A lot of you out there may know the story about Noah's Ark and how he filled his boat with pairs of animals in anticipation of a flood. Pairing up...two by two...just made it easier. Other things in life are better paired together. Peanut butter and jelly. Green Eggs and Ham. Socks and shoes. Writers and critique groups. Authors and agents. See what I mean? Things in the universe are made to compliment each other and together the sum is greater than its parts.
Then sometimes you see a pairing and you wonder what were they thinking? A plaid shirt worn with polka dot pants will make you wince. A poorly written story published by an uncaring vanity press reflects poorly on the writing community. Mysteries of nature like my two turtles pictured here. There are times when you have to really stop and think if this particular two by two you are looking at is for the best?
We writers like to think of ourselves as solitary creatures of habit. We rise in the morning, sometimes sit down immediately to create our worlds and sometimes we grab moments here and there and stuff our writing around all the other demands of our "real" life. But we think we travel this path alone, when in fact there is a whole writing community just waiting to pair up with us. To lead the way, and sometimes to follow as we both work toward our individual writing goals. Two by two, hand in hand, lifting each other up, cheering each other on...like a wonderful, maddening dance...
