Thursday, April 12, 2007

When I grow up, I want to be...

I don't do this very often, but today, I feel compelled. Yes, compelled.

Many of you know that I write. I don't do it "for a living". Yet. Someday I hope to be able to say, "You can find my book on the shelf at (insert your favorite bookseller here)". One of these days, my goal is to finish writing the book that has my heart right now, and send it out there into the world to see how it does. I feel that, sometimes, I know some things that I've learned along this road I'm on, and I should share that knowing with other people. Besides, I must write. It's not something that I always want to do, but it is something that I simply must do. It's like breathing for me. It has to happen, or I flounder around, all out of sorts.

As I've gotten more serious about my writing, I've found myself seeking out authors that have a true gift. I don't limit myself to a certain genre, or a small circle of writers. I've found authors in all sorts of genres that have a way with words, a way of seemingly peering into the deepest, darkest parts of me, and extracting the tiny little kernels of my hidden self, those itsy parts that I never share with anyone. Those books go on my "Keeper" shelf, and those authors become automatic buys for me. I'll even purchase their books in hardback, something that I will rarely do for any author unless they are on a bargain table. Sometimes, if the author really touches my innermost being, I will go to great lengths to learn more about them, read all of their books (or anything else they've written), find their sites or blogs, even e-mail. A few times, I've been blessed enough to meet a few of them. Generally, that involves a road trip, and some of you know how much I love an excuse for a road trip. I've travelled to two different places in Maryland (Jenny Crusie and Lani Diane Rich), Richmond (Susan Elizabeth Phillips), and New Jersey (various, for a conference). My longest trip was also one of my most treasured memories. I drove to Charlotte, North Carolina, to see Joshilyn Jackson. You can read about that amazing afternoon if you search my July 2006 archives. I'm not adding the link, because this isn't about that trip. I'm only mentioning it because it cemented, for me, what exactly I have to aspire to be.

I've loved both of Joshilyn's books, and I adore her blog. Out of the many authors that I consider "favorites", she has earned her spot at the very tippity top of the list. That's not to say that I don't love a select handful of others as well, as writers or as people. There are some that I simply can't imagine not having in my writing life. However, there is just something about reading one of Joshilyn's books. She has this intuitive gift, a way of exploring those secretive places that each of us has, and bringing them to light in all of their sometimes ugly glory.

She's done it again, for me. I read her blog, Faster Than Kudzu, on an almost daily basis. I hope that you've been encouraged to take a peek over there as well. I have it on good authority that it's almost as addictive as chocolate, and once you become a regular, you never want to leave. She recently wrote a beautiful post, and I've read it at least 8 times. Every single time, I've had tears running down my face. It's just that beautiful. So yeah, this whole thing has been to tell you to go over to FTK and read this post . You'll see what I mean when I say that she is the kind of writer that I hope to become.

Thanks for indulging me.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree with you on Joshilyn Jackson. An amazing writer and from everything I can tell an amazing person. Some people it's a privilege to have discovered.

Makes me wonder often what other books I *haven't* just happened to pick up and what I might be missing from others. Because it's very rare for me to buy an untried author in hardcover, but I just happened to pick up gods when it first came out...and there you go.

dee said...

hee hee ... this is just a cool day for me, because I've got Laura Florand on my blog, leaving comments. For those of you that don't know, Laura wrote a book called "Blame it on Paris". Her book happens to be on that "Keeper" shelf that I mentioned. She's an "automatic" buy for me now, I loved her first book that much. She's also one of the very few blogs that I read on a daily basis. It's always a toss-up whether or not I will hit FTK or Laura's blog first. But even better than that, she's become a friend.
How cool is this world in which I live, that I have found such amazing people to enrich my life, learn from, and count among my favorite people on earth?

amy said...

I agree with you on that post. I mentioned it on my blog, too. She touched on so many things that resonated with me, and she's so open, to share so much on her blog.

I feel the same way, dee. How lucky to have made these connections.

Just so you know--you ARE a writer, you DO write, and you DO touch people, through your blog. A published book sounds wonderful, yes, but I know it's not the only way to reach out with our thoughts. You keep going, but don't feel like you're not there yet.

amy said...

PS Said by someone who's on the same road you are... :)

Anonymous said...

OK, dee, now you're going to make my head swell. But thank you.

Amy is right about writing.

Keziah Fenton said...

Dee - thank you so much for this post, for the link. They resonated me as an eerie echo of conversations I am having on the Internet and in person. Such an honest post. You know that your style reminds me of hers in a way. I'm not just saying that to boost your ego. I'll have to track down a copy of that book.

dee said...

You could not have designed a higher compliment for me than that, Sheryl.