Today I muse about the serendipitous nature of writing.
For example: In a writing community, the same idea or topic will mysteriously come to several people at one time, without their ever having discussed it. Like a blanket settling over people’s minds. Then there’s the peculiar corollary that, the more you write, the more you can think of to write…an exponential growth kind of thing. As long as you’re not completely exhausted, that is. Then there’s a shared writing encounter, an exchange, that suddenly awakens an experience or memory that’s long lain latent.
Case in point: On Day Two of the current daily challenge with the Two Writing Teachers community, I had a lot of fun sharing a story about spelling names backward. I never expected it to resonate like it did with others…this bit of wordplay is obviously a common rite of childhood (after all, my no-nonsense dad even admitted to using his name backwards as a child, to my extreme amusement). In the midst of it all, I remembered a book I loved as a child, in which the plot hinged on a backward name. The titular character was a Siamese cat, “The Piebald Princess,” formally styled as Princess Renekrad Riah Sretsevlys. I haven’t seen it in years, but I recalled being thoroughly enchanted by the story and stunned by the revelation at the end: Princess Renekrad Riah Sretsevlys was not, in fact, a real princess OR Siamese. She was a plain cat who wanted adventure… so she disguised herself with a little help from a bottle of Sylvester’s Hair Darkener, spelled the name backward, and took it for her new royal persona.
I hadn’t even thought to read her exotic name backwards. Magic!
Upon remembering this book, I so wanted to read it again. I wanted my granddaughters to have it. An online search revealed that it’s out of print now. I was able to find a copy on Etsy, however (“vintage,” alas—how am I this old??), so I ordered it.
The story is even better than I recall. Pure delight. And I’ve learned that the author based it on stories she made up about her dolls when she was a child.
The fragile, faded dust jacket of The Piebald Princess inspired today’s post; the illustration shows Princess Renekrad Riah Sretsevlys casting a backward glance at herself in the mirror.
A perfectly serendipitous segue, if you will, because…
The time has come, the Walrus said… for a confession.
I’ve been working backward.
With my post titles.
Alphabetically.
Here’s the thing… I got the idea, two years ago, that if I thought of a title word starting with each letter of the alphabet, well, that would cover 26 posts out of 31 for the Slice of Life Story Challenge. It worked so well for the first year that I did it again for a second.
This year I almost didn’t sign up for the Challenge at all because…in a word, life. Was I actually up for Slicing it? I hadn’t been writing much of late. At the last minute, I took the plunge. First thought: I need some kind of plan if I’m going to sustain this. Second thought: I don’t feel like going in ABC title order again. Done that, twice.
But… what if I worked backward? As soon as I thought of it, the first story idea crystallized.
Seemed a sign to me.
From that point on, most days I had an idea of a story to write. What word might work for the title, with the given letter of the day? Some days, I had no idea what to write; was there a word for a title to help me frame an idea? A synonym, maybe? As ideas or titles came to mind for the next posts, I jotted them down. I worked them into order. There was always a way.
Here’s how this year’s posts played out:
Zen
You, reversed (backwards names)
XIII and XIX (cicada broods)
Wedding music
Verily
Universe of possibility
To build or not to build
Serene senryu
Rosary beads
Q: What to write now?
Poetry possum
Otters
Nature’s divine voice
Moments
Life’s a cupcake
King no more
Jewels
Interpretation of Grandmothering by AI
Huh?
Grim tale
Franna’s house
Eagles
Dream-double
Chanticleer
‘Bad things are going to happen’ poem
Angels
This, of course, leaves me with five Slices of Life to go, so, I started going “backward” again, which is actually forward, in this case: Yesterday was Awakenings; today, Backward glance. Tomorrow will be a title with C, the next day a title with D, and on the last day, E.
The last day happens to be Sunday.
Easter.
Serendipity every which way.
Princess Renekrad Riah Sretsevlys, casting a backward glance in the mirror
*******
Composed for Day 28 of the Slice of Life Story Challenge with Two Writing Teachers
lit bits and pieces 
Your creative mind works wonders – planning, writing, sharing on these backalpha posts! I think it is genius. And that it ends on Easter with an E is just divine providence! How neat that you scheduled these this way!
