10 Years

"Nostalgia, the vice of the aged." Angela Carter

This past weekend seemed custom-made for nostalgia. My husband and I celebrated our 20 year dating anniversary (because we're nerds - I think I mentioned this before?). It was the somber, soul-wrenching 10th anniversary of 9-11. And mom is staying with me - stunning me with non sequiters like "What ever happened to Trista?" a girl I last saw in fifth grade.

So, I've done a lot of thinking about the past in the last couple of days. Some of it good, some of it bad and some of it cringe-inducing. On balance, because I'm an insufferably positive person, I think I've done OK. I work hard at my marriage because it's worth more than rubies, and I love my kids as hard and well as I can.

But I'm proudest of becoming a writer. It's the one thing I've done completely by myself. It's practically magic, the way I 'forged in the smithy of my soul' (sorry, James) a new identity. I know, I'm patting myself on the back for something that countless others (and all of you) have done already. But for years I didn't think I'd have the courage to do it. For years I let myself believe that I couldn't, shouldn't. And then, two years ago, I stopped standing on my own way.

What are you proudest of doing in the last 10 years?

Short Story Challenge

Today I learned about a short story contest that NPR is having. Don't get too excited, the deadline is tonight at midnight.

I know, day late, dollar short. But I tried it anyway, because as you know, I can't resist challenges that I'm bound to fail. The criteria for this short short story is simple: 1) It has to have a joke in it. 2) It has to have someone crying. 3) It has to be 600 words long (about 3 minutes of radio time) . That's about three pages double spaced. I wrote and edited and made two words into contractions and the lowest I could get to was 830.

I don't write short stories because I'm not a good enough writer. Lots of writing teachers start newbies off reading short stories and writing short stories. I get the reason why, it's easier to manage in a crit class, it's easier to get the word count in, etc. But a short story is, I think, the Achilles heel of any writer who isn't a genius or experienced in the craft.  AKA, me.

My favorite all time short story collection is Angela Carter's 'The Bloody Chamber' This book made me want to be a writer and at the same time be very afraid to be a writer. A great combination.
So - the story I wrote, while complete on it's own, I think, is a sort of 'extended' scene from the book I'm writing now. It wouldn't be include in the book, but it's sort of a behind the scene look at some of the main characters. I could be completely fooling myself in thinking it stands on it's own, but it was invigorating to do. It helped me think about my story in a parallel way, instead of forward and backwards, which is usually where I'm stuck. A good exercise. I recommend it.

My short story, called, The White Tea Pot continues after the jump. All rights reserved A.Villasante , yada yada.