It's February, which means a Super Bowl, Valentine's, our odd week off from school (which I desperately need to catch up on my sleep) and another IWSG bloghop. Time must be moving faster these days because I somehow managed to miss the January IWSG entirely. Too much going on. So hats off to those who can keep up with their blogging schedules on top of everything else, including our leader, Alex J. Cavanaugh, and his merry band of co-hosts: Lee Lowery, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Jennifer Hawes, Cathrina Constantine, and Tyrean Martinson!
This month's optional question: Has a single photo or work of art ever inspired a story? What was it and did you finish it?
Hmmm. I don't think so. Although I've toyed with the idea of a story with a setting inspired from one of my favorite poems, Kubla Khan, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Here's a sample to give you an idea of what that might look like, and of course, I couldn't pick just one.
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Image: pwbaker
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Image: John Fowler
Down to a sunless sea.
Image: Nick Bramhall
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.
Image: Timo Newton-Syms
Alas, such a project will have to wait. I'm meandering through the second draft of my current story and it's slow going. In my earlier works, cutting and cutting to get under 100K left only dialogue and action. This time around, I've left myself space to explore the character's thoughts, feelings, motivation, and memories, which is great, but challenging.
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What setting are you currently working with or would like to work with in the future?
