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convos with strangers

conversations with strangers #2

abby mumford

to refresh your memory, here’s the deal.

i was at my favorite indie book store, porter square books, and i was looking to purchase steven king’s ON WRITING. since i really only ever look at the YA section, i wasn’t sure where this book would be located, so i needed help.

“could you tell me if you have steven king’s ON WRITING?” i said.

“sure. just one moment.” the female employee stopped her task and typed on the computer. “yes, we have one copy.”

we walked over to the reference section (ah ha!) and searched for it. it took some time, but it was a crowded area and there was  a woman studying nearby, so i decided to wait patiently instead of making idle chit chat. (i told you my conversation skills need work, hence this experiment.)

“here it is!” she pulled it off the shelf and handed it to me, delighted. “i’m glad i was able to find it.”

“me too. thank you.”

i followed her back to the register.

“will that be all today?” she said.

“it is.”

“are you in our customer program*?”

“yes, and actually, i have a coupon.”

a male employee walked over and inspected my purchase. “oh! this is a great book. he puts in a lot of biographical information. you’ll like it.”

“i’ve heard many good things about this. i’m excited to read it.”

“with the coupon, the total will be $9.05,” the woman said.

“thanks again for helping me find this book,” i said as i finished paying.

“no problem. have a good day.”

“you too,” i said and walked off into the sunshine amazed at how quickly a book about the solitary act of writing can spawn two conversations with strangers.

feelings

be brave by veronica roth

abby mumford

i seem to be happening upon a lot of articles recently about how peoples’ brains work. this one on fear by veronica roth is borderline genius and took an indescribable amount of courage not only to write but to post for the whole of the interwebs to view. it’s important (for me right now) because i need to be brave in writing, in life, and in going to sleep*, so i’m hoping to take a page out of her book (tee hee).

read it.

that is all.

*things i never thought i’d say: sleeping is hard to do (when you’re the only one in the apartment.)

convos with strangers

conversations with strangers #1

abby mumford

i’ve linked to this site before (which is now defunct, so CLICK HERE to meet the original inventor of conversations with strangers), but i can’t stop thinking about it, so i’ve decided to conduct my own “conversations with strangers” research.

without further ado:

i reached the bus stop and stopped outside of the waiting area to enjoy the scare April sunshine. a woman was already there perusing the posted schedule.

a few seconds later, i saw a movement in my peripheral vision, turned, and found this woman looking at me expectantly. “excuse me,” she said.

i removed my ipod ear bud because a really loud song was on and while i could see her lips moving, i couldn’t hear her over the treble. (i was a little worried because she looks lost and frankly, i’m not the girl to help her. i’m horrible with directions on a good day, but also, this shuttle bus is linked to a big name university. i don’t go there, i just work there and so don’t know the ins and outs of the campus like i should or like it appeared i do considering i’m waiting for the bus.)

“i need to get to radcliff quad,” she said. “is this the right place for the shuttle?”

i smiled because YES, I KNOW THIS. “yup. you’ll need to get on the quad express route.”

“great! thanks!” she said.

she still looked a bit confused and i suppose i could have followed up with some questions about where she was going, but i was afraid it would lead to topics i didn’t have answers for and then i’d feel bad i brought it up in the first place. i guess all i could do was leave one ear bud out in case she had more questions as we waited for the same bus.

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feelings

gen·er·os·i·ty

abby mumford

–noun, plural -ties.

1. readiness or liberality in giving.
2. freedom from meanness or smallness of mind or character.
3. a generous act: We thanked him for his many generosities.
4. largeness or fullness; amplitude

sure, the technical definition explains what the word means, but this past weekend, i learned what it felt like.

it was in the way my friends listened long enough for me to run out of silly stories and get down to what was really on my mind. it was in the way my parents drove 10+ total hours for me with a couch blocking the rear view window.  it was in the way they continued to look forward, reminding me of the good parts to come. it was in the way the hand-me-downs from my siblings filled up my new apartment. it was in the way my parents opened their wallets. it was in the way my parents, despite their achy knees and backs, lifted and scrubbed and swept and knelt and stood and cleaned and cleaned and cleaned. it was in the way they said “we’re so lucky to see you two weekends in a row” even though this weekend was all about work. it was in the way they pointed out the positive features and ignored the drippy sinks and loose screws. it was in the way the hours slid by, past their desired departure time, but they stayed until i was steady on my feet. it was in the way the smiles were stuck on their faces. it was in the way they squeezed me goodbye – so tight – despite having muscles exhausted from hours of physical labor.

sometimes, to really understand something, you can’t read about it. you must live it.

here’s to living. on my own. (ready or not.)

feelings

it starts off small…

abby mumford

with a comment like THIS.

and a reply like THIS.

and before i know it, i’m having a conversation with an agent of awesomesauce and an editor from a big name publisher. both who work with kids books. which is what i happen to write.

sure, the conversation is lighthearted and about things unrelated to books, but this is the thing (all you Twitter naysayers out there): it’s all about networking. and no, that’s not the sole reason i’m on Twitter. i’m on there with the intention of education and sure, for a bit of procrastination. networking just happens to be a happy side effect since the publishing community is so active on Twitter.

and maybe now when my query comes in with the masses of other query letters, it won’t get smushed at the bottom of the electronic pile. maybe it’ll get moved to the top because, hmm, my name is familiar. and maybe when i’m agented and my MSS is being submitted, it too will go to the head of the class instead of being ignored because, hey, i “know” that girl from twitter and i liked what i saw.

let’s take a moment to savor that dream.

you know what though? even if this is just a big game of what if and none of it comes to fruition, for this tiny moment today, i feel important. people (of influence) were talking about me without any original input from me. that’s plain lovely.

score one more for Twitter.