The Great Turkey Soup Fiasco

Every Thanksgiving I remember the great turkey soup fiasco. 

The year my boys were two and five, I decided to follow my mother’s example and use the turkey carcass to make soup. What a great idea, right? I simmered the carcass for hours in a huge stainless pot. By then it was pretty late, and since I was too exhausted to do anything more, I put the pot in the extra refrigerator we kept in the basement. And forgot about it. 

Weeks later, realizing the “soup” was now aswirl with deadly organisms, I transferred the pot to the cold garage. And forgot about it again. Until the spring thaw. 

With no clue how to dispose of the lethal brew without slaughtering innocent animals—or people (could water treatment really neutralize what were probably deadly undiscovered toxins?)—I carried the pot outside and stuck it under a tree at the back of our property until I could figure out how to safely make it go away. Out of sight, out of mind. 

Come summer, the pot with its murderous contents was still there. My husband got rid of it, expensive pot and all. I never asked how.  

Here’s the point: Life really is the best place to mine for plots. Just think of all the possible scenarios that might have arisen from my serial procrastination. Think of the lives that were miraculously saved.

What true story from your own life holds the possibility of a killer plot? Have you used your own experiences in a book? I would love to hear!

As you celebrate Thanksgiving 2024 next week, I wish you all good things for the holidays and the coming year. May life hint at devious plots without becoming reality. May near misses spark your creativity. And may you count your blessings in an imperfect but eventful world.