A Discovery

 The word Discovery makes me think of two things: men in pith hats explaining that they've located another continent, and that television channel with the boring programs. So I use the term loosely when I say that I've made a discovery. And that epiphany would be:


Show don't tell! (That might get a chuckle or two out of a literature veteran, and a scowl from my English teacher that I've just now grasped this concept; but hey at least it's coming now and not when I'm actually on my own writing for a living). I was reading a writing book that a friend loaned me (Seize the Story by Victoria Hanley) and upon looking at the back section where they interviewed writers, and I came across Joan Bauer's interview. Admittedly, I'd never heard of her, but I'm glad I did. When asked what the easiest thing about writing was to her, she answered: "Writing dialogue, probably. I was trained as a screen writer and learned how to tell a story through conversation." I felt like throwing confetti in celebration. That makes sense. Why haven't I been doing that? Should I have been doing that? Yes Christina. You should have. 


And while I stay up until one in the morning creating this dialogue and finding that I'm having much success with it, I can't help but wonder: what if I didn't have this wonderful friend who loaned me this wonderful book that led me to this discovery? I'd still be chucking information in my reader's faces by the paragraph. It's the small things, you know? The little instances where you smile to yourself and think how happy you are that you woke up that morning to receive this discovery. And while I didn't find a secret continent, it sure feels that way.