I spent today chasing my writing, somewhat literally. I took the day off from work because we’ve all been a little frantic with a late closing on our most recent issue, and since our editor in chief took the week off somewhat unexpectedly, everyone decided to take a day or two here and there. I took mine here (today) and there (Tuesday, to go battle bureaucracy). But what I really needed to do today was write, so that was my goal.
I wrote for about an hour in the morning and by all counts, I should probably have stayed there. But I’m the sort of person that needs a perfect house around me, everything neat and in order, to be able to focus, and since ours .. well, isn’t … I packed up the iBook and headed to the New York Public Library for some inspiration and soaring ceilings. Of course, it’s Veteran’s Day. So the Library was closed. Strike one at 11:45AM.
But I caught about twenty minutes of the parade, in time to see the WWII veterans go by and get a little tearful because my grandfather, who was awarded a Purple Heart for his injuries on D-Day at Normandy, passed away this year. He came home from war sixty years ago, back to Texas and my grandma and they started a family and later came into my life, and I was lucky to have him, lucky he survived the war with his customary braveness and grace. I was pretty sad, standing there, watching the WWII vets surrounded by their families and little granddaughters.
I went to Bryant Park to try and write in the deceptively sunny park, but after about 20 minutes of typing I couldn’t feel my fingers. Strike two. Then I decided to nip across the road to the Starbucks. No tables. Strike three. Since I had a late-afternoon hot cocoa date with Chris in SoHo, I figured I’d go find a Starbucks down there and work until 4PM.
I got down to the Spring/Crosby Starbucks a little frazzled and starving, found a table and got a sandwich and a coffee. After an hour writing there, my nerves couldn’t take the crowds and the terrible piped-in music and the crowds, oh my god. I’m not someone who can work with headphones on, but I don’t mind ambient music. I can’t stand chatter, though. Hence, the original library idea. Strike four. So I IM’ed Chris and asked if I could just go to his otherwise-empty office, borrow some Advil, and finish my work. Thank god, I’d found a port in the storm.
The next two hours were spent quietly writing, eating cookies, curing my headache, drinking tea, and trading gossip with Chris. I couldn’t have asked for a better spot to pin down a few more pages of the project I’m working on. Too bad I didn’t think of that from the beginning.
Speaking of writing (and tucked here at the bottom of the entry), I’ve got a new gig! As of this weekend, I’ll be the literature contributor for the esteemed and adored Gothamist. Twice-weekly or so, look for my roundups and updates about the goings-on in the New York publishing and literary world, along with little snippets of reviews and profiles of authors. Tips and leads and ideas, for those who know about these things, are always welcome.

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