I have to admit, this has been a tough week for this see-the-glass-half-full gal. I’m knee-deep in revisions on my upcoming release, as well as working on additional projects.
It wasn’t the work. Writing is my balm.
It was the news. The devastating news of yet another national tragedy.
I couldn’t fathom how, once again, something of this magnitude had happened.
How did clues go unnoticed?
How did threats get whitewashed?
How did tips lose steam, despite significance?
Why was the ball dropped time and again?
I suppose those are questions everyone’s asking.
Perhaps, in time, we’ll know the truth.
Today, however, I wanted to share my heart (like I did here) from a writer’s perspective. Specifically, how this writer deals with bad things when “good” goes wrong—when evil steps in and hijacks our comfort zone.
For a while, I pause. I absorb the shock.
I linger in the moment and tap into the emotion.
It’s hard. I don’t like it. But the thing is that’s what makes me write better. I own those feelings and transfer that emotion into story.
Writing doesn’t numb me to the truth or make reality less painful. It enhances the journey.
It loosens my inhibitions and prompts me to go further. To step outside the boundaries and write beyond my comfort zone.
Writing allows me to think past the bad to focus on the good. Once I dive into the gunk, there’s nowhere to go but up.
As a writer, I know peeling away the outer layers is necessary. I learn more about my characters. I grow them. I grow me.
I breathe new fire into my stories when bad news leaves me breathless.
I summon that extra dose of oxygen and let it fill my lungs. And then I blow. I blow as if my life depends on it, because in many ways, it does.
Without the fire, a writer’s stories boast weak-kneed wimps and sugar-coated seasons. Words fall flat. Stories fail.
Can fiction possibly respect truth’s lingering sting?
Can it uphold beauty in spite of scars?
That’s the challenge, my friend.
Sometimes, I take my characters through hard and deep valleys. While fictional lows and loss can’t possibly compare to the real thing, that’s not really my goal. My goal is to share a great story, despite trials and temptations, and reflect life through a hope-filled lens.
When I write, I consider today’s headlines. I honor heroes and lives well-lived. I shun the dark in favor of light.
It doesn’t detract from bad things that happen.
It gives voice to those gone too soon.
God bless you, Parkland.
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PLEASE SHARE
Writing when tragedy rocks our comfort zones. Escapism or game-changer?
The reality of truth. Can good stories come from bad ones?
Original Image Credit: Engin_Akyurt/Pixabay
How does bad news affect your writing/reading habits?
When bad things happen, are you more or less likely to talk about them?
Have you experienced a traumatic event or difficult season? What ministered to you the most during that time?
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Today, let’s love more.
If you missed this week’s Facebook video, you can visit here. I think it will uplift you.
Much Love and Many Blessings,
