Gold Nuggets

A delightful lady approached me at a book signing and asked where I found the idea for writing “The Estate Sale.” I shared my short version of how I’d always enjoyed attending such sales, and being a writer, my creative juices took it from there. We laughed and then I realized she wanted the real story.

Everyday experiences provide a stream where I pan for nuggets to build a story. When I journal I take note of certain experiences of each day or week and mark them as possible story nuggets. I also jotted down words I felt were attached to the sale. When I journaled about a particular estate sale I enjoyed visiting, I added inheritance, legacy, tragedy, and love, to the entry. These became nuggets I needed to form my story many years later.

People I’ve met through the years become character nuggets. One person’s appearance or mannerisms, another’s quirks or temperament, may show up in a future story. I pay attention to how people react (myself included), in circumstances of life. I tend to jot down these things lest I lose them in the current of life.

The “Estate Sale” formed gradually, beginning as a short story and then sat in my file drawer several years. When I joined my small critique group, I needed something to read and have critiqued, so I pulled it out. I knew then this was going to become a story with purpose. One year later it was published.

Book 2, Legacy’s Path, continues exploring paths of the original characters, while bringing them in contact with new personalities who will be transformed by the legacy of Mary Ludwig. I pull more nuggets from my journal and God gives me the purpose and message He wants people to have. The real nugget I hope to share through my writing is that of God’s Truth. It shines brightly in “The Estate Sale,” as it does in “Legacy’s Path.” You see, it’s not simply my idea. It’s God’s.