The Muses are going to take a week off to spend time with our families, to write, dream and edit.  And quite possibly eat too much chocolate.  But we wish you a season merry and bright and will see you in 2011!

All the best,

Donna, Talia, Katy and V.

'Tis the Season, right?

Several Christmases ago, I heard a story on NPR about how back in the dark ages, before Internet, a Colorado Springs Sears and Roebuck printed an add for kids to call Santa.  Unfortunately, the number was misprinted, and kids were directed to CONAD (the Continental Air Defense Command).  But the confusion gave the commander-in-chief a brilliant idea.  They track airplanes, right?  And other flying objects?  Why not Santa?

So from then on, they have.  And you can, too.  Through the present day North American Aerospace Defense Command.

Check out NORAD tracks Santa
And @noradsanta on Twitter.

Where is Santa right now?  Go find him.  And tell your kids.

Being the Thursday girl in this group is a wonder.  I stand amazed at the capacity, intellect, skill and generosity of my sister Muses.  They bring so much to each week’s discussion and say it all succinctly, earnestly and beautifully.

But therein also lies a problem.  They say it all.  Which leaves me wordless.

Actually, I have no complaint.  Because they do it so well.  And I have to admit to printing some blog posts and sticking them up on my bulletin board.  Revision.  Character Development.  Suspense.  Between them, they have taught me so much.  To know them is a gift.  To follow them is a treasure.  And as I’m sure you’ve observed, nothing leaves me wordless.

Which brings me to one more gift.  Donna, Veronica and Talia have listed so many my heart yearns for – for myself, for them, and for you readers.  But a recent discussion with a writer friend reminded me of one more.

Time alone.

Especially in this holiday season.  I adore my family.  I love my friends.  My children give my life meaning.  My husband is a saint.  (With flaws.  A flawed saint.)

But sometimes just the presence of others can be a burden.  We writers are introverts.  Not necessarily shy and retiring.  I know writers who fill a room as soon as they enter it.  But we like our space.  Our quiet.  Our thinking time.  And that’s in short supply right about now, right?

So my wish for you this season is to be able to find those moments.  They don’t have to be writing time, though I hope you find that, too.  But we all need dream time.  Alone time.  A walk with the dogs.  A run.  A sunrise.  A shower.  A peppermint mocha.  Time just for you.  For your thoughts.  For renewal. 

It can be found.  It can be given.  And it is one thing it isn’t selfish to take.  Step outside.  Look at the stars.  Or the snow.  Or the rain.  And breathe.

Happy Holidays, everyone.

First let me just say, YES.  I want all of these.  And these.  I'm greedy that way.  But seriously, these are wonderful things that every writer would be lucky to have even a few of.

I'm adding my own list of things that I wish for.  Things that may be harder to find, but well worth the search:

1.  COURAGE.  I wish for the courage to try new things.  To write the story that scares me a little in its breadth and scope.  To fail.  And then try again.

2.  HONESTY.  I wish for the unvarnished truth. To be honest with myself about what could be better and to accept criticism without getting weighed down by emotion.   

3.  HEART.  I wish for my characters to come to life as I write, to breathe laughter and love into the pages of my manuscript.  To show me things that are deeper and more true than I ever imagined.  To bring the real to the page.

4.  PERSEVERANCE.  I wish for the strength to keep going, especially when I want to give up.  Give me strength to write another paragraph, another chapter, another draft.  I wish for that last surge of adrenaline to be there when I need it most.  To force me to the end, even when I feel like I'm writing crap.

5.  SUPPORT.  I wish for friends, family and coworkers to support my writing not just in principle, but in practice.  To grant me time to write and go to conferences, to allow me to retreat to the sanctity of my critique group.  To keep me going during those moments when I just want to stop. And to maybe even (gasp) pay retail for one of my books.

6.    INSPIRATION.  I wish for ideas.  High concept, marketable, original ideas would be ideal, but I'll settle for ideas that get my brain and my heart racing at the same time.  Ideas that take hold of me and won't let go  until I get them down on paper, and then grab hold of me all over again, until they become as much a part of who I am as my DNA.

7.  PASSION.  I wish for my love affair with books and characters and stories to stay hot and borderline obsessive.  To discover new authors and stories that entertain and inspire me.  I wish for my passion to come through in everything I write.

8.  CONFLICT.  I wish for my manuscripts to be filled with conflicts that propel the story forward, reveal hidden strengths and weaknesses in my characters, and make the resolution satisfying.

9.  QUALITY.  I wish for a finished product I can be proud to put my name on.  Something that makes all the hours of labor, moments of self doubt and painful revisions worth it.  Something that makes me smile when I read it a year later.

