How to Deal with People that Drive You Insane

S – Seek shelter.  Shelter in the form of a friend, family member or colleague that doesn’t eat your soul.

U – “Unlearn What You Have Learned.” – Yoda.  Who says you have to be nice to everyone?

R – Resist.  Resist the urge to play their game right back at them.  Although temporarily fun, this tactic will always backfire on you.  Always.

R – Respect your intuition.  Listen to your heart when it is telling you that someone is not quite right in the noggin.

E – Establish firm boundaries.  Moats, tar pits, flypaper, whatever is near and handy.

N – Never back down.  Don’t let them take your soul.  Fight.

D – Don’t try sarcasm.  They won’t get it.  Ever.

E – Eat your cake, Damnit!  Who says you can’t eat the piece of cake in front of you?  And, don’t let them make you feel guilty about it.

R – Remember.  The best weapon you have against soul eaters is a good memory.  That way, when they pull out their bag of tricks, you already know what’s in it and can shut it down before the rabbit even sticks one ear out!

The Dream

I want to write a story that will seize and hold my reader’s rapt attention.  I want them to remember and love the characters long after they’ve read about them.  I want my reader to be able to clearly visualize each scene playing out in their head as if they were watching a movie.  I want my readers to feel ubiquitous butterflies in their stomachs as they read and re-read the love scenes, causing deep tell-tale folds to appear in the bindings.  My story will be neither sickeningly sweet, nor unbelievably spicy.  It will not be historical, with awkward sentence phrasings; neither will it be contemporary, only to become out dated a few years after it’s published.  The story I want to write will be timeless and beloved by millions. 

And, it is also a dream.

But, we are discussing here the kind of story I want to write, not the kind of story that I am writing, which may or may not end up falling into any of the above mentioned parameters.  I realize with trepidation that undertaking the task of penning one’s first novel is a daunting process, comparable to stripping naked and standing on stage in the middle of a theatre of your peers.  Often, its enough to make one want to give up, put their clothes back on and go back to sitting comfortably in the audience, casually flinging either tomatoes or roses at the next poor naked soul to appear on stage (as if your opinion were gold).  But, one must not give up, and neither can I! 

Chasing Rainbows (or...following your dreams to the disdain of those who would rather crush them)

“You’re chasing rainbows”

Is what they would say

When they’d go forward

And I’d go my way.

“You’re chasing unicorns”

They’d tease me in jest.

And snicker behind me

As if they knew best.

“Your head’s in the clouds”

I’ve heard it before

Whenever I’ve opened

An imaginary door.

“Just stop dreaming,

And decide what to be.

You’ll never make it,

Can’t you just see?”

“Be serious, calm down,”

They tried discourage

But I never listened,

And that’s why I flourish!