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Kim, I needed a frame, a crutch, some kind of assurance that I could sustain the daily writing for the SOLSC this year. So much of it is just harnessing an idea. My time and energy have been consumed by work and my huband’s healing from the spinal fusion last fall. I always carve out space for the granddaughters whenever that joyous chance arises…all in all, my writing life has suffered. I’ve been consumed, used up, too tired to be inspired. Here’s the magical thing…once I signed up anyway, I felt a jolt of energy. Like a plant finally being watered. I NEEDED to do this. The idea of using alphabetical order again seemed absurd; I refused to do it for a third year. Yet – it works. I had a few stories in mind to write, I knew the Ethical ELA poems would help…can you hear me counting how many posts this would cover? Honestly, it wasn’t until I was writing the first Slice about my space at school that the title “Zen” came to me…then the idea of backwards names right on its heels, and I thought, oh, if I give it a title beginning with Y, I can work backward…voila! Sustainability! Proof that when you show in faith up for the writing, it shows up for you. It enabled me on a couple of days to get a story or two ahead, providing a cushion, while actively writing every single day, telling every single story I wanted to tell. It pushed creative thinking even when my brain was tired of thinking. The greatest joy of this whole experience has been the community, all of us intereacting with each other…that precious, precious fuel that keeps us going. I thank you for that, Kim! Always.
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Wow, as a total non planner you totally impress me with this planning!
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The plan came at the eleventh hour, Erika – and was great consolation that I could get through the 31 days with a story to tell! In fact – I’ve enjoyed this year as much as any.
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I wasn’t expecting this post to go where it went! But it was a delight to learn what you’ve been up to with the post titles, and I love how they’ve kept you inspired all month. It is always helpful to have some forced structure among a world of infinite possibilities. It’s no blank page with a title!
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Love what you said here: “It’s always helpful to have some forced structure among a wold of infinite possibilities” – that’s it, exactly! If only have one letter… I can find my way! It became a game, of sorts, what I could find or make or connect. A treasure hunt, really. The wildest part is that I finally wrote some stories I’ve long wanted to tell. Go figure – writing is mysterious that way, an entity of its own. Thank you for this insightful and uplfiting response, Amy.
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Holding my breath, b/c I’m still struggling with disappearing comments. I love that you were able to find the book to share with your grand girls and that it was even better than you remembered.
I’m so glad you hit upon a plan to make writing easier for you. You would have been missed sorely. You’ve almost convinced me to become a planner (that’s amazing coming from this dyed-in-the-wool pantser).
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It came through, Ramona! Woo-hoo! You’d love the book, I am sure. It’s told with so much charm, detail, and humor – some of which I am sure I missed as a child. Now, if pantser-ing works, I say, pantser! Even with this “plan” my mind was going in a thousand directions as to choices I could make. It added another layer for me – like a daily treasure hunt, or Easter egg hunt – what would I find next? What might be hiding in this word, this idea? Above all, it kept me focused! Thank you for always being such an encourager – your words mean so much.
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Your post contains all sorts of delightful stories and hidden surprises. I love reading about different people’s slicing processes, so I particularly loved learning about yours today. Thanks!
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I am so glad you enjoyed the post – working backwards became a game for me, and it kept me going!
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How clever you are! I’m sure most of us would never have worked that out, unless you pointed it out to us. So much ingenious playing with words through the backwards titles! I am glad you persuaded yourself to join and I hope you feel it was worth it! Serendipity indeed and what a gorgeous book! When I was young I dreamed of owning a Siamese.
I agree that hanging a month of slices on some kind of theme or structure makes a difference.
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My aunt had a Siamese cat when I was growing up. so there was that additional appeal re: the book. I am so glad I joined the Challenge, yes. It has been so worth it! My backwards “code” kept me focused – another layer of fun.
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I am so going to borrow you method for blogging next year, Fran! I am so glad you did not let life get in the way. Your voice matter. I love reading about Micah, Scout, your sons, your husband, Denis, the bluebirds, and your wild imagination!
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Do borrow it! I have got to come up with another way myself – ha! I so appreciate you and the beauty you help us all to see through your words.
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