A Turkey Scavenger Hunt

I called my sister as soon as I got in the car. "Mo," I said. "You are not going to BELIEVE what just happened in the grocery store." I proceeded to tell her the following story.

My shopping trip had gone perfectly normal until I got to the register. As I was setting my purchases on the conveyor belt, I realized I was missing a pound of turkey. I checked the bottom of the cart, the ground, my purse... no turkey.

"What's wrong?" the cashier asked me.

"Um, I'm missing my turkey. Could you hold my stuff for a second? I'm gonna retrace my steps."

"No problem," she said, and I set off on my turkey scavenger hunt. Unfortunately, I had chosen this specific night to pick exactly one item from every section of the store.

"Have you seen a bag of turkey?" I asked an employee in the milk section. "I lost it." I felt like a character in a picture book. Any second I'd learn a moral.

"Nope," he said, openly grinning, not at all trying to hide his amusement at my loss.

It wasn't until I looped back to the deli/produce section that I spotted my bag of turkey lying on the bananas. Even now, I can't tell you why I left my turkey on bananas. Apparently it was a good idea at the time.

I rushed back to the register where the cashier was waiting with a smile.

"You found it?" she asked.

I slapped the bag onto the conveyor belt. "Found it. On the bananas."

"Hmmm," she said.

"No idea why," I answered.

After I told my sister this story in the car, there was a pause of silence.

"Why didn't you just have the deli slice you a new pound of turkey?" Mo asked.

I blinked. "I didn't think of that."

And I didn't. Not once during my turkey quest did it ever occur to me there was another solution to the problem.

As a writer, I usually see my story from one particular angle. It's my comfy angle, the one I've worn down a bit. So when I discover a plot hole that needs fixing or a character that's falling flat, my first instinct is to approach the problem from my comfy angle. But sometimes (read: most of the time) what I need most is a brand-new angle.

That's why it's so fantastic to have a critique group, friend, sister, someone look at your story with fresh eyes. They can save you from heaps of backtracking by introducing you to Shiny New Angle. Soon, Comfy Angle and Shiny New Angle merge into this fabulous ah-ha! moment. Eureka! Your writer's block is cured, and you didn't waste time backtracking around your manuscript--or the grocery store. Whichever the case may be. :)