Because I felt like it

Have you ever had a dream, or a daydream, that somehow seems real, vivid, and alive?

I had such a dream a little over a year ago, and the idea for a book sprang from it. I decided to record my journey as a fledging author in this blog.

I hope you have a seat, grab a drink or some snacks, and take a trip with me.

In the dream, I was an outsider looking in, much like watching a movie. I saw a short, athletic woman in her mid 20's with a lot of additude taking pictures of old buildings and some slightly familiar looking scenery. She didn't speak, rather her additude came through in gestures, the way she walked, the confidence she carried herself with, and the expressions on her face.

I decided to name her A.J., and she became the central character in a series of daydreams. Her past, her present, and her future come to me in spurts. At times, it skips around and can be vague, and at times the action and dialogue is as clear as if I was part of it.

I decided she wasn't from the south, yet the voice she spoke to me in wasn't easily placed anywhere in the United States. A.J. spoke with a brogue that was thicker at times, and at times she sounded like a New Englander. I imagined her being born overseas, in the green hilly counties of Ireland, and somehow ending up in the U.S. But how?

I tried to write her story, from childhood through adulthood, but I kept getting stuck, and hung up on events and places. I don't know much about Ireland, and it just wasn't coming to me. When I decided to abandon her past, with the exception of a few events, and place her in New England she began to speak to me more.

But, New England presented it's own set of problems. A.J. spoke to me of her home, her family, her journey to the U.S., and her job....but she didn't speak to me of where she was headed, what she was going to do with herself. And I kept returning to the images from the dream where she was taking photographs.

One day while out driving near my home, I saw an area that looked a lot like what she was taking pictures of, and it hit me. A.J. left New England, and ended up here, in South Louisiana. With that realization, she began to speak to me more. I found a reason and means for her journey, and slowly began to understand the motives for her to stay.

It may sound strange to say a fictional character speaks to me, but that is what it feels like. I can struggle for days to hash out a single short scene, and then other days I can't keep my fingers off the keyboard. When I hit on an event, or a set of reactions that ring true, the words just flow.

A.J. began to tell me her story, the story of her time in South Louisiana, and about the people she encountered there. She began to talk at length about what she did, and where she went, and how those people impacted her.

It's those tales, the stories and experiences, that make up the Damm Yankee tales. I hope to one day publish the first set.