Tag: thoughts

writing

character building

abby mumford

you can learn a lot about someone by what they say, but you can learn even more by what they don’t say or even just by the tone of their voice.

for instance:

bria: i’d love to find a good chicken salad recipe.

me: that’s so labor intensive. you have to boil the chicken, cut it into cube sizes pieces, and then make the sauce.

bria: you don’t cook much, do you?

me: *startled expression*

bria: you listed three steps. *laughs*

she’s right. i don’t cook much. i don’t particularly enjoy it plus cooking for one means i only need to cook once a week because a recipe yields plenty of leftovers, but that wasn’t the point i set out to make when i made that statement.

which got me thinking about writing. it’s the age old rule of SHOW, DON’T TELL, but to see it so clearly…

i said one thing, but the audience read (the truth) between the lines. chicken salad really isn’t that difficult to make and even with my limited culinary skills i could do so myself.

but again, not my point.

the point is that there are so many ways we get to know people – by talking, listening, watching – and it’s important to incorporate tidbits about the characters in a variety of ways because it’s not only more interesting, but it reflects reality and what’s fiction if not an exaggerated form of the truth?

what’s the sneakiest way you ever learned something about someone? (in real life OR a book.)

convos with strangers

conversations with strangers #12

abby mumford

don’t talk to strangers. here’s why i’m breaking that rule.

shocker of all things shocking, i find myself at porter square books. i hand over my book and the girl, who is set to ring me up, says “i know you’re part of our customer care program and i should know your name, but…”

me: *spells last name* *searches through purse for wallet* *looks up at the extended silence to find girl staring expectantly at me* “oh, you need my first name? is there more than one mumford in there?”

her: “there actually is.”

me: “wow.” *ponders all other mumfords she knows. the amazing mumford. mumford and sons. my immediate family members. my extended family members; none live nearby* “i’m abigail.”

her: “ah, found it. the first one.”

me: “i usually am. it’s nice until you’re the first one in everyone’s phone book and they butt dial you.”

her: “that would be annoying.”

me: “i like to tell myself i’m really popular.”

her: *smiles* *hands over receipt.*

i leave the store happy with my purchase and with my status as an almost regular, but wondering who’s out there sharing my last name. perhaps they have a first name that would trump mine thus putting them at the top of everyone’s pocket dialing lists? i must make friends with them immediately.

convos with strangers

conversations with strangers #11

abby mumford

i’m conversing with strangers. here are the details why.

i know they’ve been making some changes to my local grocery store, but so far, it’d just been to the aisles on the edges: the produce, the meats, and my favorite, the breads.

after a few weekends away, i am finally in town long enough to warrant a trip to stock up on supplies and yet, when i walk in, i might as well be in a store in another state. EVERYTHING has been switched around (the candy is next to the fruit, the soda is next to the crackers, the paper towels are near the chips, i mean, huh?) and so the fastest thing i can do is walk up and down each aisle taking note of what is now where.

after an unplanned extra amount of exercise, i’m finally ready to check out.

me: there are a lot of changes around here.

lady at the register (LATR): i know. more room.

me: was a building next door bought or are you just reorganizing the space?

LATR: *rolls eyes* reorganizing.

me: have there been a lot of confused customers?

LATR: *nods*

me: well, it’ll look great once it’s finished.

LATR: it can’t be soon enough. *hands me my receipt* have a good evening.

me: thanks, you too.

and off i walk down the sidewalks, crosswalks, and streets of my neighborhood that i thankfully still recognize.

feelings

question

abby mumford

if you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be?

me? i’d tell younger me to start wearing heels because she’s not getting any taller.

i’d tell her to pay more attention in math class. she will need to know how to add and subtract in real life.

i’d tell her that she actually likes brownies baked from a box better than from scratch. (sorry mom, i’m sticking with betty crocker.)

i’d tell her to learn to read a map. and i’d tell her it’s okay to get lost because she does (and always will), but it’s those detours where her character is built. and i’d tell her she should always go in the direction opposite of what she thinks she should do. it’s the only way she’ll ever get to her end destination.

i’d tell her she wins an olympic gold medal (and see what sport she focuses on) because maybe that dream could still be cultivated.

i’d tell her to keep up the thank you notes because there’s nothing quite as lovely as receiving a handwritten note.

i’d tell her to ease up on the worrying and self doubting.

i’d tell her to take her parents’ advice more often. they actually do know what they’re talking about.

i’d tell her that when things go wrong, THAT’S when you learn.

but i’d only say those things in the barest of whispers because the information really sticks when she learns it for herself.

writing

aMUSEing (or i just had an AH HA moment.)

abby mumford

i had planned another post for today, but then i came across THIS ARTICLE by sarah fine and it was so brilliant, i had to write about it. it’s short, so i’ll wait for you to click through and read it.

ok, done? the thing that’s so great about that post is that it applies to a whole lot of creative endeavors.

writing
running
reading
cooking
listening
drawing
music-ing
knitting
dancing
taking pictures
painting

all of these things can be improved upon if you focus on the relationship between things rather than just one specific item. how much sassier would that still life painting be if, instead of just the orange sitting there, it’s about the orange and the table and how close it is to the edge?

see? electric.

so yeah, to quote Oprah, i just had an AH HA moment. the idea of squishing, ordering, and/or expecting your muse to show up in the form of one person or one place or one idea is ludicrous (to me), but until i read that article, that’s exactly what i was anticipating would happen. i don’t know where i came up with that idea because as i sit here and think about it no one i know exists in their life as just one person. we’re supported and surrounded and sometimes forced to deal with friends, family, coworkers, acquaintances and strangers and it’s all of these interactions that shape our responses, our days, our world. it’s these occurrences that make our lives and stories interesting.

as a writer, the way i express my creativity is through time spent alone because how else am i going to get the words out? i can’t do that in a room full of people expecting me to engage in conversation, but being social is something i like to do, so this idea that my muse involves a lot of people and a lot of relationships and the electricity between them, well, hell, i’ll go to that party.

and suddenly, just like that, the writing time isn’t so lonesome. AWESOME!

in other news, there is one other thing that charmed the pants off me (yes, pants. it’s mid-June and i’m still wearing pants. come on, New England!) is this quote that kelly breakey shared with me: “Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book!” oh my! how true that is. gosh, don’t you just love to read?