This old dog has learned new tricks

I went to my favorite coffee bar last night with some friends. Good conversation. Good coffee. Writing (I won't qualify my writing as good because it was "writing with velocity", as Charlotte Rains Dixon calls it). But I got words on the page. And that, my friends, IS good!

Bottomless cuppa joe, great pens, a corner booth, mood lighting. Yes. You=jealous.

I used to write scenes, mostly random, never knowing where to put them or how they would fit together. But now I have a plan, or structure. Ever read "Story Engineering" by Larry Brooks? Well stop everything and go read it. Now. That's good stuff, peeps.

I owe it all to my good friend over at Ars Longa, Vita Brevis, for holding up a mirror and that book. She woke me from my self-induced slumber of ignorance. If you haven't read her latest post "On Magpies and Art", then I HIGHLY recommend you mosey over there and prepare for brilliance.

For the first time in a long time, I am excited about writing. I feel like I had a puzzle in front of me but all the pieces were upside down, and pieces from several different puzzles littered the mix, making the task of putting it together seemingly impossible. The light is on now. The puzzle pieces are right side up. And I've got my Mod Podge on standby.

I can always count on Buddy to keep me in line.

It's too much to hope for a weekend of writing, so for now, I pine for a few hours of writing bliss. Perhaps tomorrow...