Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of attending the best book launch ever. I’m not even being overly dramatic, it was great. Even when I launch my own book, (see how I’m being all positive there?) I know this book launch will blow mine out of the water. C.C. Humphreys launched his new book Shakespeare’s Rebel at a special Bard on the Beach show. There was sword fighting (real and theatrical), readings and mini-doughnuts (from my purse). So cool. I think it was the first time in…maybe forever that I’ve looked forward to a Monday.
Only one small item marred an otherwise perfect Monday. That little thing? My car currently stinks. On its own the stinky nature of my car wouldn’t be so bad. After all my windows roll down and I’ve smelled worse. No, it wouldn’t have been so bad if I hadn’t forgotten about the stink long enough to offer my friend a ride. Have you ever had a friend call and announce “I’m in the neighbourhood, see you in five”? If so, you’ve felt the terror, the gut clenching fear that you only have five minutes to clean your home or risk your friends discovering that you don’t live in whatever false version of domestic perfection you’ve led them to believe was your real life. You recognize the feeling right? The panic of wondering if you can jam forty seven magazines, a pizza box and a basket of unsorted socks into your oven and still have time to squirt scrubbing bubbles into the toilet before she arrives. Well, I had that moment. And it was self induced because I offered for her to experience my car. The car that is so small I have no right to say “I haven’t had the chance to clean it out.” The car of shame.
(I will clean my car this weekend. I will clean my car this weekend.)
I’m thankful for three things that saved me from car shame (and ensured a perfect evening of books and the bard, fighting and friends).
- The previously mentioned windows (they were rolled down the entire drive).
- Friends that don’t judge. (Seriously I give them so many opportunities and they just refuse to be jerks).
- Mini-doughnuts. (They make everything better).
NB. – In the last three weeks I have:
- Sung at a friend’s wedding (so fun, so scary).
- Received amazing edits (I actually think I might know how to add tension to my work now).
- Hugged a dozen sweaty swordsmen (and women).
- Used house cleaning as a tool of procrastination.
- Force fed liquified cat food to my cat.
- Fallen in love with the music of Anna Moffo.
- Entertained tangentially related people who I couldn’t actually talk to due to a language barrier and whose only memory of me is probably that when I stayed with them in Ukraine I cried loudly in their guest bedroom and freaked everyone out.
It’s been a busy few weeks. But I’m back and along with cleaning my car this weekend
Writing Exercise:
While CC was reading from Shakespeare’s Rebel I realized that he used lines from Hamlet as dialogue in his book. (That’s actually cool when you realize that the character speaking was actually Shakespeare and not just someone throwing out “To Be’s” and “Out Damn Spot’s” to sound important.) I was thrilled. Partly because it worked so well in the story and partly because the use of the familiar phrases helped me connect the plays to the novel and this character. Somehow the familiarity made Shakespeare feel more real, like a person who could be living his life, say something clever and think to himself “huh, I’m gonna put that in my next play”. Choose a line from your favourite poem or book, then imagine how the author may have experienced that line in real life. Imagine the moment in their life when they heard or said those words and though…”hey, I’m going to put that in my next book”. Happy writing.
