Ancestors

Today, I read about DNA and genealogy. I think most people are interested in who their ancestors were, but of course, other than grandparents, you're probably only going to find any information on ancestors who were famous. Supposedly, I and my siblings are over half German, with the remaining not-quite-half consisting of 8 different ethnicities. Typical American melting pot, I always figured.

I never heard that any of my German ancestors were famous, but then, it was the other side of my family that displayed any interest in this subject. And according to rumors on that side of the family, I'm a direct descendent of Sitting Bull and Betsy Ross.

Impressive, huh?

Hang on, I'm not done. The claim of Sitting Bull came through my maternal grandfather, who couldn't seem to decide if he was full Indian, half-Indian, or only quarter-Indian. That came from my maternal grandmother, whom he abandoned with five kids to raise on her own, so there was probably some bitterness there, and no way to track down the truth.

Hey, but I still had Betsy Ross, right? A few months before mom passed away, she and I spent a weekend searching through a collection of papers grandma had given us; yellowed copies of newspaper clippings, census pages, and so on. This was the best we could figure out – back in the 1800s, grandma's great-grandparents were moving west with their children. One of the daughters was named Lindy, who later married … well, I forget his name. What's that got to do with anything, anyway? Because Betsy Ross had some younger sisters, and one of them had a son or grandson, whose wife was named 'Lindy'. That, apparently, was my direct descent from Betsy Ross.

On the other hand, one article I read said that most everybody alive could count royalty in their ancestry. Guess I'll have to be happy with that, at least for now.

It did get me thinking. What if some person on the planet didn't have ANY royalty or famous people in their ancestry? Would he/she be different from the rest of us in some way? If they became aware of it, would they become determined to BECOME the most famous person in the world, or set themselves as the start of a new royal dynasty? Something to think about.

Confusion Abounds

If you read newsletters with advice for writers, it probably won't be long before you get confused. I know it wasn't long before it happened to me. But it wasn't immediate; it waited for me to get comfortable with getting hints and information from this source.

I don't read a lot of newsletters. I receive two weekly newsletters from one editor/writer, and two monthly newsletters from agencies. I've considered subscribing to more, but it takes time to read these carefully, pick out the pieces I want to remember and discard the rest. While I read the newsletters in hopes of becoming a better writer, they take time away from the actual writing. I could wind up spending all my time reading, and not writing. So I decided to limit my subscriptions.

Even so, I have to pick and choose what I pay attention to in those newsletters. Consider the newsletters from one source and you'll see what I mean. Perhaps early in November, the editor told her readers not to bother with writing for word mills; the pay was so horrible, it simply wasn't worth your time. And then a few weeks later, that same newsletter had an article written by someone who has written that type of article for three or four years and thinks it's a great idea. I appreciate the editor's willingness to look at both sides of a question, but I'm left trying to figure out what to do. Should I look at writing for these sites, or not?

Over the years, I've learned that every writer has their own methods and rituals of working. A location and time that is perfect for one might leave another with severe writer's block. I also remember that I got distracted from the path I had wanted to travel, in my search for a career early in my life. I don't want that to happen again. So when I get a suggestion from a newsletter – or conflicting suggestions – I ask myself one question; "Is that something I WANT to do?" And that settles the question.

With a little experience, you'll probably find a way to decide what hints and suggestions would benefit you, too.