. . . A Few of My Favorite Things

I thought it would be fun to to a top ten list of my favorite writing things, though it's really hard to organize them in an order that is most important, as I can't imagine writing without any of them, and believe me, I've tried! So, here it is, in random order, the ten most important things to help me write.



#10: All right, I know I said I gave it up, and I've tried, really, really hard, but I am a weak and lowly human and kind of screwed up. Again. I'm not sure what it is, but even a single sip of Pepsi gets the energy and creativity flowing and somehow I write better and get the inspiration I so seriously crave. Which leads me to #9, which is were all inspiration is supposed to come from.




#9: Just pretend this wonderful book represents all scriptures and answers to prayer. I find that when I don't read my scriptures and pray before I write, the inspiration just doesn't flow, and if I try to write anyway, all that comes out is useless drivel I end up deleting.





#8: I have just recently discovered this delicious and nutritious snack. I am a HUGE garlic fan. I use it in almost everything. I'd probably try garlic ice cream if I ever had the opportunity, so to combine my favorite cracker with garlic is just brilliant, in my opinion. Calling me garlic breath would be music to my ears. lol




#7: My wonderful, kind-hearted ex-stepdad gave me the most wonderful Christmas present, thanks to the hinting of my friend and sister-in-law, Jenny. He wanted to get me a camera, and though I do like taking pictures, I don't do it a lot. She told him if he wanted to get me something I could really use that he needed to upgrade my computer. And so he did. He sent a chunk of money to my little brother and his lovely wife and Sean built me the most wicked awesome computer you ever did see. After so many years on a cramped little screen, my poor eyes were screaming. The screen I have now is 24" wide. I can fit two entire pieces of paper side-by-side and still have space between them. I am so very grateful for this gift and for the men who made it happen.





#6:Peanut M&M's. Need I say more???






#5: My Alphasmart Neo I just won from the LDStorymakers Conference. I had purchased a Neo at one point, and loved it, but when the opportunity came to purchase a used Alphasmart Dana, I sold my Neo because I thought the expandability of the Dana would better suit me. I was wrong and had commented to my friend, Shanna, just a few weeks before the LDStorymakers Conference that I wished I hadn't sold mine. She teased me and said "Well, if you win the grand prize you'll have a new one." I totally blew her off and now here I am. How cool is that?




#4: I've been a sunflower seed freak since about 7th grade. I ate them during softball games. I eat them when hiking and camping. I eat them on vacations. And . . . I eat them when I write. The salty / sweet combination of sunflower seeds while drinking pepsi is especially appealing to me, for some reason. I know I'm weird. You can say it, it's okay. I have come to embrace my weirdness. My mom used to call me a squirrel because she used to find little piles of shells around the house and in the corners.


#3: Composition notebooks. I know what you're thinking. why composition? Why not loose-leaf paper or spiral bound notebooks? I'm not sure why exactly, but there's something about the composition notebook that gets me writing and loving the process. I think part of it is that the spirals cut into my hand and I'm always losing loose leaf pages. Whatever the reason, I love composition notebooks and buy them by the dozen.



#2: You can't have notebooks without pens and these are my absolute favorite. I love uni-ball pens in general, especially the Visons and the Vision Elite's, but the 207's are awesome. They glide and if they get wet the ink stays in place. I'm always getting my papers wet. *ahem* I'm a bit of a klutz. *blushing* Writing by hand is sheer bliss.




#1: Of everything on this list, Silicon earplugs are the one item I cannot do without. They are my secret weapon in my writing aresenal. You see, I've got this nasty little thing called ADD and I am hyper-aware of everything going on around me. Every little twitch, chirp, and squeal pulls me out of the story when I'm writing and it takes a while to get back into it. Earplugs solve the problem. I can ignore sight distractions, but not sound. As a matter of fact, I wrote the first draft of my winning chapter in an hour and a half last summer at the BYU Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers Workshop. I came to my room determined to write something new, pulled out my Alphasmart, stuck in the earplugs, and pounded out over 2,000 words, just like that. Earplugs are AWESOME!


So there you have it. My top ten list of favorite writing tools. If any of them appeal to you, feel free to steal them. Wait! Don't take mine, silly. Go buy your own!


Quote of the Day: "Ability is nothing without opportunity."

Napoleon Bonaparte