she has got to be joshing us
“Seriously… I heard her say it like… five or more times,” said Thalia.
“Thrice in the confines of our muse-y space… and twice… OUT-LOUD… to flesh and blood people,” added Urania. “Make that three out-loud… I just remembered another.”
“Said what?” asked Calliope.
“She said… ,” Urania gulped, “… she wants us to publish Meandering Muses by the summer solstice — AND — a third book by the Autumn solstice — a trilogy of wandering, meandering, and who knows what else in 2021.”
“What’s wrong with that?” asked Calliope.
“WHAT’S WRONG WITH THAT?” Urania pulled out her box of shouty capitals. “We already spill our thoughts here in the daily newsletter and she thinks we can write books from scratch, too?”
“We think all day long Nia, there are twenty six letters in the English alphabet — nearly endless combinations of letters and words, and ideas grow on trees, fall from the sky, and drop into our laps,” Cal replied. “How hard can it be? She even knows a few words in Spanish!”
“She hasn’t even started filling our plaid, character development boxes yet!” Urania squawked like a startled crow.
“Untrue,” said Thalia. “My box holds a stick of gum — and you can wipe those looks of envy right off of your faces — she wrote on on the patterned stick — cracks, snaps, smacks, blows bubbles — incredibly unflattering.”
“Chewing gum is meant to be played with… and it is true… ,” Calliope said as smooth as a honey-lemon cough drop.
Urania looked dreamily out the window and asked, “What will our book cover look like?”
Cal and Tal shrugged.
“Maybe our readers have some ideas?” asked Urania. “They know us pretty well… and they are incredibly creative and thoughtful.”
“Let’s not put the dessert before the meal Urania — we’ve got a lot of cracking and snapping to do with words first,” said Calliope. “and…I’m glad you’ve now boarded the good ship Meandering Muse.”
I had no idea that painting your study/office would trigger an avalanche! For reasons unknown, having a scene from the dog park came to my mind. With dogs of course, but not the sole subject. A scene sprinkled with a few owners, perhaps a child or two, and a few dogs of various breeds/sizes. A variant of a “meander.”
A bit busy?! Fewer elements might enhance the intended message. Or, in an opposite direction, do book covers ever use collages? Your activities cover a wide range of venues and activities. Said collage would seem to offer a visual portrayal of meandering...
I believe you said the black and white images in Wandering Words helped manage printing costs. In my mind’s eye a collage seems to beg for color. If a color cover alone wasn’t a budget buster, would that allow black and white images inside where needed?
Good luck on this new adventure!
Wow, are you ambitious, Gail. Go you! As for covers--I'm clueless, but if inspiration hits, I'll let you know.