For the past few weeks I have toyed with the idea of changing my blog up a little for two important reasons, both of which affect the survival of this blog. Reason number one: I believe maintaining this venture should be fun. Don’t get me wrong, I love writing about characters of the south. Let’s face it, they’re fascinating. However, like everyone else on the planet, I have a list of things to do which cuts into my reading time. Long story short, it takes me longer to read a novel than it once did and it’s hard to choose one particular character from said novel to write about. This is especially true since southern fiction is loaded with gritty characters—so many choices. Choosing the right one can be daunting.
But, other things I allow to cut into my reading time are things I love to do. I garden and I make compost because compost and gardens go together like molasses and biscuits. I’m also a huge advocate of pollinators and other bugs that do so much to improve the natural cycle of life. It stands to reason I spend much of my spring, summer and fall outside designing and planting pollinator gardens. Because, well, they’re critters y’all and they have a purpose.
Ranking up there as a top contender for my time is writing. I write fiction, and have recently had a book, Deep Water, published through Kellan Publishing. As you can imagine, the story takes place in the south because that’s what I know and I’m familiar with a few gritty critters myself. So why not share!
Reason number two for revamping this blog: Perhaps not everyone is as bat shit crazy about gritty southerners as I am.
But, to be sure providing for the bees and butterflies will interest more than a handful and those readers might enjoy reading something about grit as opposed to gritty. Besides, now is the perfect time to let the slow changes in the seasons reflect in the changes of this blog because my daffodils are beginning to poke out of the ground just as Cormac McCarthy’s Lester Ballard periscopes from under the dirt in Child of God.
See what I did there?
Anywho, don’t hesitate to comment and tell me what you think about the changes. I’ll still pop out a piece that focuses on a certain character I’ve stumbled upon and have taken a liking to, but only every so often when the rest of the things I love doing allow me time to closely examine more characters.
Writer Lora Kempka 