Ahhh, the joys of the holidays: Snow, sweets, Santa…. and shopping. The 4 ‘S’s go together like the red and white on a candy cane.
But wait! Shopping is to the holidays what screaming girls
are to Justin Beiber; even the girls that have come to enjoy his singing (or
whatever) have to put in ear plugs to get over the high pitched cacophony of
yells.
We like to think that the holidays are filled with the
sounds, smells and tastes of iconic childhood memories. What we forget is that
it is often more closely related to the stress of family get togethers or picking
out that perfect present. The very best holiday writers understand this and
draw us into the drama, even as they show that, just like the holidays, we can
enjoy ourselves in spite of the mayhem and angst that inevitably come along
with real emotion.
November’s Romancing the Genres will focus on Holiday theme
writing. Those who fall into the cliché of nostalgia are soon dismissed. But those
who show readers the real depth of the holidays… both the highs and lows, are
the ones who create stories that live on.
So, as an exercise this month I am listing out some traditional
Holiday item and challenge you to write a holiday paragraph in the comments
section without using any of these symbols. Or as a reader, what are the
non-sweet triggers that remind you of
the holidays?
Okay… here is the do-not-use list:
- Turkey, stuffing, gravy, etc.
- Christmas Tree
- Stockings
- Candy-cane
- Santa
- Sugar-plums (or any reference to the Nutcracker)
- Pilgrims, Mayflower
- Cookies
Good luck…. I can’t wait to read your comments.
- Turkey, stuffing, gravy, etc.
- Christmas Tree
- Stockings
- Candy-cane
- Santa
- Sugar-plums (or any reference to the Nutcracker)
- Pilgrims, Mayflower
- Cookies
3 comments:
Black and white cloth criss-crossed the table. The centerpiece bowl was filled with holly and juniper. Cedar boughs created a circle around the table's outer edge. A plethora of candles emitted a gentle flickering light.
One-by-one the women approached this sacred space embellishing the space with objects connected to the light: sunstones, moonstones, robins and butterflies joined a small dish of seeds for a spring garden. These women celebrated Winter Solstice or Yule, the time of the year to call in the light and chase back the darkness.
Awesome, Judith!
Sorry, no time to be creative other than with what I have to get done right now. Maybe I'll come back later in the month when life slows down. Fun project.
I love Judith's paragraph, too!
Here's mine:
Snowflakes sift from the black sky and catch in Bear's long, dark fur. They glitter like fairy dust as we pass under a streetlight. Or perhaps elf dust? I smile, looking forward to working holiday magic with my husband in the living room on this special night. The balsam scent of his cologne permeates the scarf I pull over my frozen nose. Perhaps we'll make a different kind of magic later in front of the fire.
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