doubled over - sarcasm has met its match!)

Rosemary Clement-Moore (a perky author whose grin is infectious plus! OMG Scooby Doo's team WISHES they had someone like her)

Rachel Hawkins ( the honest, hilarious, friendly, married to a scientist author who enjoys torturing her husband with finger injuries)

The room was simple, almost classroom set up. Around 25 people sat and listened to these lovely authors discuss methods, talk about getting "the phone call" and just chatting about how if you are going to be an author then there are no excuses - WRITE!

Laughter flowed around the room as stories were shared, excitement permeated the air as tidbits of upcoming projects were whispered and the feeling of camaraderie was inescapable.

I found myself enjoying every single minute of the afternoon. At the end of their questions we were all invited up to purchase or bring books to sign. But this was not like an overwhelming, large signing, you weren't ushered up to the table then asked to politely scurry away. No, they were there to "MEET and greet". You could ask questions and find yourself in a lengthy discussion with an author you love, you could shyly hand over a book that you traveled all the way from Carollton, Georgia with your parents and friends to have signed by someone who creates worlds you want to live in.

As time passed and people began to slip out I found myself talking to the lovely Crystal (my cohort in ALL 4 ALABAMA) and her friend Natalie. We were the last 3 in the room - EVERYONE had cleared out. We had been talking books, donations, contributors, writing, bidders, everything when to our surprise bounced in the lovely Rosemary Clement-Moore. Yep. She was waiting on her friend who had accompanied her and saw us still standing around gabbing.

She did not run from the lingering fans - she ran to us. She thanked us for the event. For attending and enjoying it. She then told us why she was still in the building: Nature called. She had to pee and somehow this rolled into how you pee before perfoming on stage and then Natalie chimed in with a pregnancy and pee story...yeah... the things we writers discuss! It isn't a full day until bodily functions enter your discussions and by golly if you can get a celebrated author to join in - well congrats! It was a blast.

So 6 words. 6 very different words.

Combined together make 1 lovely afternoon that I would do over again and again....

Monday Memos!

Family...a group experience of love and support.

-Marianne Williamson

***

There are books, there are movies, there are poems, there are songs that tell us what a family is. None of them the same, none of them wrong - all of them can be right.

When I sit down to work on a project, family is something that inadvertently creeps in. I don't always recognize the familial relationships at first but then as the characters develop they become more apparent. They sneak into the friendship between a hero and a victim. They wrap around the one destined to save them all and they surprise the one who lost his/her faith in humanity. I see it between characters who society would say are too young to grasp the meaning and between older characters who had all but given up on connecting with someone else. The feeling of family is something that I cannot help but pepper into my work.

I am blessed to have two loving parents who support every avenue I want to take. My love of reading, writing and art is because they always let me know they would be beside me no matter my direction. They told me when something I created was good, when it was okay and when it was something they did not connect with. It was never bad because they taught me that so long as I am creating, putting my heart into my work then the end result is something to be proud of. It may still be something that needs work, could be improved or might be shelved; but it was worth it because I loved it at that time.

Family does that. We help each other, we call the bluffs - yet we are there when the wall crumbles down, we stand our ground, we give, we take, we endure the times when the page is blank and we feel alone but we know we are not.

My Royal Court on the right hand sidebar are people I go to when I need advice, when I need help, or when I just need to smile. There are people who are not listed over there that visit my site and provide the same support.

Each one is a member of my family:

I have a Wolfpack Leader who makes me grin every time I see her, especially if the Tiger got in the bathroom again...

A girl who feels that "shame" comes in the form of Vlogging or in a story about a gameshow...(we will find that video one day!).

A picture book author who has a knack for finding the perfect quote every day and seems to keep a permanent smile on her face while constantly dreaming of books.

A man who can spout Frost, Hemingway or Woolf - knows classical music like the back of his hand - enjoys great Vodka, writes stirring flash fiction and has a heart of gold when referencing his own immediate family.

There are bloggers who share my love of Disney, who know why Crimson & White are my favorite fall colors, who are Royalty as well, who can teach me line editing, who help with my POV. So many people who I consider family. Who I mourn with when they lose someone, who I laugh with when sharing a joke, who I cry with when they need me, who I offer support when I can.

You all make my writing better. You all make me better.

Thank you for being such a great family and for providing a Southern girl a taste of the world through the keys on a keyboard and the wonderful idea that one day, one day, I may get to meet you all. What a reunion we would have...

***

Some family updates...

Let Talli know what you think of Something Old...Something New... it looks great to me!

WhatWord Trick do you like? Don't know well go see Shannon O' for her take...

I think Shannon M. is trying to have as many contests as possible...and I love her for it! Go enter to win Lisa Mantchev goodies!

Simon reflects on the mind of a teenager experiencing the power of Frost and his current state of mind when re-reading a classic....check it out - it will move you, I promise.

Karen tells you togive up on her...but I won't and I know you won't either ;o)

Natalie asks: Book reviews? Love them or hate them...

Please note that on my left sidebar are my blogrolls... There are a ton of blogs worth checking out so if you get a moment, scroll through, add one to the list above and introduce yourself to my family. I promise we won't bite... unless of course you wander over to one of the horror writers...can't promise anything there!

Have a Marvelous Monday!