Blog hop - Not my usual step!

I was asked by a fellow writer (Melissa) to participate in a Blog Hop, and since I love to dance, I said YES! 
However, only in the fine print did I realize that Blog Hoppin' is not at all like "hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock"--Well! Why not? 

Melissa and I were in a class together, insomuch as you can be together when living 8000 kilometres apart. Melissa lives in Japan, at the moment. But on-line learning allows for us to be together when we don't even share the same day or night. Somehow she made it work. Check out her blog at: http://melibelleintokyo.com/author/melibelleintokyo/.

All bloggers on this Blog Hop are asked the same four questions. Here are the questions, and my answers.

 What am I writing or working on?

Through the winter months I worked specifically on motherhood stories, through an on-line writing workshop called “Motherhood and Words” with author Kate Hopper, and a group of like-minded women. It was a great experience, and a group of us is attempting to stay connected through other book study, such as "Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott. 

Now, as I prepare for my Creative Writing Final Project at the University of Calgary, I am continuing my work with Kate Hopper as mentor, editor and writing guide. I am creating the beginnings of a manuscript that I will work on in the final course work, but will also take further.

  How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Memoir is perhaps a difficult genre to make your mark in. Personal stories and journeys share some universal element to them—usually struggle, adversity, survival, and acceptance. Let’s face it: parenting is not that unique. However, the ways in which families are created is vastly different than it was a generation ago. I strolled into mothering when I stepped down the aisle and towards my husband-to-be and his two children; we later added a child through pregnancy, and then two more through international adoption (Ethiopia). This situation gives me lots to pause and ponder about, but moreover, it gives me plenty of opportunity to “screw-up”. There is no better way to learn about oneself than through mistakes. Writing gives me a place to express the many faces of mothering, some of which are painful to bear and others are hilarious.

Why do I write what I do?

Recently, a friend challenged me on the amount of time and effort that I was putting into writing, and writing courses. In a way, what she asked was, why are you spending time doing that, when you don’t have to? It is kind of a bummer that a writer/mother/etc./, such as myself, has to explain the why of writing. I said, “I don’t think you understand my writing life…” And she responded, “Yes, yes, I get it—it’s a hobby.”

Quite simply, I am a storyteller and so I write. Life experience informs any writer, and I am no different. I have been writing, in some form or another, for most of my life. Right now, I write about the struggles, triumphs, and just plain messy parts of being a mother because it has remained a secret for too long. We are not perfect and we are not alone. It feels important to get that message out there.

How does my writing process work?

My home life is at times chaotic and highly distractive. When I want to write, I pack up my computer and head to a favorite coffee shop, or to our cottage nearby. I need a space that is organized and quiet. (I know coffee shops are not always quiet, but nobody there says, "Hey Mom, what's for dinner? ...where are my cleats?...can you drive me...?", and so I can ignore it.)

Finding a process that works for me has been a moving target, because the demands of mothering are ever-changing. It is helpful for me to be in a class. Just as an athlete exercises more through the week when taking one class, I find that I will write and produce more when I am engaged in classwork and learning. My one consistent practice is writing in my journal daily--that is my pen to paper, jumbled thoughts and emotions, just for me. 

I do ten-minute writing prompts on most mornings. Right now, I am doing exercises from "Old Friend From Far Away" (Natalie Goldberg) or "use your words: A writing guide for mothers" (Kate Hopper).  I have two large blocks of time scheduled each week to write.  

Writing is place where everything is okay (even the really bad stuff!). It is a space within which I am invisible and unseen, yet heard and understood.  

I thought such awful thoughts that I cannot even say them out loud because they would make Jesus want to drink gin straight out of the cat dish.  

Anne Lamott