Flo Radke, author

I awoke before 6AM which is quite early for my usual rising. Hoping to get in some research and writing, I was blissfully alone for all of one hour before my loving husband woke and approached my writing table, alerting my dogs. They always bark upon his arrival. We cannot figure out why. They don’t alert when our son comes to visit. In fact, they often give friendly greetings to others, even strangers, if I am present.

                It was too early to feed the two hounds and they had been waiting sleepily for my signal for breakfast. Of course, on my husband’s approach, they decided it was, in fact, time to eat. The cacophony of barking was enough to distract my deepest thoughts. Added to the chaos was hubby’s concerned shushing of them. “Shhh! You’re bothering mommy!”

                My thoughts immediately went back in time to younger days with my children as one warned the other in a loud voice, “Be quite! Mommy has to work tonight. She has to get some sleep!” Intentions were commendable. The achievement of such needed a bit of work.

                He fed them their kibble, their morning glucosamine chews, and their milk bones while speaking the agreed upon commands that controlled the dogs and their enthusiasm. He rinsed and refilled their water bucket. From there (the dear) he proceeded to empty the dishwasher and reload it with last night’s supper dishes. He made coffee. He asked twice if I needed anything. He gave me his plan of the day.

I must add here that my writing table is actually the kitchen table and all the above activity took place in said kitchen.

                I gave up trying to keep thoughts together, put on my jacket for the freezing weather (it was 41 degrees outside!), grabbed my audio-book of the Complete Sherlock Holmes collection and left for the patio to read. Well, listen. Nothing like a little Sir Arthur Conan Doyle read by Simon Vance to calm my mind and inspire.

Does this sound familiar? What do you do when life happens when you are trying to create your own fantasy world?

Until next time,

Flo

What do I mean when I say, “I have begun writing…”?

It means that I am at the beginning. When I start a book or story I first gather either real or imagined evidence that can be pieced together like a puzzle. Sometimes there are lost pieces. Perhaps some of the pieces I have in my possession belong to a different puzzle altogether or, maybe, I am looking at a proper piece all wrong.

When you start a puzzle do you dump all the pieces from the box or dig through the box looking for pieces that fit together? When you start connecting the pieces do you connect the border pieces first or fit pieces together in clusters? Either way will get you going in the right direction. Same holds true for writing a story.

You have this vision or a thought or an idea and think: Wow! That would make quite a story. How can I sensationalize it? Or add to it? Or turn it into a believable fantasy? What pieces do I want to use to create the picture in my mind? How do I want those pieces to fit together? Do I want to complete the picture by laying out the entire scenario or do I create little scenes and ease each cluster into place?

Anyone who knows me knows that I frequently have more than one iron in the fire.  I take that back. Anyone who knows me may not know that much about me and may simply think me scatterbrained. I could probably be diagnosed with Controlled, Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. I would challenge that and say, “I just have so much in my mind looking for a way out.” I add the word ‘controlled’ to the label because I am focused and know how to direct the thoughts vying to exit the confines of my mind. Sometimes I direct them into books or art. Well, not always. OK, I do often get distracted. Alright! Scatterbrained. It would be the right word. That’s why my example is a puzzle.

Where do my ideas come from? Well, life happens. Sometimes life gives you lemons. When it does, you write your thoughts on paper with your new bottle of lemonade ink.

So let’s go back to last week, regarding my query for a variety of stories from a variety of people involved in a variety of situations all involving caring for people who cannot care for themselves for a variety of reasons, however temporary their dependency may have been. In this case, I want to perform a cluster composition. Those clusters will become the entire picture. I will also be using my own tales from my own nursing crypt. That’s where the initial idea emerged. Stories started rattling around in my brain and begged to be heard. Perhaps that will create the border and the call for other tales, the clusters, will join the party.

