Moments

Here comes the free writing advice... (or is it life advice? Whatever.)

This Taco Tuesday, I’m thinking about Sunday. It was a nice Sunday.

(Warning: arbitrary tense change, because reasons.)

Spring finally hit south Idaho and I find myself standin’ in the kitchen, windows open, bare feet on the tile, worn jeans and an old t shirt, slicing tomatoes,

the olive oil and vinegar just beginning to sizzle as Susan Tedeschi moans out the final lyrics of “Bell Bottom Blues” from the Victrola.

Kelly’s in the living room, a needle and thread in hand, beautiful, happy, lost in her art.

I am again reminded that I am a rich man. Sure, I’m no millionaire. As the old blues song goes “I never said I was a millionaire, I said I have spent mo money than a millionaire.”

No, I’m a renter, living in a condo, next to a bunch of other renters, but rich nonetheless. Rich in this beautiful moment. You see, I’ve spent a good deal of my life getting paid to arrange amazing moments for people, usually on some river, or on the sea, or a mile up a canyon wall. But something I learned long ago, something a lot of people seem to have forgotten, is that great moments happen all the time.

There’s a juggler a friend of mine worked for, more well known for standing on stage while his partner does magic tricks (Penn Jillette) who once said that life is a collection of great stories, and I absolutely agree. However, it is also a collection of great moments.

My memory is packed with stories. A few of them are even repeatable. But it is also full of moments. A hammock on a fall day as Eric Johnson’s guitar calmed my frantic mind. A sunset on Highway 9 in Arkansas. A quiet lone drift on the Black Canyon. A sweaty afterglow on a hot night in an old car as the frogs sang around us. Having the best burger ever made after a long day of dealing with neurotic tourists. A campfire that goes silent, as everyone is content to shut the hell up and just be. Stopping at the top and staring out over the Smokies after riding on the Cherohala skyway, before anyone knew what it was. Hanging out in a smoky pool hall with my friends when I was just a kid as my favorite song comes on the juke box. This list could go on forever (even longer if this weren’t a conversation for polite company…).

Great stories are important, and great moments are important to great stories. Don’t forget them. Sometimes, we can get too preoccupied with the events of a story, that we forget to include the subtle moments that make the story real.

Yes, the Battle of Helm’s Deep is epic, but what would Tolkien be like without little moments like Bilbo and Gandalf blowing smoke rings?

One of my favorite masters at creating moments is John Carpenter. So many of his films have memorable breaks from the action, sometimes to build tension, sometimes to let it off, sometimes even for comedy. It can also help to make the characters feel more human, and help the audience (or readers) connect. The bar scene (or the elevator, for that matter) in Big Trouble, just before the climax, comes to mind.

Of course, this is free advice, so like I always say, it’s worth every penny. I have found myself going back and giving my characters more moments of zen, which is the least I can do, considering how much abuse I throw at them.

So don’t forget to give your story some great moments, and don’t forget about yourself while you’re at it.

Give yourself some great moments.

Stare down into the abyss of the Grand Canyon

Go to a concert and watch the crowd go nuts the second the band starts playing that one song

Have a meal at a place that has a patio while the weather is nice, preferably somewhere with live music (doesn’t even have to be good)

Go parking on a backroad in an old car

Or, just cut tomatoes while listening to a good record (I recommend Tedeschi-Trucks Band live redux of Layla)

Until the next one, Carpe Momentum.

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