TRENDS

Posted by Candace Bowen Early on Sep 21, 2011 in Authors, Blog, Writing | 4 comments

When I was growing up, I always had to have the latest designer “in” thing. This usually came about after much pleading, begging and bothering my mother about it until she reluctantly caved just to shut me up. It was not so much that I was actually drawn to the “must have” item of the moment. Like most adolescents, I just wanted to fit in with my peers.

As I grew older, I began to realize I did not have to look or act like everyone else around me to feel good about myself. Do not get me wrong, I like my “stuff.” I have a closet entirely devoted to my purse collection. Still, I do not need shelves of designer purses to validate who I am. They simply happen to be pretty things made to carry even more stuff.

The same goes for my writing. After the popularity of a certain young adult vampire series, the market was flooded with books about vampires. At the time I was searching for ideas for my next novel, it did not even occur to me to follow the latest trend. It may be what was selling, but to me, it was not very original.

As I have mentioned many times before, I am a visually oriented person. I have a tendency to sit back and observe instead of jumping in to participate. To some this may appear standoffish, but it is not meant to be. Some of my best ideas have come to me by observing from the sidelines.

Having always been a firm believer that a good education leads to a great future, I enrolled my son in a private Christian school. When it is time to pick him up, I rumble into the carline in my tricked-out Sahara Jeep Wrangler to play the “Waiting for the Kid” game. I feel like a lone rebel adrift in a sea of similar looking luxury SUV’s.

It is by choice that I stay behind the wheel listening to music as many of the other mothers congregate outside of their vehicles to chat. Often sporting the latest designer handbags and sunglasses, I am content to keep my distance and just watch them. Somewhere deep inside I know if I were to join in the conversation, I would be transported back to the unfortunate days of trying to fit in.

A few months ago, my dad tried to find reason behind these odd “quirks” in my personality. He stated his belief that writers existed on a separate plane than the rest of the population. Maybe there is some truth in that. Whatever it is that makes me different, I just like to call it being true to myself.

Candace Bowen Early
September 21, 2011