Amygdalia's Blog

Random thoughts for a cold Friday morning.

Wow!  First of all, a warm thank you to the anonymous donor of my upgraded membership!  I've only been a member for 4 days, but the support I've felt from the very beginning has been incredible.    Just being here has inspired me to dive deeper into my project. 

As I was setting up my blog, I was faced with choosing a genre/genres for the book item.  Hmmmm . . . I'm working on a mystery.  If I choose *mystery* for my genre, does that make me mysterious?  I like to think that my life holds some secrets.  Perhaps they'll come out in my writing.

I’ve heard that one should write what one knows.  So, what do I know?  More importantly, what do I know that someone else might be interested in reading about? 

Depression – a lovely, uplifting topic for a humorous, cozy mystery.

Parenting – at least I’d like to think I know something about it, after 12 ½ years!

Breastfeeding – now here’s a topic I’m both passionate and knowledgeable about.  How to work it into a story?  I’m not sure . . . perhaps along with the next item . . .

Postpartum doula-ing –“Wha?” you may ask.  It’s ok, I’m used to it!  Besides writing, my other life’s goal is to build a successful postpartum doula business.  Going into homes to help new families in the weeks after the birth (or adoption) of a new child is such a joy for me.  Knowing that I’ve helped a family through this (quite often overwhelming) transition is incredibly gratifying.  And they PAY me for it, too! 

A postpartum doula protagonist would have the opportunity to meet many people and get herself entangled in all sorts of interesting situations and mysteries.  I’ve thought seriously about creating this character, but my greatest concern was that it would severely limit my reading audience.  I may revisit this at some point.

School counseling – I’m a bit rough, having not used my degree in over 8 years, but a school counselor would be another character who could be involved with many people throughout her school and community.

Cooking/baking – This is where I’m leaning, at the moment.  I love experimenting in the kitchen!  The character I’m working on owns a bakery, and I’m hoping to weave some recipes I’ve devised into my story. 

Food allergies – I’ve had a crash course in food allergies over the past year and a half!  A lot of my experimenting has been dairy/egg/peanut/tree nut free baking.  I’ve toyed with the idea of having my character specialize in allergen free baking, but I think perhaps that’s a challenge I can face at another time.

Greece – Ok, so it’s more of a passion than anything else.  I’ve probably forgotten more than I ever knew about Greece and Greek language.  But the 4 months I spent studying in Athens were so magnificent that I yearn to return.  I’m planning a trip with a friend, next year, and you can bet I’ll be doing some research for a book, while I’m there.  Now THIS is something I could sink my teeth into!

Ahh . . . there are others I could add to the list, but then where would the mystery be?

Oh, and just to be clear, murder is NOT something I know all about! 

Amygdalia