FROM YESTERYEAR
Back in 1980 we moved back to Vermont . . . previous wife, previous life . . . we rented an old house in a town named Northfield when we first got there, but eventually we purchased a log home in East Calais.
That log home was beautiful! It was on five acres with a year-round stream flowing through the property (and a waterfall); it had a daylight basement and wraparound deck, and the whole home was heated by a big woodstove down in the basement.
Back then Vermont did not have many people living in it; still doesn’t I’m sure. And the town of East Calais probably didn’t have more than a hundred or so residents. I remember there were no street lights at all. The homes were so far from each other, most tucked into the woods, so that at night there really was no light to speak of. I could step off our porch and not be able to see twenty feet in front of me.
Now I mention all this because at night, on a clear night, the stars were vivid. There was no ambient light to ruin the show, as it were, so I swear every star in the sky was visible. It was spectacular! Of course, if we turned the porch light on, the stars were harder to see, and if we had a patio party at night, with lanterns and such, it was also harder to see the stars.
The less distractions the better!
The less we interfered with the natural order of things, the better!
Do you sense a metaphor at work here?
JUST TALKING ABOUT ME RIGHT NOW
More naps these days
I do my best writing in a peaceful setting. Too much noise makes Bill a fidgety writer. Noise beyond the acceptable level makes Bill a crazy man.
It’s just how I’m wired.
It’s the same when I’m reflecting on life, or when I have an important decision to make. Drop me down in the middle of a virgin forest and I’ll pull up a stump and solve the problems of mankind. Stick me in a crowded room, or a busy restaurant, with wall-to-wall noise, and I’ll only add to the problems of mankind.
I need to allow my senses to embrace the moment. I need to smell my surroundings, to hear my surroundings, to taste, really see, and to touch it all. In so doing, my mind is freed of chains, and I am then allowed to absorb it all and find clarity.
I don’t know how you rock n roll, but that’s how this boy enters the creative process.
A QUESTION FROM A WRITER FRIEND
On my weekly series “The Writer’s Mailbag,” someone asked me about marketing and in particular online marketing on social media. He asked if it was all right to befriend someone on Facebook in order to promote your writing.
To me no, it isn’t.
I will make mention of the new novel I’m writing from time to time, but that’s only because some people want to know about my progress made. I actually don’t care if anyone buys it in 2019 or not. I’m certainly not going to ask anyone to buy it. I write my novels because I love to write. I love to entertain people, and I love to toss out my thoughts and reflections about life in a way which is less overbearing. If people purchase those books that’s nice; if they don’t, that’s nice as well.
It’s all good, folks!
And with that I will bid you a fond farewell for this week. I wish for you peace of mind and heart this week and beyond. Treat yourself, and treat others, with compassion and love.
Bill
“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”
Billybuc
Artistry With Words 