Sometimes words are hard to find--Lenora Worth

This is my fourth blog in the last two weeks. I'd like to post something pithy and profound but all I can think about today is the horrible tragedy in Arizona. A Congress woman has been shot and six others have died. When such events happen, it tends to paralyze us. The news is constant and always updating. If we sit and watch, we have to relive this tragedy over and over. I can't imagine how the family members must feel.

But in times such as this, writers need to remember that our words can help people escape for a little while. Sometimes, we might think what we do is frivilous but our stories have a place, even in times of national tragedy. We saw this with the horrors of 9/11. I remember a lot of us in the tight-knit writing community found it hard to get back to our stories. What was the point?

The point of course is that we have to keep moving. We have to continue with our work, great or small. Because if we give into the pain, then the bad guys win. We can't let them win. Our job is to give our readers a means to get away from all the ugliest in the world for just a little while. Right now, words are hard to find. How can we express our pain, our sympathy and our sadness. It's not easy. But we all get those letters that tell us what we do matters. Our readers depend on us to deliver our stories. And that has to be the focus during these times of sadness and disbelief. My heart goes out to all those who lost loved ones in this tragedy. And we will not forget. As much as we believe in happy endings, we know that is not alway the case in real life. And yet, we will not give up hope. Ever.