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Monday, November 20, 2017

An Attitude of Gratitude: 10 Reasons to Give Thanks

Autumn and winter are my favorite seasons so an attitude of gratitude is natural for me this time of the year.  Fortunately writers have a lot to be grateful for all year long. Here is my Top 10 in alphabetical order so I don’t have to prioritize them.

Family – Larger
My father’s family is from Mississippi and West Texas so I come from a long line of southern story tellers. I grew up listening to the men spin tales of the desert, ranching and the mountains. These tales weren’t 100% true, they were True, something I needed to understand to write fiction.

Family – Smaller
I’m also profoundly grateful for my immediate family. These are the people who support me daily in my quest to write.  They also drag me out of my comfort zone which every introvert occasionally needs.

Knitting and Crochet
What do they have to do with writing?  It is a great way to occupy just enough of my brain so that I can sit and noodle a solution for some writing problem. Handwork is also how I recharge.

Library
My library system has a huge collection of books, magazines, e-books, e-zines, DVDs and more. This is how I keep abreast of the latest developments in publishing. They are also a huge help as I research my nonfiction projects.

Monkey Mind
This is a yoga term for an unfocused mind. Mine has been referred to as a “barrel of monkeys mind.” With my scattered thoughts, I can generally find something that interests me when my editor asks if I want to write about a particular topic.

PC
Yes, my computer. I started writing on a clunky electric typewriter at the kitchen table. It wasn’t long before my super supportive husband bought a computer for me so that I didn’t have to retype every draft. I am so grateful to write on a computer!

That’s the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. It is the best organization around to help you network with fellow children’s writers. Writing for children really is a different beast. I’ve found the majority of my writing gigs, including WOW, through SCBWI contacts.

Spellcheck
Again, this may not seem worthy of Top 10 status but I’m dyslexic. Spell check is my friend!  Grammar check is a close second since it catches some of my mistakes that spell check misses.
  
Treadmill Desk
Although I’m not coordinated enough to write on the treadmill, it is where I read e-mail, blog posts, contest manuscripts, magazines and books to review.  Because I’m working on a fair sized monitor I can enlarge things enough to read as I’m bobbling around while walking.

WOW
Last but not least, WOW and the Muffin are definitely on my list. Writing for children may be a specialized field but it’s important to be in touch with the industry as a whole. Ironically this is also where I met both Margot and Sioux. Margot writes for children. Sioux lives in the same county I do. And this really is a top community in terms of information exchange and support.

So, what are you grateful for as we head into Thanksgiving? 


--SueBE

To find out more about Sue Bradford Edwards' writing, visit her blog, One Writer's Journey.  Sue is also the instructor for Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults. The next session begins January 8th, 2017.

2 comments:

  1. Sue--This is a wonderful post. We have so much to be be grateful for... as Americans, as women in America, as writers.

    Yes, I too remember the days of writing with a typewriter. I was thankful when correction tape came around.

    The internet is also something I'm grateful for. Being able to do research at home, in my jammies, late at night when no libraries are open--that is a wonderful thing.

    And being able to connect with writers all over the world is something I too am grateful for.

    Thanks for this post, and I hope you have a wonderful holiday, Sue.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sue, what a lovely post. :) I'm grateful for our community of wonderful writers and editors--all the women I meet through WOW and The Muffin. You are all the best! Thank you for continuing to inspire me and motivate me.

    Like you, I'm also thankful for the computer and internet! My husband is dyslexic, and numbers are tough for him...I wish they had the equivalent of spell check for numbers. Oh, I'm thankful for his support of my writing, too.

    I'm thankful for my health and being able to have two jobs that allow me the freedom of running every day and setting my own schedule. I appreciate my office, and I'm truly thankful that I've written more this year than I have in years.

    I'm thankful for this post, Sue, and for the exercise of thinking of things I'm grateful for because really, there are so many when I think about it.

    xo :)

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