Inspiration | Cathy C. Hall Writes

Whew! I don’t know about you, but when I get home from a really wonderful writing conference, my head feels like it’s about to burst with an info overload. My synapses are firing away with renewed vigor and ideas are popping into my brain like those Pop Rocks candy. I can’t wait to get to the keyboard, to put my splendiferous writing plans into action!

And then, after a few days, I begin to decompress and all that wonderful writing inspiration begins to drip, drip, drip out of me, perhaps landing on the kitchen floor, where I stand in front of the pantry, sneaking yet another Girl Scout cookie, and wondering what exactly I was so all-fired up about.

This time, I’m determined to keep the writing fire in my belly. It helps that the Southern Breeze SCBWI Springmingle Conference comes at the end of February, so now I can start March with my um, marching orders to myself. To wit:

Review my notes and apply all that learning and editor/agent wisdom to my manuscript. Honestly, I thought my manuscript sparkled with glittery brilliance, plus a dollop of awesome sauce on the top. Now I’m thinking it may need a splash of rewrites.

So, I’m going to need focus, discipline, my notes and maybe one of those books the presenters recommended. I’ll be sharing specifics over at Finders & Keepers for the next few weeks, if you’re in need of inspiration and marching orders.

And okay, I’m still going to need plenty of Girl Scout cookies. Don’t give me that look… they’re an excellent and tasty source of energy. (P.S. I’m not sharing the Thin Mints.)

Can you believe my backyard hawk let me get this close? I’ve seen him high in the sky, circling above the pines in the late afternoons, the screee-screee of his cry echoing around me.

But yesterday, he swooped down into my yard and I grabbed my camera and headed outside. Whoosh! He soared across the grass and landed on my fence. And there he perched, in his all his glory while I clicked away. I turned to find a spot on better footing. When I looked back to the fence, my hawk was gone. I hadn’t heard so much as a flutter.

What a majestic creature! Inside again, I remembered Sigrid Undset’s powerful Christmas message and wanted to share it with you.

“And when we give each other Christmas presents in His name, let us remember that he has given us the sun and the moon and the stars, the earth with all its forests and mountains and oceans–and all that lives and moves upon them. He has given us all green things and everything that blossoms and bears fruit–and all that we quarrel about and all that we have misused–and to save us from our own foolishness, from all our sins He came down to earth and gave us Himself.”