Writers are an odd lot. We don’t think like most
folk. A chat group with writers is an adventure, even for a fellow writer.
Thinking out of the box is one way to describe it, but parameters outside of
the universe might be a better description.
Simple statements, or observations, spontaneously
explode into scenes, characterizations, and mini-plots, and this is just when
chatting. Even I roll my eyes at some of the far fetched, but insanely funny,
rabbit holes we follow.
Yes, it’s true. Thriller/suspense writers have an
odd collection of files that could garner the attention of Homeland Security. Writers
can remember every interesting conversation we’ve overheard, but forget to put
coffee in the coffee pot, and stare blankly at the clear water pouring out,
wondering what happened.
It isn’t that we are not intelligent, or
forgetful. We are distracted. While making coffee, one or two story lines fill
our minds. We see the scene playing out, which keeps us from seeing other
things, like the task at hand.
“You talk like a writer.” I have always wondered
what that means, exactly. I don’t quite understand how my choice of words is
that much different from non-writers. Then, as most of my friends are fellow
authors, our pattern of speech and word choices just seem normal to me, but
obviously not to others.
We all have that faraway look in our eyes when a
story idea hits. My husband has stopped asking me what I am thinking. Family
just continues conversation, knowing I’ll join back in, eventually.
Yes, I do carry a note pad and pen with me
everywhere, and I have prayed for red lights so I could write down an idea. I
would like to have some kind of recorder, but I would still need pen and paper. Dissecting
different ways of sneaking into a building, or killing someone, spoken aloud
into a recorder while having lunch at McDonalds might not be in my best
interest. Then, on second thought, it might be fun — until the SWAT team shows
up.