10.  COMMUNITY.  I wish for more time with my surrogate family of writing friends.  Retreats, dinners, critique groups.  To share this process with people who truly understand.  To share the good, bad and ugly, all the while keeping perspective, while striving to navigate this business with the wind at our backs and a good bottle of wine. 

This year, I've been lucky enough to grasp hold of all of these things.  But they can be fleeting, fickle, and slippery creatures.  I wish they would all settle in and stay a while.

What things would you add to this writer's wishlist?

We're covering writing gifts this week. Donna's post really hit upon most of what I had up my sleeve - be sure to check it out if you haven't already! - so I'm adapting this post on the fly. Herein, you'll find my wish list (wish being the key word):

• I would like a website that is as cool as MT Anderson's.
• I would like a book trailer that is as creepy and intriguing as Ally Condie's.
• I would like my writing to sound like a word soup made of Justin Cronin and Catherine Fisher's prose, with a little Susan Cooper thrown in for spice.
• I would like hours and hours of writing time every day of 2011. These hours should be guilt-free and focus-full.
• While we're on the subject of time, I would like hours and hours of READING time per day as well. For fun and for research. Hey, it's a wish list.
• I also would like lots and lots of time with my friends, because they're really fun and being with them recharges me.
• I would like a better writing chair. (Poor back support on mine.)
• I would like a full supply of Le Pens, my favorite writing pen. In all kinds of silly colors because colors are nice. They make my notebooks less boring.
• I would like my alien wrist baby to take a long vacation. (I should probably explain. I have a ganglian cyst on my wrist. Google it if you're curious. Or maybe don't. It's gross.)
• More than anything, I wish for my writing friends to find happiness and deep satisfaction with their projects. Nothing inspires me or makes me happier than to see the creative rush flowing around me. So go write! Or paint! Or sing! And then come back here - I'd love to hear all about it!

Happy Holidays!

This week the Muses will be sharing gift ideas. I encourage you to pass on the items that spark your interest to significant others and family members looking for that perfect holiday gift to support your writing endeavors. Or you can just buy them for yourself :)

So if I were Oprah, I'd cue the elves to bring out one of the following for each and every one of you! (You can start screaming, crying, and jumping up and down now if you want... you know, virtually)

Donna's Gift Ideas for Writers

1. Books about writing. There are lots of good ones, but my all time favorite is Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. I've given it away so many times, I don't even have a copy right now.

2. A writing journal and a good pen. I find writing "the old fashioned way" with paper and a pen brings something different to the page. I love beautiful journals and a pen that glides across the paper.

3. Coffee Shop Gift Certificate. Most Tuesday/Thursday mornings before I head into the office, you'll find me at Cafe Adore in Old Town Fort Collins. I love the fact they know me by name and keep my account on an index card in a box by the register to settle up at the end of the month. If Santa wanted to put some money on my account, that'd be great!

4. Time Away. When I get to a critical point in a manuscript I go to "writer's prison." It's actually an abbey on a working farm up near the Wyoming/Colorado boarder. The cost for personal retreat time is $55 a night and all meals are included. You get a bed and a desk, no five star hotel, but it's perfect for just writing. No internet. No television. No phone (except for emergencies). Even my cell phone doesn't work unless I climb up to a rocky cliff overlooking the retreat center and perch just right on the overhang. The result... no excuses. And there's a wild, beautiful landscape right outside the door for long hikes to think through that next scene. Maybe you don't have an Abbey of St. Walburga near you, but there might be something similar.

5. Time to Connect. Writing conferences are the perfect opportunity to get outside your head and connect your writing to others. Make new friends. Hear about the business. Learn about the craft of writing. There are lots of wonderful choices, but one upcoming opportunity is the SCBWI winter conference in New York at the end of January. A timely idea for a holiday gift, right?

6. A Netbook. They're relatively inexpensive and can slip right in to an oversized purse, so writing on that latest manuscript is never far away. I LOVE my little hp mini and take it everywhere.

7. An E Reader. I adore books. I love the look of them, the smell of them, the feel of them. So it was a bit hard to convince me I could love my Kindle with same kind of passion. I was won over though by the fact I can easily take five new hardback books on every plane trip and, if I ran out of reading material, get something new at a moment's notice.

8. Housekeeper. Maybe a bit of a wild card, but buying a housekeeper's services for a month or two would be an amazing gift to a writer struggling to get a draft down in midst of the rest of life.

9. Snowshoes. I live in Colorado, so snowshoes might not be the best choice for you. To me, they symbolize time outside and away from a computer screen, to walk, think and reconnect with the bigger picture ideas in my mind. Maybe you'd choose tennis shoes, a gym membership, or a bike. Whatever works.

10. Your turn __________________________. What would support you right now? What's your "ultimate" gift idea for the writing life. We'd love to hear it.