September Inspiration For Writers

September Is Here 

I turned the page on three calendars this morning. The one on Ken's desk is where I write appointments and engagements. Another on my computer desk is quite small. It is a stand-up calendar with photos of Prague given to me by one of our Czech students who stayed with us last year. I love turning the pages on this one as each photo brings back a memory of time spent in Prague. The third calendar hangs on a wall and is there mostly because it has lovely photos each month. After this triple turning of the calendar pages, September became quite real. 

This month has a dual personality, or so it seems. Here in Kansas, we still have hot weather but the mornings and evenings will be a bit cooler than during the hot summer months just passed. Fall doesn't officially arrive until the 21st but there will be hints of what's to come in the air. 

When you are trying to think of something to write about this month, consider all that September brings us. Any one of those in my list below could spur your imagination for a story or essay or memoir piece. Perhaps, a few will be inspiration for a poem. 

September brings...

• apples
• mums and asters
• fall harvest
• a few falling leaves
• school starting for many
• football games
• marching bands
• Labor Day celebrations
• September 11 Remembrance
• pumpkin harvest
• recipes made with apples, pumpkins and squash
• the start of fall colors on trees
• songs like September Song

When I think of the fall months, color comes to mind first. Even in fashion, the colors of the fall harvest are used. A change of the kinds of clothes that we wear happens in September. Some of our summer outfits are not quite right and we're not ready for heavy winter clothing yet. So, what do we have? Transition clothing! Our menu planning changes once this first autumn month arrives. We're ready to chuck the constant run of salads for heavier fare--soups and stews. Think about the smells of September. This month brings many possibilities for including sensory details in your writing.

All of the above should trigger some memories for you and might be some inspiration for your next writing project. 

I love summer but I'm quite ready for a change. 

How Far Back Does Your Memory Take You?

I read a most interesting article the other day about being able to remember events, places and people far back in your life--even to your toddler years. You can read it here. The article was posted where members of my online writers' group could read and discuss. I found it quite interesting that some could delve very far back with memories while others could not. There seemed to be two distinct groups.

When my first Chicken Soup of the Soul story was published, more than one person asked me how I could remember that far back. For me, it was easy. I was seven at the time the event took place and when I thought about it as an adult, I could see where it happened, see my dad working on my Valentine box, see the boxes lined up on a wide windowsill in my classroom. As time went on, I realized that I've been blessed with the ability to remember long-ago events quite clearly, even in my very early years. I often cannot remember what I came to the grocery store to buy but my memory of years back is quite fine.

Memoir and life stories are quite popular now. To write them, you do have to reach far into your memory bank to come up with the actual happenings. Not made-up or written the way you wish they'd occurred but the real thing.

One of the best ways to do that is to use memory triggers. I googled and found that there are many articles about using this technique to help you write memoir stories. Read a few of them for more detailed information.

I've often posted lists of memory triggers--questions about long ago-- when posting about writing your family stories. A discussion at the holiday family dinner table can bring back something that happened long ago. Looking through old photo albums or scrapbooks is another way to bring you back to times gone by. Reading a historical fiction novel can spark something that happened to you in your childhood. Or a movie might have one scene that brings you back to your own childhood.

When these memory triggers pop up, take advantage of them. Jot some notes, or if you have time, write a paragraph or two. Quite often, when we see a sliver of a memory, the door opens wider and we are treated to a whole host of memories. Maybe 'treated' is not always the case as some of our memories are sad or tragic ones but perhaps we do need to revisit those times, too, for a better understanding.

I urge you to read the article linked in the first paragraph. You will find it most interesting. The article itself might act as a memory trigger for you.

Even fiction writers occasionally use realtime events in their lives for the basis of their made-up  story.  So memory triggers are of use to more than just memoir writers.

One more point--you may not remember dialogue word for word, but you'll remember the gist of what was said. It's alright to then write the dialogue following the main idea of what had been spoken by each person.

More On Summertime Memories

Here's an essay I wrote a few years ago that might trigger more summertime memories for those who would like to enter the Summer Memories Contest I posted on Friday. You may have other summertime activities to add to those I've listed here. What are they?


