By Guest Blogger Robbi Hess

Last week's post got lost in the drama that became my life. Friday night my daughter graduated from high school -- a year earlier than planned, but she had the credits to do so and is now college bound. Mixed emotions, to be sure on these upcoming changes in the household. Believe me, Friday was a time for tears, joy and celebration.

We were still riding high on those emotions when, on Saturday, she was involved in a hit and run accident. She was in her car, stopped to make a left turn and a car rammed her. The worst part was, the first vehicle never even stopped. That impact was quickly followed by the second vehicle that hit her. Getting that call about her having been involved in an accident and the myriad emotions that roiled through me were quelled by her comment that, "I'm not really hurt but my car is toast."

We spent a few hours in the rain with the police, cleaning car parts out of road and waiting for the tow truck. The weekend was capped off by hospital visits to rule out neck or spine injuries. Thankfully, a couple days of rest, pain relievers and heating pads cleared it all up.

Where am I going with this? Okay, last week the "muse" was in hiding, waiting for life to calm down, but once it did, the ideas for writing came flooding in full force.

Let's see, where to begin on the ideas that could be gleaned from this event:

• Graduation night memories, special ways to commemorate it. Outlets: local newspapers, college-bound type magazines, queries for reunion magazines, women's (or maybe even men's) magazines on coping with empty nest or how to get your student ready for college
• Auto accidents: how about, what do do in the event of an accident (call police, gather information from other driver, exchange phone numbers, take photos of the vehicle), general teen driver safety tips and hints, what to take to the hospital. Outlets: travel magazines (what if she'd been in a different state) automobile mags, again, women's magazines (they like Top Tens or filler items)
• Finally, why not a fictional account (perhaps for a "confession" magazine), a crime drama on what possessed the driver to be a hit and run (my imagination was running wild with thoughts) and truly, for the damage done to her car, there is NO way the other vehicle could have been drivable for long.

All in all, it was a roller coaster ride with (thankfully) a happy outcome other than now we have to begin the search for another car (hey there's an idea: car shopping hints and tips for a teen drivers' first vehicle). Once you can step back from events in your life, it's easy to turn those events into writing material.

Go forth and write!