I'm sure it's possible for some writers to pinpoint the exact origin of a story. That's never been true for me. I'm a magpie, a dragon, collecting images, sentences, ambiance. Eventually, after much wrangling, some of those items come together into a beginning, a middle, and an end.
This particular story--"Ms. McCrae's Metaphysical Cleaning Agency"--is a love letter to New York City. When I was young, I had a very clear vision for my life: I was going to be a writer, and I was going to live in New York. Only one of these has come true (so far). But still, I'm drawn to the rich stories of that storied city, and apparently wanted to contribute my own small part. It wasn't planned, not really. I didn't set out with the intention, "I want to write a story about New York." But as Ms. McCrae and her brethren took shape, it was clear that was their home. Stories, in my experience, have the tendency to grow in unexpected directions. You don't know it's the right path until you've tried it out.
This story also grew from grief. From the process of having to wrangle it and figure out what on earth to do next. For those of you wrestling with the same thing, I wish I had any sort of advice, but what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for another. For me, I just had to write my way through.
For a long time, the story was only its protagonist, Jean McCrae, bopping around in my head. I knew she had ghosts. Beyond that, it was blurry. So I sharpened the cast of characters around her. The story's antagonist, Mrs. Bardot, was actually the last to coalescence into a (somewhat) solid form. Once she did, the story followed.
If this sounds like many twists and turns, some non sequiturs and nonstarters, that's because it was. Writing--creativity--is not linear. There are always surprises along the way. And isn't that why any of us do it? The joy of discovering what's next. If we all knew how it ended, we'd never pick up the pen in the first place.
Thanks to the journey it took to get here, I'd like to dedicate this story to those battling their own ghosts. Maybe try offering them a cup of tea.
Interesting! Thanks, L.D.! Be sure to check out "Ms. McCrae's Metaphysical Cleaning Agency" and the rest of the May 2026 stories!
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