Summer Now and Summer Then
By Nancy Julien Kopp

In today’s world, moms start preparing for summertime months ahead. They scour the local papers and websites for summer activities for their children. The mindset today appears to be that school is out for 2 ½ months, and the children need to be busy. Lessons of all kinds fill the hot summer days for pre-schoolers and on into the teen years. Summer music lessons, swimming and diving, arts and crafts, drama and a summer reading program at the local library are only a few of the activities for these vacationing children.

Some mothers make charts so that there are Mon-Wed-Fri and Tues-Thurs things to do. The week-end might be free or taken up with a traveling baseball team. The aim is make sure the children never say “I’m bored!”

And they probably won’t make that statement as they’re too busy running from one event to another, or getting ready for camp. Ah yes, there are camps of every variety you can think of. basketball camp, football camp, cheerleading camp, band camp, golf camp, day camp, soccer camp, church camp—to name only a few. Some kids attend several every summer.

By the time school starts, these over-scheduled kids must be thrilled to get back to the classroom so they can rest. I was happy to go back to school every fall, too, but for a different reason. I’d had the summer to get away from the strict school routine, to enjoy those “lazy, hazy days of summer” we heard of in a popular song.

I grew up in the 1940’s and 50’s in a world that doesn’t come close to resembling that of the 21st century. Summer vacation meant sleeping a little later than usual, then helping my mother around the house for part of every day. When I finished the tasks she assigned, the day was mine. Occasionally, I walked the many blocks to the pool with a friend. Or I meandered down a cinder path behind the commuter train station to the library where I marched up and down the aisles between bookshelves selecting an armload of books to take home. As soon as I finished a stack of books, I headed down the cinder path again, only to return with another armload of reading material. I didn’t get a sticker for each book I read. I read them because they were exciting, because they transported me to places I’d never seen before.

Radio soap operas made the time helping Mom go fast. I’d get so caught p in the tragic doings of all the stars of these serials, and then when school started, I’d lose track of them. Would Helen Trent find love again? Did Stella Dallas come out all right? I’d only know if I happened to stay home from school with a cold or the flu the rest of the year.

As I got older, I spent many of my summertime hours babysitting neighborhood children or my own three brothers. Their toy boxes weren’t nearly as full as the ones today. A new coloring book and box of crayons brought forth cries of joy. Bubbles in a bottle appealed to every age. I’d sit on the steps with my babysitting charges, and we’d blow magical bubbles until the bottle was empty, and then go make more with dishwashing soap. We bounced balls against the brick wall of our apartment building where we lived, and we played Sewer Tag in the concrete courtyard. The sewer covers were safety zones, and the little kids shrieked as they darted from cover to cover. I pushed babies and toddlers in strollers to the park a few blocks away, where we ambled round and round the wooded pathways. And I made children jug upon jug of Kool-Aid. I liked the little bit of cash I earned babysitting, but I had fun with the kids, too. It proved to be part of what led me into the teaching field years later.

The only places that had air-conditioning back then were the movie theaters. Marquee banners proclaimed “It’s cool inside!” as they rippled in hot summer breezes. When the heat waves hit the streets of Chicago, it was time to go to the movies to cool off. It didn’t matter what movie they showed, we found blessed relief from the sticky humidity and heat for a dime.

Maybe we did tell our mothers we were bored, but if so, I have no memory of it. Looking back, I think I’m glad I had such a carefree, relaxed summertime. A glass of Kool-Aid and a Nancy Drew mystery left me feeling happy and content. I looked forward to summer vacations, and so did my friends.

So, which way is better? Who’s to say? Maybe we’d have been better off with a little more stimulation and structured activities, or maybe we benefited greatly from having to create our own activities. That was then, and this is now. Change may be hard, but it’s the way of the world. Now, we live in a multi-tasking, structured society. Maybe a program director of today can come up with a summer class for kids called “How To Relax and Have Fun On Your Summer Vacation.”