Speaking of giving thanks (as I did in my most recent blog entry), yesterday I attended a very special \u00e2\u20ac\u0153thank you\u00e2\u20ac\u009d luncheon. I joined about two dozen other women at a restaurant housed in a quaint old home. Everyone there knew some of the guests and all of us knew the hostess. Glenda and I attended school together from 3rd grade all the way through high school. Gathered inside while a light mist dampened everything outside, were other former classmates, women from Glenda\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s church, her neighbors and friends. Over the last 3 years, she has been battling cancer and she invited all of us to lunch as a way to say \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Thank you for your support and prayers.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
This was a festive group. Glenda is doing well at the moment, which fills us with joy. It’s holiday time, so many of us were adorned in the red sequined Santa sweaters and jingle bell jewelry we wear only once a year. And we had assigned seating. Glenda told me that she had \u00e2\u20ac\u0153fun\u00e2\u20ac\u009d designing the seating arrangements and was confident that each guest would enjoy getting to know their tablemates. This was certainly true in my case. In fact, I thanked Glenda for following her great instincts.<\/p>\n
None of the women, as far as I know, were writers, but I imagine that all of them had something to write about. The average age of attendees was probably around 70, so most have lived through seven decades. And based just on the events and activities reported by my tablemates, I knew that there were many more fascinating stories that would never be told outside of casual conversation.<\/p>\n
During the first decade or so that I wrote for publication, I never met another writer. Today, everyone is writing. So it seemed odd to be with so many non-writers. Oh wait, there were a few writers in the group. One woman told me that her son had just had a screenplay accepted in Sundance. Another one said her husband is thinking about writing a book. Two women admitted that they have books in mind. Hmm, I wonder if the connections made yesterday in that turn-of-the-century home will result in any new books in the future.<\/p>\n
Have you inspired someone, lately, to follow their passion or their dream of writing? What do you say to people who tell you they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to write a book or who ask you how to get published? Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an excellent response: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Check out Patricia Fry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s books at http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com<\/a> In particular, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll want to read her newly revised book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book<\/em> because it will definitely prepare you for the highly competitive business of publishing.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d And then suggest that they contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Speaking of giving thanks (as I did in my most recent blog entry), yesterday I attended a very special \u00e2\u20ac\u0153thank you\u00e2\u20ac\u009d luncheon. I joined about two dozen other women at a restaurant housed in a quaint old home. Everyone there knew some of the guests and all of us knew the hostess. Glenda and I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t