Tapping the unknown, by J.C. Kavanagh

 

The Twisted Climb
Book 1 of the award-winning series

There's a deep well. The stone wall around the top is waist-high, tall enough for you to lean over and peer down. The bottom is not in sight. What looms in that deep, dark cavern? Is it just water, a welcome, wet oasis for the parched? Or are there unknown, unseen creatures scurrying about, waiting for the unsuspecting human to drop a bucket and haul up... a blood-thirsty beast...

Yah, that would definitely be 'tapping' the unknown. But I made up that paragraph, just now as I gazed into the playground of my mind... ah yes, there they are. I see them - creatures in a deep, dark well. I tend to do that as an author. Look for the scare; an unexpected tingle of fear; a foreshadowing of something spooky to come. My dreams are twisted too - which is how The Twisted Climb story began. But that's another blog.

So when it came to tapping a non-writing skill, I was at a bit of a loss. Creativity has no bounds, as every reader and writer knows. But how about a craft? A Christmas craft? Hmmm. There's a challenge. I live on a rural property in southern Ontario, Canada, with thousands of trees. Trees of all kinds: pine, spruce, oak, maple, elm, birch, beech, chestnut, tamarack, apple and more. Because I have so many pines and spruces, I have hundreds, maybe thousands of cones. And because I have so many oaks, I have hundreds, maybe thousands, of acorns. What to do with them?

How about Christmas wreaths? I've never undertaken such a project but I knew I had the materials at hand. My neighbour Patricia, who is affectionately known as the 'bird lady' due to the geese, chickens, turkeys and peacocks that she lovingly cares for, is one of the most multi-talented women I have ever met. How to grow a vegetable garden? Ask Patricia. How to crochet a baby blanket? Ask Patricia. How to make a floral arrangement for any season, any event? Ask Patricia. So I knew when I asked her 'How do you make a Christmas wreath?' - well, I knew she'd have the answer. 

And so I began my untapped journey into the making of a Christmas wreath. Little did I know that it would take me five weeks, from start to finish, to make six wreaths. Yup, only six. Ha! Patricia taught me that a) you have to select similar-sized cones, b) you must soak them in a bowl of water till they close shut, and c) only then do you insert them through the metal frame while they're wet. Next step is to heat them by the wood stove so they dry and open again. This heating step ensures the cones are completely ensconced and tight in the metal frame.

Then the fun begins. Building layers of cones, acorns and chestnuts - all symmetrically pleasing - while hiding the metal frame. More than once I learned the peril of holding a glue gun too close to the fingers. With Patricia's guidance and her incredible knack of making bows, and using a variety of craft materials and ribbon, my foray into the building of unique Christmas wreaths was, I daresay, successful. 

Christmas morning: Ian's lovely daughter, Veroniqua, with her wreath.

As you can see from the photo above, I decided that such a gift required a 'keepsake box.' So that meant designing and building/staining storage boxes. With my multi-talented partner's help (Ian), we built the boxes from plywood, cut out a 'Christmas 2020' stencil, spray painted it and then signed each box. 

Tapping into the unknown - that's what my Christmas wreath project felt like. I've never done anything like it before and my fear was that the wreaths would not be worthy enough to give away as presents. But I think I did okay. What say you? I'll tell you one thing: I definitely have a renewed respect for all things 'hand made.'

If you're curious about the trappings of the fantastical dream world found in the playground of my mind and put to paper in The Twisted Climb series of award-winning books, please check them out at your favourite book store or through the online link found below. You'll be glad you did!

https://bookswelove.net/kavanagh-j-c/

Stay safe everyone!

J.C. Kavanagh, author of
The Twisted Climb - Darkness Descends (Book 2)
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2018, Critters Readers Poll and Best YA Book FINALIST at The Word Guild, Canada
AND
The Twisted Climb,
voted BEST Young Adult Book 2016, P&E Readers Poll
Novels for teens, young adults and adults young at heart
Email: author.j.c.kavanagh@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/J.C.Kavanagh
www.amazon.com/author/jckavanagh
Twitter @JCKavanagh1 (Author J.C. Kavanagh)