Hmmm…and I believe I have a working title. Nursing: Tales from the Crypt. I would like to make you laugh, cry, ponder, or be called to action. In addition to your tale, I would also like to hear your opinion of how the situation could have been different if the approach was modified. My primary target market for the completed work will be nursing students. It may make them re-consider their career choice or solidify their drive to give competent, compassionate care to others. In that light, the scenarios could be helpful for anyone really, but I believe the medical community would be the most appreciative.

Thanks for caring!

–Flo

I’d only just begun…

In Search of Contributors:

RN, LPN, CNAs, MA, MT, RT, PT, OT, Caregivers, Doctors, Patients, and Families and Friends of patients, doctors, therapists, and nurses.

I have begun writing an anthology of events covering my nursing career. For over 40 years I have collected tales in my mind and will now put pen to paper. OK. Fingers to keypad. Well, maybe some pen and paper too. Or a pencil instead of a pen. At any rate, those ancient tales will have new life breathed into them.

What is an anthology? It is a collection of literary works, music, poetry, and other likenesses published in one book.

I’m looking for contributors of their own tales. Make me laugh. Make me cry. Make me say “Hmmm…” I would also welcome the spooky tales we have all either heard of or experienced.

Please do not include actual names and actual places.

If you have a “What if…” story, share that too!

I’d love to have your notes by July (2020) so I can have the anthology edited and flowing and published in time for gift giving season. Can you think of a better gift for a person going into, or a veteran of, the medical field? Help them remember why they became a nurse or doctor or therapist or other caregiver. Then again, it could confirm their decision to leave the field and become a welcome center attendant at the YMCA.

I am not only looking for tales from the medical personnel’s point of view. If you have been a patient and some out of the ordinary or even an ordinary day happens, I would love to hear about it from your point of view. We often forget that there is a real person in that hospital bed or on that exam table. Hearing from you would increase the perspective of what the medical field is all about, what it has been, and what it could be.

Please feel free to copy this post and share it with your friends, your family, and your social media contacts.

I will select the wildest, the craziest, the sweetest, the most profound, the quirkiest, the most innovative, and the ones that simply have something to say.

Please mail your contributions to radkereading@gmail.com along with your name or the “nom de plume” you would like to use. You can be assured you will receive full literary credit. I’m sorry I can’t promise monetary compensation at this time but keep in touch and I’ll keep you posted on the progress.

Thank you in advance for all the stories!

–Flo

What do I want to accomplish with this site?

Is it a blog? The Oxford dictionary reveals a blog as a log that gets updated on a regular basis and is shared on the web. A weblog. It is used to share information, events, and ideas in a conversational style. No APA formatting required! That’s a bonus!

So, what gets me anxious about becoming a blogger?

One aspect is that a blog requires regular updates. I can schedule that but I am also the Great Procrastinator. The other anxious moment is “What do I have to say?”

What do I have to say that can make an impact (preferably good) on an audience?

I must first define my audience. Readers. People who love to read what someone else has written provided the material is interesting or exciting, informative about a specific topic, silly enough to come back for more, or sweet enough to induce tears or that feel good vibe we all (well, most of us) crave.

Who am I?

I’m just a person. I have thoughts that I enjoy putting to paper (or tapping into a computer screen). Sometimes those thoughts ramble and sometimes those ramblings evolve into a story and that story grows into a book-sized package that has the potential to grow further into a novel or even a saga.

My writing may not appeal to everyone’s need to read. (Oh! I like that! 
I have a Need to Read!)
To those who do appreciate my style and topics, I owe the deepest appreciation and will put forth my best efforts to maintain your loyalty.

How do you know you will like my writing? Here is my AHA! Moment.

I will give sneak peeks for my up and coming works as well as those books that I have already published. Just recaps so I don’t give anything away. It may be one of those random thoughts that I am turning into a story or it may be a first chapter or an especially intriguing passage. So…

Here we go…

but wait!

So you don’t get too antsy, I will post once a week for now. Expect to hear from me again next Wednesday.

Until then,

Flo Radke