Should I Stay or Should I Zombie?

Last week while I was waiting for my husband’s train to come in, I had an idea. It felt like an epiphany. It felt like it shouldn’t be ignored. It had weight. And days later, I was still thinking about it. What was it; you might be thinking…it was a very simple concept for a zombie story. Though I blog, I’ve never considered myself a writer. In fact, I would even consider my use of grammar quite elementary. (I have these blogs edited before I post to avoid looking like a bigger idiot.) But this idea is still stuck in my head. I can picture the terrain; I can picture my characters attitude towards life. I even have a name for her. But what I can’t figure out is what her purpose is or the purpose of my story. And then I’m thinking, “Well if I figure that out, am I really going to attempt writing it?”

Me, a writer? The thought has never come across my mind in the past. I love to read and can talk about books all day, but I never enjoyed English assignments though. I am guilty of reading a book and skipping over words I don’t understand. I figure if I can understand the tone, the actual meaning of the word is irrelevant. I’m even guilty of overlooking major details. So can someone as clueless as me, actually write a book?

Regardless of my intention to write this story, I have a long list of ideas on my desk that I’m constantly adding too. The brainstorming seems relentless. The flow of ideas sprouts up at the oddest times. I was even so excited about this idea that I tried conveying my enthusiasm to my husband and I felt a little brushed off by him. (Really how long would you listen to someone talk about a story they probably aren’t going to write?) But all I could think of when I told him and saw the bored look in his eyes was “he can’t see it. He would be excited if he could see it. If he could feel it.” It feels so real to me sometimes.

The problem though lies in my fear of the unknown. I’ve never attempted to write anything that isn’t my straight out opinion. I can’t imagine myself writing conversation. Could I write it in diary-style and keep it interesting? I need someone to ask me the tough questions like “where is your story headed?” “Why do we care about her?” I seriously only have a sense of the surrounding and the character ‘s backstory…but where do I take it? I feel like a new kid at school or a foreign exchange student meeting his foster family. It feels icky, unknown and strange.

So what to do? My schedule is crazy hectic with derby and my family life. ECC has some online creative writing courses. Some with basics to writing and others that show you how to write an outline and how to avoid writers block. These classes all sound fine and good but then comes the issue of money. I have a lack thereof; therefore it’s not going to happen anytime soon. I suppose I can just keep a journal of these ideas until I can afford to take a class. But just incase any of you are more versed in how to literature…got any book recommendations to help me?

A Newly Wantabe writer,

Michelle P.