Our last few campgrounds have all been on or by water. A marshy bay close to the ocean, a lake, a river, another lake...it's pretty much the best. I've had great views, and equally great reminders of the ability to adapt and flow in the face of obstacles.
Not that any of us are dealing with obstacles, in this our year of two thousand and twenty one, right?
Aaaaanyhow, I remain thankful that my current barriers/obstacles have been ones we can wriggle through.
In RV life, we've had...adventures. Turns out that's what full-time RVing is - amazing, and supplying multiple chances to practice patience and problem-solving. We've had tricksy-to-get-into spots, people in our reserved spot, a large leak, a broken attachment, and hesitant leveling jacks...to name a few. We've also met incredibly kind people, found a fantastic mobile technician, and been in deeply lovely places. Also, my ridiculously awesome husband Jeremy is constantly leveling up in his already-impressive handiness. I...am not, but I have really stepped up my internet research game, so I have that going for me.
(pictured below is a gif that 100% represents how I research on the internets...if it doesn't show up for you, rest assured it's a murder-conspiracy-theories-and-connections sort of board)
In writing, I've had a chance to flex those problem-solving muscles too. For one example, earlier this year I wrote the wrong story.
It's a good story, one I really liked, with a character I very much want to revisit, but at the end of the day it was a fantasy story, and the anthology I was submitting to was for science fiction. I mean, it's 2021 - it can't be just my brain that's doing weird shorting-out moments like that, right?
The editor was amazing and gave me the chance to write him a new story, which I did (check out We Dare: No Man's Land, to meet Vern and a ton of other awesome ladies), but that still left me with this fully written, no-home-to-go-story.
And then! Enter another awesome author/universe creator, with another awesome world, who has an upcoming anthology deadline. And with some tweaking and adapting and a few rewritten sections, my existing story can fit right in.
Moving like water, my friends. Finding homes for orphan stories AND getting around my self-imposed rule of no more short stories until I get some of these novels finished - ta da! Maybe somewhere down the line, that original story and character I enjoyed can appear in a different setting.
In the meantime, I'll keep working on stories, hopping campground to campground, and exploring the path of 2021.
It's taken me to some cool places so far (pictured above: one of the first gold mines in the United States, out in the wilds of North Carolina), so I'm excited to see what's next.
Well, immediately next is finishing two more short stories at a campground with no water-view whatsoever, but hitting deadlines is still exciting. And we'll be back to the water before long. How could we not?
Til next time!
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