I was sitting down yesterday attempting to finish the first story for Del Plazo. Everything is written except the first story and the appendices and I just cannot focus. This is when the idea for Chaos was born.

What is Chaos?

By definition: complete disorder and confusion. Behavior so unpredictable as to appear random, owing to great sensitivity to small changes in conditions.

Chaos to me is what I assume all writer’s go through on a daily basis. My brain has so much in it and sometimes I just cannot concentrate on my current projects so a new one must be started.

Chaos is my external hard drive, Google Drive, Dabble files, notebooks, and more that are filled with stories, scripts, poems, notes… complete chaos. Unorganized. All things that should be shared with reader’s and writer’s alike.

Chaos is my new project. A project that was actually born many moons ago and I just didn’t realize it until now.

Sharing My Chaos.

I’m sure all writers have stories and more just sitting on a ‘shelf’ somewhere collecting dust. Stories that you wouldn’t dare share with the world because you think it’s complete rubbish and maybe it is, but why write in the first place?

When I first began this writing journey I was so afraid to share my stories or anything I had written for fear of negative feedback. There was no one I felt I could trust to read what I had written. I was so nervous and this really held me back from completing any project. I would get so far into it and then realize I was close to having to share it so I would just stop writing.

Rejection.

In the publishing world if you choose to go the traditional route you will most likely face rejection more than once The same can be true for the self publishing route. Even though you’ve published your book not everyone will like what you have written. There will always be some negative feedback and that’s okay. That was my main road block, one that I knew I had to overcome.

I began by sharing a short story I had written titled, About Patrick, with a complete stranger. She had commented on my NaNoWriMo project idea and I decided to ask if she would read my story. She responded right away and said yes, and asked if I would read for her as well. It turned into a great experience. As a new writer I was still stumbling around with character point of view and she helped by pointing those errors out.

That is why you have outsiders read your stories because they will not hold back on pointing out errors. It’s so important to learn the craft and improve your skills along the way. If you don’t want to learn and improve then why write at all?

Back to Chaos.

Chaos will be for reader’s and writers alike. I hope it helps writers who are unsure about sharing, become more confident and just share something small. You will most likely be surprised to learn that what you wrote is actually amazing.

Here is a story that I wrote and it’s going to be featured in Chaos. When I wrote this story I went to a place I had never been before. It was a very emotional write and one that I’m excited to share. I hope you enjoy it and as always please leave me a comment, a like and a share!

The Secret.

She never talked about it. It was something that she would keep tucked away. No one could ever know. Not even her husband. It was something that she would have to take with her to the grave. She didn’t even know how it had happened, but it did…

One moment she was smiling and laughing. Having a glass of wine in the Vineyards. They had been talking about how they wanted to relive their youth. Go to the beach, play frisbee in the warm Del Raya waters. And then it happened, she wasn’t sipping wine with her best friend. She was in a dark cave. It was cold and damp. She felt frightened, but at peace. It didn’t make sense, but…it made sense. The confusion that surrounded her was beginning to clear. This was it. Or was it?

The sunlight began to seep through the opening of the cave. It must have been early morning, but back there it had been early evening? A question for another time or place. She began to wonder how she could get back. Would it just happen naturally, or did she have to make it happen? She didn’t even know how she got here.

Now that the feeling of confusion and the inability to move had worn off, she found her feet and walked towards the sun. The dampness of the cave evaporated as she stepped out and onto the ledge of a cliff. It was breathtaking, but also frightening.

Should she jump? Is that how she could go back? She wasn’t sure. She took a deep breath in, lifted her arms over her head. The warmth of the sun, the smell of the air…fresh.

Jumping wouldn’t take her home. It wouldn’t take her back to her friend in the Vineyards. The laughing, the good wine, the beach. She knew. It was simple actually. It was all there. Within herself. She just had to look harder to find it. To find that joy. She would then be transported to that lovely early evening.

It happened…

“Jolie?”

Jolie smiled at her friend. Sipped on her wine and laughed.

“I thought I lost you there for a second. Where did you go?”

“Home. I went home.”