Writing on a rainy day in E-town

I am sitting in a dimly lit, spacious coffee shop called Folklore Coffee in the heart of Elizabethtown (which, will henceforth be known as E-town. I'm learning no one wants to take the time to say or spell out the whole name around here). It has been cloudy all afternoon, with showers of rain spattering over the county ever half hour or so. It's a lovely day for work in a coffee shop.

I have been writing a short story, inspired by NPR's challenge to do so. It is strange how limits can be such a challenge in either direction. When I wrote sermons, getting to my 4 page, single-spaced minimum seemed like the most difficult challenge I encountered time after time. I never felt like I had done it enough to make sermon-writing come as effortlessly as it seemed for some. I usually enjoy the experience as I got into the preaching part (if I liked my sermon by the time I had gotten to that point. If I did like it, it seemed I always knew my sermon better too, as if it was a part of me). But my sermons were always on the short side. Twelve to fifteen minutes at most. By that fourth page, I always ran out of things to say anyway.

This is completely different. I have 600 words. I have used about 200 words in my blog already! I can't imagine telling a whole story in that short a space/time. But I am trying it; it's proving to be a challenging exercise in vocabulary and brevity.

My other challenge is that I never know where I am going with anything until I get there. If I write an outline, I almost never stick with it (and if I had to turn in an outline, I would modify it at the end of the paper writing to match up again). One sentence turns out another, but I have no idea what it will be until it the previous one is there. The instructions for this particular piece is that we have been provided with the first and last sentences. And I must say, they are really bad sentences. I don't know of an editor that would end a story "Nothing was ever the same again after that." Bleh! Sure, it leaves creative room for the many writers who are taking on this story, but at the same time, it's very cliche'.

I'm sticking with it for now. It's good to have a stimulating challenge, deadline, and a reason to go to a coffee shop!