Drawt or Draft?

     After I wrote the lyrics to my new arrangement of the hymn "As the Deer" I realized that I didn't know how to pronounce one of the words. It's "draught," meaning the act of taking a drink. I've been pronouncing it "drawt," but I only now discovered that it's supposed to be "draft" or "droft!" Apparently, I'm not the only one who's confused. There was quite a conversation going on on answerbag.com. Now I even more don't know what to do! Go with what I've been saying, or use the dictionary pronunciation that most people don't know?

Snippet: O'Donnell

    Well, for a number of reasons, the least of which was procrastination, I did not get a post up on Saturday. But I'm back with a snippet from my latest short story. It's a historical fiction piece that grew from a writing prompt (Day 16 of a 30-Day Creative Writing Challenge).
      I've been wanting to incorporate another culture into my writing for a long time, and thanks to Downton, the winner is: Ireland! "O'Donnell" (working title--I'm taking suggestions) is about an Irishman from Dundalk and an American from Oklahoma both waiting for treatment in a make-shift church hospital. It takes place in Holland in June of 1944. Click on the title below to read and enjoy!

"O'Donnell" (excerpt)

     (Dear Irish readers: please tell me if I have any glaring inaccuracies on any point concerning O'Donnell.)

Favorite Quotes+An Answer

     My recent two favorite quotes are both from period dramas. The first is from Wives and Daughters.

"I'm not saying she's very silly, but one of us was silly, and it wasn't me." --Squire Hambley

Especially when said in a completely matter-of-fact tone, I just think that's hilarious. I had to rewind and listen to it again when I heard it the first time.


The second quote is from Downton. What a fun use of the word "jolly!"

     "Have you done something jolly with your hair?" --Sir Anthony Strallan to Edith

     On a side note, do you remember my laments about hating to write but loving to have written? Well I found an answer in the form a post on The Write Practice. How to Fall in Love With Writing Again. Check it out!

What is your favorite period drama quote?

Facing My Fear: At the Silver Stag

Free image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

    According to Wikipedia, 1,000 words is the cutoff for flash fiction. My latest story, "At the Silver Stag" went over by 55 words, but compared to most of what I write (number of words and time span) it's very, very brief. Managing the length was hard since my tales tend to sprawl, but that wasn't my main focus. This story is me taking the challenge and facing my fear! Because I always build up to scenes like this one and then avoid them.
     Click the title below to read.

 "At the Silver Stag"

Enjoy. Face your fear. Report back. 

Jack of All Trades, Master of One

     I'm a kind of a Jack of all Trades, Master of One. I play piano, I sing, I draw, I sew, I cook, I shoot, I play tennis. I speak one language fluently and three not so well. I've dreamed of acting, of teaching, of being a federal agent. And yet, the only thing I'm good enough at to make a career out of is writing.
     But sometimes I wonder, do I really want to be an author? Because that means writing, and a lot of times I want to do anything but write. Often I just can't seem to get a single sentence onto the page, much less  beautiful prose. It's like trying to squeeze a pea-sized drop out of an empty sample tube of moisturizer.

    Last year in August I wrote a post about a quote by Gloria Steinem. "I do not like to write; I like to have written." I ran across a nearly identical quote in The Write Practice, and it's by Dorothy Parker (20th century American writer). "I hate writing; I love having written." It's comforting to know I'm not alone and that feeling love and hate for writing doesn't mean I shouldn't become an author. Especially because I have no idea what I could do besides write...

     Here is the post where I found the quote: What is the Most Satisfying Part of Writing?

Do you ever hate what you love to do?

Happy 1st Birthday!

     Today is the first birthday of the Well in the Wood. I didn't realize until I put this list of pieces together how productive this year has been, or how much more poetry I've written than fiction. Hmm...
     Anyway, help me celebrate by finding something below that catches your interest, and leave a comment!

Free photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

POETRY

"Goodbye Long Summer"

"Something More Than Dye"

"Assignment One"

"The Centaur"

"By Definition, Gentleman"

"For Goodness' Sake"

"Prisoner's Lament"

"Umeboshi"

"I Know Why the Groundhog Hides"

"February"

"The Lark"

"i can only lay my thanks"

"Sonnet One: Memories"

FICTION

A snippet from: "The Soldier"

"The Umbrella" Part I (audiosnippet)

"The Umbrella" Part II (audiosnippet)

"The Presidential Endeavor"

"Charles and Winifred" (audiosnippet)

A snippet from: "The Cricket Apocalypse"

NON-FICTION/EXERCISES
"The Igloo" Part I
"The Igloo" Part II
"The Igloo" Part III
"The Igloo Part IV"
"The Sweet Taste of Success"
Fun Facts

"Boot Polishing" a snippet about Wynna

King Anders & Sir Sventall (dialogue)

On Board the HMV Lark (setting)

Map from "Eleanor, Princess of Atlace"
"You Never See Them Coming"
 And the author interview isn't really my "work" but it was a memorable post from this year. 5 Questions for Heather Dixon About Entwined

D-Day Tribute

i can only lay my thanks

at times like this i try

to feel the weight of grief

and comprehend sacrifice

at times like this i think

of victory

and white-marked fields

with beauty we remember bloodshed

with the weak we honor the strong

and at times like this

i can only lay my thanks

on this field of white

The Delights of Downton

    Here's something for you to mull over. What do Downton Abbey, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and high school bands have in common? I'll give you a minute.

     When I was small, I wished and wished that I could be a maidservant and wear a cap, a collared dress and a white, frilly apron. I wanted to walk around with good posture and curtsy to the ladies and gentlemen. I wanted to serve tea and carry trays of delicacies.
    Watching Downton Abbey is reviving my dream! If you've never seen it, it's a period drama that begins in 1912. It's about the intertwined yet separate lives of the Grantham family and their servants. There are some bits I would leave out (and some casting changes I would make), but all in all, Downton is my dream show. I understand why everyone loves it! Besides the alluring historical setting and everything that comes with good writing (conflict, suspense, secrets, irony, etc.), there's a special key aspect about Downton that makes it so lovable.
     Was that minute long enough?
     I've thought about it, and I think the answer has a lot to do with Downton's success. The show, the movies, the books, and the organizations all have in common a large but selective group of friends. Or in other words, a "fellowship" or a "family," the kind of thing to which we all want to belong. Downton hits that spot by following not only one or two but 16 close-knit primary characters. They all interact with each other according to their personalities, like a family. Not only that, an array of viewers can relate to their favorite or second-favorite be it self-sacrificing Bates, gullible Daisy, spirited Lady Sibyl, or down-to-earth Matthew Crawley.

In your mulling, what did you come up with as a common factor? What else do you think contributes to Downton's appeal?