Suitcases and manuscripts

What does one have to do with the other? Well, as I stare at an empty suitcase, wondering what I am going to pull out of the closet to fill it up, it reminds me of staring at a blank computer screen, wondering what words I’ll pull out of thin air to fill up the pages and complete a manuscript. Sometimes the words come easily, sometimes they fit just right, but other times like conference clothes have grown too tight (shocking, I know!) they don’t fit so well. But that’s where editing comes in. And I’m working on editing a manuscript right now. But there’s not much editing for a suitcase. I zip it up, hand it to the American Airlines personnel to store in baggage, and it won’t be until I get to DC that I’ll realize I forgot something or should have brought something else. Hopefully, my manuscript will fair better than that and I’ll whip it into shape before it hits my editor’s desk.