Under the Influence

I've been back in Canada almost three days and already I'm being bombarded with ideas and memories. I've posted before about how the small details of my life have made their way into my writing, but now I'm struggling with controlling just where those ideas are taking me.

Unfortunately, it's not to the end or even the middle of one of my current or pending projects. No, I keep finding inspiration for new pieces. I drove down the street I grew up on and all of a sudden these small memories came back. The girl at the end of the road with a pirate ship in her back yard, or the club house my best friend, Kelly's dad built or even the way we drove Micky nuts by singing "Hey Mickey, you're so fine" when we all knew he wasn't. 

So, where has it taken me? Well, I'm not sure yet, but nothing is fitting with any of my current plans. I have a series of snapshots in my head, pictures of characters and events but no solid leads yet. I'm not exactly sure where I want them to go. I know that I can't focus on a new novel but maybe a short story, or perhaps I need to take a look into a book I thought I was going to put to rest.

Today I Die, was about a young woman named Olivia and all I knew was that she woke up convinced she was going to die. I never knew if she did. I never got that far because I didn't know what motivated her character to act the way she did. But the way all of these childhood memories are flittering through my mind, I might just be able to find something for her.

In addition to a stroll down memory lane, I've been reading a series on the tNBW website and the author uses song lyrics at the start of each chapter. She puts her own twist on each, and while I don't want to copy it has given me an idea. I've begun thinking of creating a series of connected short stories around songs from either a band or artist. I have no plans on using lyrics or song titles or even mentioning the name of the band but I wonder at the legalities of it.

So many ideas, so many words to write. Now if only I could finish something completely!

On my iPod:

Life is a Highway by Tom Cochrane