Sunday, July 6, 2014

Sitting in Cars With Girls

My granddaughter is spending six weeks in the area. A miraculous turn of events that has proven to be even more of a gift than I'd expected.

There was a movie a long while back called "Riding in Cars With Boys." I don't remember anything about the movie, but when I realized it was my turn to blog for the R8, the first thing that came to mind was an evening I spent with my granddaughter a week ago.


I know, it looks like the car was moving, but fear not. The car was off and we were in the parking lot waiting for someone to run a quick errand, and the wind was blowing. What does this have to do with writing? Only thisI realized, sitting in that car with that girljust how different she is from me.


That's right, she was hanging out the window shouting at the top of her lungs: "Hell-O PEOPLE! Hey! Hi! Hi BOY!"

Never. Ever. Not in this life or the next would you catch her grandmother doing anything like this, or anything even remotely similar.

I have no idea where this little extrovert came from, but it looks like she's having fun, doesn't it?

That's because, um, she IS. LOL. She didn't care if THE PEOPLE hollered back. But some of them did. And almost all of them waved.

Meanwhile, her grandmother has trouble just updating her author page on Facebook...

I never know what to saybecause every time I do it, it feels like I'm shouting: Hell-O PEOPLE! Hey! Hi! Look at ME!

Of course, it doesn't feel like I'm being shouted at when an author pops up in my Facebook feed.* And when one does, I react the way the people in that parking lot did. Sometimes I ignore it. Sometimes I wave back (hit the like button). And sometimes I leave a comment.

So why does it feel like I'm shouting when I update my page? I don't have the answer for that yet. But my mentor (see darling child above) is working on convincing me that if I try doing it more often, it will feel less shouty.

I'll let you know how that works out.

Meanwhile, here's a little shoutout for the brand new hardcopy version of the anthology that includes my novella, The Psychic Detective.


One day soonI PROMISE, Emelle GambleI'll link to it on my Facebook page.

In the meantime, I'll be Sitting in Cars (and elsewhere, sometimes called a splash park) With A Girl...

I hope you all are having a wonderful shouty summer! And if you take the time to shout back, by leaving a comment on this post, you'll have a chance at winning a paperback copy of the Once and Forever anthology.

Love,
Evie


*Well, all right, sometimes it DOES feel like authors are shouting at me. But I ignore them and if they don't go away, I hide them. Usually they go away on their own. Your mileage may vary.

20 comments:

  1. I bet that sweet muse Cylee would explain to you that what you're shouting about is your book, not you. And your book is wonderful, professional and should be shared with everyone. So maybe dear Evie Owens, you need to think of your work as your child, or your friend, or an admired project, all of which you want to share because you're excited about it! And, as I'm sure you know, honey badgers never feel bad or hurt when they are ignored...they simply hang around and wait for their next chance to be honey badgers. XXX Great post!

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  2. Loved the blog! Grandchildren are the best at teaching us. Who knew that would be so? Thanks for sharing your wild child with us.

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  3. Lovely blog! Maybe she's teaching you a few more things than you expected. I look forward to seeing a photo of you like that some day soon. Or not, but it would be something.

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  4. Thanks, guys!

    Emelle, my honey, you're right about finding a different way to think about my work. :-)

    Mary, grandchildren are THE BEST. Period. :-)

    Kathryn, you've given me something to think about. LOL...

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  5. Hi - enjoyed your post, Evie!I'm a "shouty" person, by all accounts, but still I can understand how you feel - some of my very best friends ever are definitely not "shouty!" May your lovely granddaughter keep her joie de vivre forever. I've always heard that grandchildren are just the best, and worth waiting for!
    I'll probably end up showing up here as "anonymous" (really not the thing for a shouty person!), so I'll mention my email address in case I have a shot at the anthology: vadaisy@hotmail.com
    -- Marceline Miller

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  6. Love your little sweetie's fearlessness!

    Straddling that line between tooting one' own horn (ad nauseum) and providing a welcome update to one's friends and supporters is definitely a challenge. One person's too much is another's not enough. Some days I feel like I'm hitting my marks and others like I've been contemplating my navel in public. Ew!

    I like the idea of approaching this from a sense of fun and discovery, instead of drudgery and stress. When I say Hell-O PEOPLE, it's exciting to think of just who might shout back.

    Love the post, Evie. I've always enjoyed your brand of shouts.

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  7. It is amazing how children are just themselves. Sometimes we can see ourselves in them, but most often it they're just them. It is great that you can learn from her as well as teach.

    Have a great time hanging in parked cars with her. LOL.

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  8. OH, I bet you totally were the one with her head out the window - WHEN THE CAR WAS MOVING - at that age, in prehistoric times, when we had not seat-belts…
    Wonderful blog - I only wish that small children, as they teach us their monumental lessons, would also hand out like candy blocks of energy to go with the shoutiness.
    Hooray on the hardcopy!
    ps THANKS!!!

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  9. Awesome! Love what we can learn when we look around. And I think Little Miss Shouty has it right. ;0) Because she's the one having all the fun, grandma.

    Congrats on your new hard copy! It's gorgeous. I'm going to go buy my copy right now so that you guys can all sign it for me. And when I look over on my keeper shelf, I'll smile knowing that the book is filled with the wonderful voices of my dear friends. Yay!

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  10. So true, so true! And yet, we're NOT really shouting and there are actually people WAITING and WANTING to hear from authors about their latest stuff. Start small, but start... Take a page from your granddaughter and stick your head out the window--it's not so scary when it's just the wind. CONGRATS on the anthology--it looks like fun, and a fabulous group of authors.

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  11. (Catching up here, on a busy Monday...)

    Hi Marceline! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting on my post! Grandchildren, in my experience, are most definitely worth waiting for!

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  12. Keely, it really is an interesting line to straddle. From introverted writer to shouty promoter. LOL.

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  13. Hi Lavinia! I had a blast this weekend, hanging out with the kid. And am exhausted today!

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  14. Marjanna, I did like to ride in the back of the pickup, but I never did any shouting. :-) And you're welcome.

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  15. Hey Mac! Little Miss Shouty does seem to have a ton of fun! Thank you for the lovely comments on the anthology. It was very cool to see "Evie Owens" in print.

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  16. Rowan! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting on my post. And yes, I hear you. You will, if I can figure out how to do it right, be seeing the link on my Facebook author page SOON. LOL.

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  17. And the winner of the hard copy of the Once and Forever anthology is YOU, Marjanna! I'll see if I can figure out how to get it to you... :-)

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  18. Evie! You and that grandbaby have completely charmed me this week! I agree. Learning to do scary things is, well, scary. May we all develop that child's fearlessness!

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  19. Evie - Great post! Wow, she's gotten so big. Might I point out that sharing your story has generated a lot of saying "hi" right back at you? Maybe you don't have to shout - maybe you just say "hi" the way that reflects you. Just saying.

    Of course, I know that even this can feel like shouting. I have no cure for that - yet. :)

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  20. Yes, Nichole! To fearlessness!! WooHoo!

    And Lisa, you're right. I just have to figure out how to say hi like me. :-)

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