Important things

A few things:

Sometimes I wonder why I write books. It’s hard. It’s emotional. It goes wrong over and over again. And mostly it’s a lot of work.

Then I read articles like this.

Dear Friends, should we all just quit and ride our bikes around the south pole? Also, why is he doing this. I mean we know why according to the article and maybe some of you are his neighbor and you can tell me all the details, but really, WHY? What drives someone to go to that extreme? Clearly he wants this record, or this adventure, more than anything because otherwise, there is no way (at least i’d think) that he’d be doing this.

This is perfect for a writing prompt: List five reasons why you think he’s going this. List five things that are in his way–who doesn’t want him riding his bike across the frozen earth? What are the logistical challenges? What about internal things?  List five things he’s doing to do if he fails. List five things he’s going to do if he succeeds. What is the story? What drives him? What is his heart? Think of the physical and the emotional arc of this little news story.

Here’s another important thing to consider, when writing a novel, should you stay true to the facts? When you do research and the research doesn’t fit the story or makes the story less pretty, should you alter it? Here’s an example.  

And finally, I think I’m exhausted because I was laughing to tears with this clip. What does this say about me?

The End.

Write stories.