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Being Grateful 10 Times

I’m Canadian, so I celebrated Thanksgiving last month. However, not everyone is Canadian. So, in honour of American Thanksgiving I’m sharing 10 things I’m grateful for each and every day.

Bonus # 11. (Dare we say it?) No trolls to feed.
Photo by Josh Wedin, via Flickr

10. The ability to weave a plot and create characters to walk its path.

9. Being able to lose myself in my fictional world.

8. Warm soup on a cold day. (Remembering to keep said soup out of the spill-zone.)

7. Fingerless gloves. (No, it doesn’t get that cold in my little corner of Canada, but it does get damp.)

6. The increasingly acceptable option of being in charge of my own destiny by self-publishing.

5. Getting away from the lights of the city and glorying in the wonder of the stars.

4. A purring cat. In my opinion, there are few sounds more comforting that the rumble of a cat’s purr.

3. Typing “The End.”

2. Having my characters talk to me. I might not like what they’re saying or the hour that they’re choosing to say it, but I am grateful that they talk.

1. Being a contributing writer to the Blood-Red Pencil. I have learned so much from reading this blog for the past five years and from writing my monthly post for the past four. Thank you.

To my American friends, wherever you live, enjoy your turkey (or whatever). Have a slice of pie for me.

Elspeth Futcher is an author and playwright. Her murder mystery games A Fatal Fairy Tale, Deadly Ever After and Curiouser and Curiouser are among the top-selling mystery games on the Internet. All thirteen of her murder mystery games and two audience-interactive plays are published by host-party.com. Her newest game, Once Upon a Murder, is now available and published by Red Herring Games. Her 'writing sheep' are a continuing feature in the European writers' magazine Elias. Connect with her on Twitter at @elspethwrites or on Facebook at Elspeth Futcher, Author.

Comments

  1. Replies
    1. Eh, indeed, Christopher. Glad to see the stereotype lives on.

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  2. After seeing your list, I realize I also have a lot of things to be grateful for!

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  3. What a great way to start the month of November. Thanks, Elspeth, and I will save a piece of pumpkin pie for you.

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  4. My list would be similar: cats, tea, storyweaving, self-publishing, warm soup, good books, a fire in the hearth to chase the winter chill. Breathing. Being alive. ... The greatest tip I ever received was to start the morning listing the things you are grateful for rather than focusing on all the things you can't control, that hurt you, frustrate you, or make life harder in general. It has kept me sane through some pretty desperate moments.

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    1. I would love to have a fire in the hearth - but I am hearthless. But RAH for a working furnace! Not the same romance, though.

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  5. Ah, yes, the hot soup for sure would find a place on my list, probably right below the warm sweater, and breathing--agree with Diana on this one. Like you, Elspeth, I like conversations with my characters. Sometimes what they say surprises me, but I almost always understand where they're coming from--even if I don't agree with it.

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    1. Forgot, I'm allergic to cats, so I need a loyal canine companion.

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    2. Dogs *are* loyal, aren't they? One really can't say that about cats. Ah well.

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  6. I like that purring cat thing, too, Elspeth, but she likes to do that lap time with petting and purring while I'm trying to write. I do a lot of typing with just the right hand.

    The rest of your list is lovely too...and where would we all be if we didn't have the Blood-Red Pencil and all its outstanding contributors to keep us going?

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    Replies
    1. I have YOU to thank too, Pat! After all, I'm only here because of you!

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