It's the little things that make me smile

Listening to the kids belly laughing, relaxing at an empty beach in January with a warm bowl of clam chowder as the roaring waves massage the beach, getting lost in a fictional world that seems as real as the one where we live, hitting the dancefloor with my husband ... It these things that leave happy and content in life.

I also smile, if not get a little bit giddy, when I make contact with fellow writers and story lovers. I embarked on this writerly journey in a very non-conventional way and don't have a writing/crit group. So the encouraging and friendly comments from others are very welcome.

For instance ...

On Facebook I posted something about NaNoWriMo and I learned a friend from high school is also participating this year; we've Buddy'd up already and shared story overviews. From that discussion thread another high school friend, who shares a love of books, has volunteered to be a beta reader of sorts, and I've taken her up on her offer. Then I commented over at Learn to Write Fiction, Cheryl Corbin's blog, and now I have another NaNoWriMo Buddy and a new way to get some cool writing tips via her Tweets.

So despite not get much story writing accomplished today, I'm still smiling.