About 4am Writer

Me and Denali, a wolf

            “I write only because there is a voice within me that will not be still.” Sylvia Plath

Magic whispers to me in the moon-glow, and I am up. The rest of the house is aslumber. I toe softly through the darkness, brushing walls with my fingers, like a painter acquainting himself with a canvas. Coffee is in order, a robust aroma that trails me from kitchen to study where I tuck under a Plains Indian wool blanket and a cat.

Slowly the world outside unfurls, like the pages of an ancient book and I’m buried in a nether world of my own. Forbidden love on vanishing beaches. Ivy-covered doors embedded in ancient trees. Sweet notes of beach roses on salty air. Abandoned rooms and missing staircases.

My story is warm, the birds are beginning their day-song, and I’m right where I belong.

                                                                                                               

61 thoughts on “About 4am Writer”

  1. Hey Kate,
    Now that I know that the ex-girlfriend is not Jessie, which would bring that story to a crashing halt, I have an idea:
    Set the crash on Route 1 and quote or annotate Tony’s book, “America’s Highway.” :)
    Cool site!
    Darby

    Reply

  2. Serendipity strikes! You recently subscribed to Learning from Dogs and, as always, I took a peek at my new subscriber. Wonderful connection! I shall follow your own travails as a new writer, although a lot less new at it than this humble scribe!

    Reply

    • Wow! First I’m wowing because you treated me with a beautiful award. Thank you! Second, I’m wowing because I never knew your name was Kim. :)

      Thanks so much. I’ll have fun with it.

      Reply

  7. That’s a beautiful photograph. Such joy. I have a little dog called Dusty Lee who has wolf eyes, huge ears, and is almost metallic looking. It’s impossible to say what colour her not black and not brown coat is…I think she may be a kind of small herding dog. As for her teeth, i can’t imagine how those fangs fit in her little mouth. Talk about impressive. She looks like one of the werewolves from Twilight :-) All the best to you with your writing. I think it’s a lot like Zen or any other living faith. If it chooses you, writing is a whole way of life.

    Reply

    • Hi Kathryn,

      Our first names are spelled exactly the same–which I find very cool because it is such a rare spelling!

      That photo was taken by a wildlife photographer at a wolf preserve in Maine. The wolf’s name is Denali–handsome fellow, isn’t he? Your dog sounds awesome. Herding dogs can take a lot out of you, we used to own a border collie. Phew, she was more intelligent than the whole family put together. Wonderful, wonderful dog.

      Thank you for your encouragement and kind words. I like how you put it, that writing chooses someone. I think that’s exactly how it was for me. When I abandoned it, it wouldn’t let me go for too long. Plus, I got sick. It is a faith onto itself.

      Thank you so much for stopping by.

      Reply

  8. I love that you are a mom and a writer, because I am too!

    I buried my desire to write fiction for so long and last year finally said “enough” and took the plunge. Now I homeschool full-time, teach h.s. English very part-time, and write for 15 minutes every morning on my first novel. Blogging helps give me a place for all of the other ideas swirling around in my brain. I discover more and more, like Byron, that if I do not write I go mad…..not good for a mom to go mad. So I write and try to ignore the dust bunnies.

    Looking forward to spending more time on your blog and wishing you all the best with your writing. Cheers!

    Reply

    • Hi Angela,

      Always a pleasure to meet and connect with moms/writers. I feel like we are a special breed, and we need to support each other.

      Good for you for making that decision. That’s really all it takes, and it sounds like you are determined to follow through. Homeschooling must be a lot of fun, but draining all the same. Yet, I’m sure the rewards outweigh the drawbacks.

      I agree with you about the blogging–I definitely use blogging as a venue to empty out my head and spirit of all the excess so that I can focus on my WIP and other writing commitments.

      Yes. Love that Byron quote. It rings true for me also. Dust bunnies, Shmust bunnies is what I say! Although I will grudgingly clean the house once a week, and I’ll use that time to think about my writing.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. I look forward to chatting with you again soon!

      Reply

    • Hi JM!

      This is so thoughtful of you. This is one of my favorite awards to receive, actually. So getting it from two people is extra-special. I really appreciate it, and I will put it to good use. Thank you so much.

      Reply

  11. Hi Kate. In honor of your Write Anniversary (and your awesome blog), I’m giving you a Candle Lighter Award. There are no rules, simply accept or decline. There is also no rush and no pressure to accept. If you accept, you do not have to pass it on. Simply enjoy it.

    If you would like to pass it on, you may give this to as many people as you feel like, whenever you feel like it. It’s like an award you can save for a rainy day (or sunny, whichever). To grab the image, go here.

    Reply

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  14. Kathryn, i’m commenting here because something’s awry with your “coming out of the cave” post. It feels a bit nippy when you put your writing (esp. if it’s personal) out there for all and sundry. I try not to think about it. To just put it up on the blog or to hit submit or send. If i dwell on the exposure part i’d be horrified :-) That said, i find that the more you do it, the thicker your skin grows. It sounds like blogging has given you a free space. What a gift, ey?

    Reply

  15. Kate, when I click on the Coming out of the cave link in the subscription email it’s returning:

    Page not found
    The page you were looking for could not be found. If you followed a link on this site to get here, please contact the administrator so it can be corrected.

    Reply

    • Thanks! I know because I saw your mention on your blog the other day, lol. I truly appreciate the award and will be sure to pass it on accordingly. Have a funtabulous day!

      Reply

  19. K
    long long ago, when i was a young farm boy, i used to get up at 4 AM to milk and feed the cows. the old antediluvian rooster was my alarm clock. do you have a special pest that wakes you :)

    David in Maine USA

    Reply

  20. Hi David,

    I wish I could say I had a rooster for an alarm clock. I’ve been doing this for so long that I usually wake up without an alarm. I don’t know if that is good or bad. Although I will admit that my son (who is now 7) was a terrible sleeper as a baby, and it is because of his schedule that I found this 4am writing niche. He would wake up between 1-2 am and stay wide awake for 2 hours. He’d fall asleep at 4, but by then I had my second wind and I couldn’t go back to sleep.

    So, I guess my son was my special pest like your rooster :)

    Thanks so much for stopping by. I actually live quite near Maine. South Berwick is only about a 10 minute jaunt for me. My sister and my mother and my cousin all live in Kittery. You and I live in a beautiful part of the country, don’t we?

    Have a wonderful weekend and 4th of July

    Reply

  22. Hi, I like your blog and your writing aspirations. I am delving into this writing world also and would love to ask you about some questions if you don’t mind? Thanks…I can’t find a contact here, so maybe you can message me?

    Reply

  23. Hey Kate, I wanted to give you an update. It looks like I will be writing that article after all. Part of the contract states I will have to promo the article/magazine on my blog so you’ll know when it gets published. I am Amp’d!

    Reply

    • Thanks for letting me know Dennis. I was actually thinking about you the other day and wondering how this was panning out. What an exciting venture for you. I can’t wait to follow you on this journey. Congrats!

      Reply

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  31. Hey! Sorry to post this here, but I couldn’t find a better place!

    I tried to email you the other day and it bounced back. It was the comcast.net email address I had in my address book. Did you get a new one or something?

    I’m guessing you knew I wanted to beg a favor & changed it, didn’t you? :)

    Reply

    • Hey Shannon, sounds like you still have the right one. I haven’t changed it. Try it again. My email inbox was swamped in the past few weeks because I haven’t been around due to taking care of my mom…

      Reply

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