Out with the Colosseum; In with the Orbs

 by Jody Feldman

Rome, Italy 2015

For seven months running, the Colosseum greeted me every time I turned on my computer. Yes, it was a beautiful, wonderful, so-much-fun trip, but I set the picture on my home screen for an entirely different reason: to taunt me. "Get back to work, Jody! You have a book to write! A deadline to meet!" (Not coincidentally, Rome serves as the backdrop for my YA thriller coming this August.)  

Museum of Dream Space,
Los Angeles 2021

But now that NO WAY HOME has left my control, another picture is kicking my butt into the chair. This one. Also not coincidentally, orbs play an important role in my middle grade work-in-progress, a story that may have more potential than anything I've ever written. That should be enough to draw me back to my revision, but the pressure of crafting the sentences and scenes to match the vision is often intimidating. The truth is, my home screen pictures also work like cheerleaders to help power me through those times when I’m doubting my ability to put the right words in the right order.

So, new year, new picture, yes. New month, new picture, sometimes. In fact, I'm hoping that by the time you read my next Smack Dab post, the orb-filled MG will be out of my hands and into my agent's. 

After that...

Buffalo Bull, Grazing on the Prairie
by George Catlin

Jody Feldman, author of The Gollywhopper Games series is cautiously booking school visits (elementary, middle, high schools) for April and after. She can’t wait to get back and talk to readers in person! You can reach out in the comments or more directly at jody@jodyfeldman.com