Guest Blogging and My Partner in Crime

Imagine my surprise when I was asked to guest blog on another site.  But it's true.   Tomorrow's blog at the http://pinkfuzzyslipperwriters.blogspot.com/  will have been written by yours truly.   My old partner in crime, Mary Barfield, asked and I happily agreed.  I feel honored beyond belief at the confidence they have in me.

I have called Mary my partner in crime for over a dozen years...since we met at my first Southeastern Writer's Association Conference on St Simons Island.  It was first time and her umpteenth.  We bonded in seconds. 

At the welcoming ceremony were all asked to introduce ourselves and make it memorably.  Imagine, I'm in an auditorium with a hundred plus  strangers and was a wee bit nervous. (I stopped counting at 100)  Although I have given seminars and things to groups before, this was different.  I wasn't the expert.  I was a novice at fiction writing. It didn't matter that I had been published in nonfiction for years.  I ran through a couple of things in my head but nothing seemed to stand out.

Mary was an old professional at conferences and was sitting next to me.  She got up and did her memorable line of crime and passion with a devilish sparkle to her eye, and then sat down.  Those who have met Mary know what I mean.  Then It was my turn.  I stood and told everyone my name and that I lived on the mainland, Brunswick. Then said the first thing that popped into my head.  "I've got 'Made in Japan' stamped on my butt."

I was thinking of the little dolls made after WWII with the little stickers which said that on the bottom. (now they say China) Well, I am Japanese. I'm short...five foot nothing, at the time I weighed about 120 lbs (which now I resemble a squat little Buddha).  It seemed to fit.  The room exploded in laughter and nobody forgot me.  Even to this day, several members from my first time will see me and point, and say "made in Japan" and laugh.  They may not remember my name, but they remember my introduction line.

Mary had the same attitude as I do when going to one of these things...if you can't have fun, why bother. Since then, we've become side kicks, hammered out details for novels, swapped family stuff, writing, critiques, run away for writing huddled weekends, had water gun fights in hotel hallways after midnight, etc, and even though she lives across the state from me, she is only a phone call away.

Oh, in case you were wondering...my blog is about breaking free of Spring runaway desires and writer's block.

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Jo