Believe It Or Not?

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." -- Tom Clancy

The news this week has been particularly odd and frightening. If I wrote this stuff in a book, no one would believe me.

Missing Thai Woman Reappears 25 Years After Boarding Wrong Bus - This one boggles my mind. I'm horrified at what this poor woman had to go through, not to mention her family!

Atlanta Father Admits Intentionally Poisoning Children in Attempt to Sue Campbell Soup Co. - What? Just... what???

Michigan Man Pleads No Contest to Sex Pact With Girlfriend, 15-Year-Old Daughter - Yeah, the man's a creep and should be jailed. But the mom? Should be shot.

I look at some of these stories (I won't even go into the married w/three kids astronaut/kidnapper/attempted murderer) and flash back to the times that my study group reads my writing (or anyone else's for that matter) and says, "That's hard to believe."

I frequently use things that have actually happened to me in my stories. And I'll get feedback: That could never happen, I can't believe someone would do that, etc.

Uh... believe it.

Truth is stranger than fiction.

What is something that has happened to you that people would scoff at if you put it in a story?

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So... Sunday, TiVo recorded the Criminal Minds show, "The Big Game" only the actual Big Game ran over, so I only got the first half. Grrr... I deleted it, not wanting to start watching it when I couldn't see the end.

Then I found out it was part one of two! ACK! I checked... it wasn't being repeated according to my program search. THEN last night at 8:40 I discovered that IT WAS BEING REPEATED - but TiVo won't automatically tape repeats on the season pass, so I wasn't recording it. And I'd missed the first half. I manually taped the end, figuring some was better than none. And then realized, that if I'd've kept the one from Sunday, I'd've had the whole show.

Man, I'm still mad.