A dear friend of mine, Alice Orr, is having great difficulty with the problem of cancer. Alice is a helleva gal and is coping well. She is writing in her blog, waiting out all the operations and continuing to keep her spirits up. I'm sending a great deal of ZEN to her.
Unbeknownst to her, she has been a mentor of mine from the very first day I met her at an International Women's Writing Guild (IWWG) conference at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. I didn't actually meet her then, merely sat in a workshop she was giving. But, she blew me away. I had never heard a woman speak with so much knowledge and conviction. She instilled a sense of writing in me that I have never forgotten. She was dynamite and was the reason that I continued to go to IWWG conferences for thirteen more years. If she's not there, the activities seem to pale.
In later years, by the time I got a chance to read Alice's book, No More Rejections, I was thoroughly into her way of setting up a book. I had been practicing her "Characters from the Inside Out" for years. The only time I didn't use those techniques, I got a rejection saying that "my characters were not strong enough for the conflict of my novel." Well, you can be sure I went back and have now done all my characters using that method and will continue to do so.
In the meantime, I wish and want Alice to beat this current problem over the head--as she appears to be doing so. I want her around for a long time. I admire and respect her so ver much............
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I am honored by every word you say about me and also humbled. It is my joy to have helped you and to have inspired you. But more than that, it is my joy to know you. A friend is a major character in the story of a life, a character built from the inside out -- the inside out of a relationship. You have built that friend character to perfection in my life story. I will always value you and love you... Thus, your gift to me has been the one that deserves the greatest thanks.... Thank you, dear Dorice.
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