Friday Fare is where I post links to the random articles that have resonated with me during the week. Sometimes they make me smarter, sometimes they make me hungry … sometimes they have to do with writing and sometimes they are just plain random.
This was a post from Criminal Minds that I found earlier this month. The question is a good one: If you had to name one single book that inspired you to be a writer, what would that be? It’s hard to limit myself to one single book, but if I had to go back to the very beginning of my reading adventure – Laura Ingalls Wilder is one of the first writers who captured my adoration as a reader and the person who gave root to the idea that I’d someday be an author. (Honorable mentions go to L.M. Montgomery and Stephen King. Why yes, that’s an eclectic list.)
This is another blog post that I read a little while back and while it came from a cooking blog that I frequently read, it resonated so much in regards to how I sometimes feel when it comes to progress that I’m making in my writing life. Basically – feeling jealous on the Internet and 12 ways to make it stop. There’s a lot of good wisdom out here, but the important one for me is #12 – Gratitude. At the end of all things, I’m a ridiculously blessed person and while I move at a snail’s pace when it comes to writing fiction, I’m making progress. And I do this despite all the other wonderful distractions and obligations I have in my life. I’m also lucky to have found tribe members that share in my struggles and a lot of support amongst my non-writing friends and family.
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Listening to: Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch are still in heavy rotation on my YouTube stream. I have a sense that it’s going to take me some time before I’m sick of these guys.
Reading: Anne Fraiser is still on my counter. In the meantime, I read two books from a different Anne: Anne Bishop’s “The Black Jewels” have been making its way through my Kindle. I don’t typically read fantasy books (George R.R. Martin and J.R.R. Tolkien are the exception), but I’ve really been enjoying her books.
Fiction Update: Got my short story submitted for consideration in an upcoming anthology. I was happy to have accomplished this given how hectic work was the past few weeks.
Happy weekend, friends!
michellekubitz 
‘Bomber Pilot’ by Philip Harkins. I was 9 or 10 years old and reading this book inspired two goals: to be an Air Force pilot and a writer. I only achieved one 🙂