Since I started today with a blank canvas, I figured there must be a message in the invocation of an octopus image. So I took what life had to offer me today, and while I answered the door, spoke on the phone and did what needed doing, I let the seeds take root for a picture book manuscript about -- you guessed it: An Octopus.
At present this draft may not be as polished or as brilliant as Kevin Sherry's I'm the Best Artist in the Ocean (as a wanna be illustrator, too, I LOVE that book), and it certainly isn't about an octopus in the way that you might expect, but it's a picture book that has an octopus in it. And, even though I first sat down to accomplish this task at 9:05 A.M. and it's now 4:05 P.M. -- I can finally say MISSION ACCOMPLISHED <3
Here's a quote that speaks to those manuscripts that we may never end up using:
"Start early and work hard. A writer's apprenticeship usually involves writing a million words (which are then discarded) before he's almost ready to begin. That takes a while." David Eddings
So write, write, write, and enjoy the process. Don't worry about which drafts you will ultimately choose and use. That will come later.
Lynne Marie
WHY NOT A SPIDER NEXT TIME? I ALWAYS GET AMAZED AT A SPIDER'S INNOVATIVE AND CREATIVE SPIRIT IN CREATING ITS OWN WEB AND USES IT BOTH AS ITS HOME AND AN ENGINE TO CATCH PREY. PLUS, A SPIDER IS ALSO MYSTERIOUS.
ReplyDeleteOH, YOU CAN DISTINGUISH A BLACK FROM A BROWN SPIDER.WHICH ONE IS IT THAT'S POISONOUS?
@Philospher Kim -- great suggestion. My first story sold to Highlights was actually about a Spider (Arachne's Thread), so I totally agree with you. And I do have another one in the works. I thought the brown recluse spider was the poisenous one, but my research is a little rusty. I'll have to double-check that one. Thanks for reminding me to get a move on my second spider story!
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