I am stuck. I guess this is writers block. First time…I have made a good beginning, I can see the characters, and I know the ending…but I’m stuck. It seems the only alternative I have is to read a good story. Actually I read quite a few (I’ve been stuck for a few days). It encourages me to see other authors, just making their way, finish their stories. Some gave valiant effort, but missed the mark (as I have as well) in the area of spell check, typos and some grammar issues. But still, I could see that great story line under it all. Others hit the nail on the head (in my opinion) and I could barely put the book down. It encourages me! There are so many good stories out there, some are great, and others are good. Sure a few may be less than what I’d hoped for, but they are someone’s stories none the less. Just like all children are precious, but some you are glad you didn’t give birth to…
So now…do I put my story on the shelf, and begin something new? I think I have found my inner chicken. Before, when I read something I loved, I’d say “I want to write like that!” or something that had that happily ever after, though maybe not life changing, I’d say “I can do that”, several times I read something that almost touched me, but just missed, and I’d say “I can do better than that”. Now, a few reviews under my name, some that said, they too, had to wade through the spelling, grammar and typos (Yes! In one of my books!), and now I don’t want to bore, cause flinching, or worse not evoke any type of feeling, that would cause them to say “that was a waste of time”. I don’t want someone to read my stories and say “I can do better than that”, though I know most probably can. I want them to finish and say “I loved it!” or better yet to say, “It’s over?” with a little disappointment in their voices. But then don’t we all.
My perfect daydream is to be the next J.R. Tolkien and capture audiences for generations with a timeless story of trial, hope, love and courage. Or be just like Jane Austen who can make you laugh, cry and swoon all in one chapter (who doesn’t love Mr. Darcy). Maybe that’s the problem. I can’t be either one of those, and their stories have already been told. Maybe, just maybe, my lot is to just lift someone for a couple of hours, to give them the hope of true love, allow them to escape from the real world if just for a bit, or to show them a shadow of a better world. I can be happy with that. So maybe I’m not stuck, per say, maybe the story was always there, but I needed to dig a little deeper and tell fear to get lost. My writing may not change a life, but if it makes a smile appear on even one face, or lifts the hope of one person, then I did my job. Right?