Getting the Goods

Ohhh. I missed out. Kim had a yard sale and I didn’t go? Even if I’m of a certain age where pouting isn’t attractive, I’m going to indulge. Surely, I missed out on treasures which needed to come to my house. Kim has good taste. Any of her cast-offs would be treasures. Well… almost all of them. She has this strange predilection for all things purple, and I’m more into the blues, greens and browns. Perhaps with some paint, stain, or dye…. But none of that matters because I didn’t go.
I would have, too—flown from California to Kansas… to do some brainstorming with Judy. She’s a lot of fun to brainstorm with, and you cannot overestimate the value of a solid, productive brainstorming session. Coulda done a few book signings. Woulda visited some great museums. Shoulda been there to find treasures at Kim’s awesome sale. Coulda, Woulda…Shoulda… and it would have been a tax deduction, too. No use looking back, though. I’ll eat a piece of chocolate to cure me of my sadness.
Thrift stores, estate and garage sales—those places are where I go for the serendipity of finding *the perfect thing* that triggers my imagination for a book. For Bittersweet, it was a wooden primitive of a pig—painted white, about the size of a big honeydew. Just the night before, my mom had mentioned how cute the piglets were on her farm when she was a little girl. Suddenly, the opening of that book gelled in my mind.

Then there was the black velvet box in a thrift store. I spied it and thought it would be ideal for storing my collection of antique fans. Then I opened it. Ohhhhhh, my. Folded inside is a lap-sided Victorian crazy quilt. Velvet, silk, and cotton all pieced together in chaotic disorder and embellished with embroidery—yet the overall effect is rich and beautiful. Reverently, I lifted it out to see its size and condition, and beneath it lay a crocheted pinafore-style little girl’s apron. Pink edged the ruffled shoulders and the hem. Who would make such a quilt, and what memories did those pieces hold for them? With the same care and sense of beauty, that woman made the apron—but for whom? Mind awhirl, I carried the box to the cash register. By now, I *NEEDED* it. Only it didn’t have a tag on it. How much were they asking for such a treasure? I braced myself. Good thing, too. Yowza. Terribly disappointed, I closed the box and thanked the clerk. She gave me a funny look. “Is five dollars too much?” I thought she’d said five hundred! That quilt came home with me and triggered Forevermore.

For every character, I have an antique photograph; but back in the 1800s and early 1900s large portraits were drawn. I’ve acquired several of these and used them as my heroes and heroines. I only have on in color—Millicent from Whirlwind.

All the rest are black charcoal. The details on them are incredible—light plays off each individual strand of hair. A twinkle of humor or stern intolerance are reflected in the eyes. I’m writing a book where there heroine’s picture is in a massively gesso frame that is so old and heavy I don’t dare hang it… So she’s propped on the floor next to her mother-in-law. Her husband’s sketch is up on one lawyer’s bookcase… at least for now. Until they can work out a few issues.

This is Todd Valmer, the hero from the book I'm currently writing, Serendipity.

I might have to hit a garage sale today. For research. To find a little something that will help me move the story ahead. I know it won’t be Kim’s. All of those goodies are already long gone. But I’ll take my inspiration wherever I find it—because I don’t believe in happenstance. I believe in Divine appointments and Heavenly providence.

So where does your inspiration hit? What triggers you to ask the “What if….?” That not only starts a book, but that begins the next scene? I’m always eager to hear how others keep the fires burning.

And if you have a beautiful, odd, or intriguing things from the 1800s, you’re always welcome to snap some pictures and send them to me!

Blessings!
Cathy