Often when I am driving to work, or dozing off to sleep at night, an idea, a really amazing idea for a story will hit me like an electric shock. But either, when I get to work and the immediate contact with staff and customers all acquiring my attention, or maybe it’s the lazyness or my sudden knack of falling to sleep at the drop of a pin after an exhausting day, these ideas never see the light of day. Very rarely I may pick up on an idea from before and manage to rescue it to the bits of paper I have on hand, or my computer file, if it happens to be on at the time.
For the past month of November 2011 I have been involved with a wonderful group of people through the PiBoldMo Challenge. What‘s that you ask? Well, it’s to list down 30 picture book story ideas, that’s right, 1 for each day of the month. To be honest, I really didn’t think I would get anywhere near 30 ideas at the end of November. The first 2 weeks really surprised me, I was doing so well. Then the week before last I panicked I was slipping behind, hadn’t thought of an idea for 3 days…Help! So I asked my lovely new staff at my office. Boy! Did that cause a laugh for the rest of the afternoon as they all took turns coming up with ideas and then some. Anyway come the weekend, and a visit to a wine and food festival and a country fair, soon had me on track again along with some unexpected ideas from unexpected places. So Yay! I have finally made it…. Whew! And just in the nick of time I might add.
But it’s not just the ideas that I have accumulated, it’s the new friends, the amazing blogs I have come across, the talent, wisdom and wealth of information that I have gained thanks to Tara’s blog posts, where regular quest interviews appear. A more visual person I would often spend hours into the night reading these posts, and print them out for my folder, which is very healthy, thankyou. I loved that I would sometimes wander off to someone else’s blog and learn so much, the varying aspects of the world of writing, the journeys, the how tos, the whys, the dos and don’ts, and everything in between. The encouragement, the incentives and knowing that no question is too small nor is it ignored. I have found I am not alone, in my thoughts, in my progress and where I am at, I am hugely grateful to Tara and the PiBoldMo month of November. It was the best, and I look forward to doing it again,
next year. For now, I can proudly say …. I am a WINNER!
Thankyou Tara, Thankyou PiBoldMo.
Writer and Dreamer at work 
You are so a winner! Can’t believe you cheating getting your colleagues to help with ideas! Just kidding 😉
LOl.. Oh Joanna! If you only knew…. they ended up by not being childlike ideas… they had great imaginations though and it was a fun afternoon. Strangely enough, it wasn’t till I got home that an idea came as a result of the shenanigans.
Thankyou 🙂
Well done! We’re all winners, no matter what, because of the incredible experience and the community that resulted from PiBoIdMo. I never would have guessed at the beginning of November what riches would unfold.
Nor I ever expected. So very true, we are all winners. Thankyou Beth.
Awww, what a lovely “thanks”! THANK YOU for participating. It is all the writers who made PiBoIdMo so great.
You are very welcome Tara. When I joined I did not expect there would be so many writers out there who could link to one blog. It is certainly a great community and you did a fantastic job.
Great post Diane!
Thankyou so much Catherine.
Congrats! I’ve enjoyed checking out all the PiBoIdMo posts, including suggestions for great pic book reads.
So glad you had a nice PiBoIdMo journey 🙂
Thankyou coleen, it’s such a big community out there isn’t it.
Diane, loved the post!!
Thankyou very much Pat.
I really enjoyed reading your reflections on PiBoIdMo and all the fun places you come up with your ideas. I love that your work colleagues were willing to help, too! And I agree with you that one of the most amazing parts has been making so many new connections with others on the same journey 🙂
Yes it is, Kerry. Thankyou for your lovely comment and for dropping by.
Loved your blog post! I, too, found inspiration at work. My boss told the most hilarious story about her encounter with a raccoon who wanted to get into the building – and it turned into one of my ideas! You just never know where or when the ideas will pop up! 🙂
That sounds like a great story Suzie. No you never know where the ideas will come from. Actually at a farm fair I watched this huge sheep desperately pawing at a bag of bird seed on top of a cage, His antics and the use of his hoofs and body was so funny almost childlike. I found myself standing just watching him and imagining what he was thinking and laughing to myself…… it is now one of my story ideas. I didn’t think of wanting to write animal stories but hey, who knows, it might be my brake through.:-)
Huge congrats… that’s awesome news… and it does not sound easy. Well done.
Thankyou Tania, I was tickled pink myself. Look out next year..