We are stories.
We are stories with generations and histories, recipes and humor, song and secrets. Born and raised with stories, they exist inside us, among us, and around us. Have you ever had an itch to write, sat down, and came up blank? We've got a place that takes care of that for you. We'd like to warmly invite you for a visit, where the tunes are always spinning and the coffee's brewed fresh.
Welcome. Come on in and have a look around. Explore our spaces and beat the block inside Loud Coffee Press' Creative Home.
As you make you way up the front path, we invite you to think about the concept of the question. A good story poses a question to a reader, often indirectly, and then answers it much later in the work. What's your question? What will your story answer, or leave unanswered?
Open the front door and welcome a reader with a knockout first line and paragraph. Maybe you'll start with this, or maybe it will come to you later. If you're writing brief or flash fiction, it's often said that the first (and sometimes second) paragraphs can be deleted for the reader to be dropped right into the heart of the story.
Upon entry, the sound of the television pulls you in. Pick up the remote and channel surf. Here's a good time to think about genre. Are you drawn to a certain style of storytelling? Do you write horror, romance, or mystery? Are you not neatly packaged into a genre box? Maybe now's the time to challenge yourself, and explore a realm in which you're unaccustomed, or one that combines genre elements. Or, let the story elements lead you.
Step downstairs. The basement is a great place for storytelling. It's often packed with boxes of ancestral anecdotes, family history, values and the questioning of, putting down roots, hardships suffered, and "old wives tales." Unpack these. Do they have a place in your work? Might they be or hint at a theme?
Hungry after the hard work? Have a seat around the kitchen table. It's where bread is broken and shared. Discover your senses here. What does your story smell or taste like? For many, it's a safe space. If you start here, we suggest you branch out. Explore some other rooms. In fact, let's head upstairs. All the way up.
Contrasting the warm and nestled kitchen chairs is the creaky attic. Here, dust off the cobwebs, and dive into your secrets. Those things you'd never tell anyone? Maybe they're worth a fictionalization... disguised just enough to tell a juicy tale. Add an additional layer of protection by thinking about the chimney, or the smoke. This is the home's veil, or surrealist layer. Twist and turn the events into something uniquely yours.
Back down in the bedroom and bathroom, we invite you to consider bringing the reader closer to the narrative. Does your story have a "steam factor?" What do you think about when out of sight of prying eyes? Who are you when you let go? What do you sing about in the shower? Maybe these are little details. Maybe they're big. You'll know what works for your story.
Across the hallway is the office. Here, open file cabinets to thumb through your creative assets. It's one thing to get the narrative down, but what about turning the work into something more interesting? What does the structure of the narrative do for the story as a whole? Perhaps it's best told as poetry. Maybe it's linear and it could work as a fantastic non-linear narrative. The office reminds us that as creatives, we do creative work. Now that you’ve explored your words, make the structure stand out.
If you’re out into nature and still struggling, our backyard swing is a reminder of childhood. What are some things you wish you knew then that you now know? Do you have great or less-than-optimal memories worth exploring? Or, maybe you have a story in mind and here's your chance to answer that front door question with a lesson learned.
Finally, come around to the fragrant garden. We hope you've enjoyed your time in our Creative Home. Now that you've planted a seed, what's grown, in the literal or figurative sense?