Kvetching Your Way to Writing a Story

You want to write, but there are so many duties that take precedence over your personal goals. For
those like me, who work full-time and are raising a young child, there is always the struggle to find time for writing. Once you do grasp the opportunity, after the baby is in bed and the husband is settled in to watch the big game, the words just don't come. You're exhausted, and you've drawn a complete blank. Will it ever get better? Will you ever be able to fill that empty page with something meaningful?

Take heart, for there is one particular exercise to employ when time is found and the stress of everyday life has drained your creative juices: freestyle writing, or, as I have heard one author call it, "kvetching" on paper. If you are new to this experiment, now is the perfect time to start. Wash the dishes, fold the laundry, then sit down and listen to the constant clacking of your keyboard.

The next time you sit down to write and are unable to get started, change your mindset: approach your writing as if preparing a journal entry. Think about your day and about the season: what did you do? Did you go shopping in anticipation of receiving family and friends for a visit? Did the baby do something so cute you have to share it with the world? Hold those thoughts in your mind as you flex your fingers and put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard).

The "kvetching" part is simple enough:

"Why am I sitting here at the computer when there is so much work to be done? I'm nowhere near finished cleaning the kitchen, and then I have to get stuff read to go the post office tomorrow morning to get
Theresa's gift in the mail. I just hope I have enough to send it Priority..."

If you "kvetch" long enough, you just may find you have written a word or two that will trigger an idea:

"I remember the first birthday present I ever bought for my sister. I was ten years old and had no gainful employment outside of the odd job around the house, which netted as much as two dollars when my mother was in a generous mood..."

The scent of birthday cake, an array of lighted candles, a harried mother dragging a screaming toddler through a crowded mall -- there are so
many everyday occurrances to relay on paper which in turn could morph into a short story, poem, or even an editorial. Give it a try next time you manage some writing time during your busy schedule, and turn a
daily "kvetch" into a beautiful story for readers to enjoy.

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About the author

Kathryn Lively is an award-winning writer and editor. She is the author of Pithed: an Andy Farmer Mystery (Mundania Press) and the Ash Lake Mysteries. She is also the publisher of Phaze, the ultra-sensual romance imprint of Mundania Press, and speaks all over the East Coast at conferences about writing and publishing.

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