Metaphors and Analogies of Maple Syrup and Writing

Had a great October weekend selling books at the United Farmers Market in Belfast and then at the Sunday Stroll in Rockland - Beautiful Maine fall weather and tons of cool people to talk to.

Among these - a lady who checked out Murder in the Maple Woods and, when asked if she was interested, said she was, but not so much as a book buyer but, rather, as a teacher. She said she used the process of making syrup as a metaphor for writing. Metaphors and analogies of maple syrup and writing? I loved it! Her name was Karin Podschun. I hope this finds her some day!

Anyway - we had a great chat. She sees the collection of raw maple sap and its slow

transformation into a sweet finished product as a model for making a book from gathered ideas. So we dug a little deeper.

First, you have to gather your material. You start with the process of setting up the

equipment - getting ready to collect and store the ideas - or do I mean sap? Filling the storage tanks is an uncertain process. On the right day under the right conditions, sap pours into the tanks in unmanageable floods, but in frozen weather everything shuts down and you are left wondering if, and when, the run will recover. But over time, and with a lot of work, the tanks are full and ready for processing.

Turning sap into syrup is a careful business. It starts with initial the filtering-out of

unwanted flotsam and moves to the first rough draft - or the reverse osmosis process, which

generates a concentrated product ready for finishing. Karin did not know about this stage in

large-capacity syrup operations, and agreed that it fit perfectly into her metaphor (unless that

has, by now, become an analogy).

From initial concentration to the boiler and the creation of the finished product. Careful

checking is needed along the way to avoid over-heating and spoiling. After several tests and

tastings the syrup is done, but is subjected to one more refinement - the final editing - pressed through filters to remove all impurities before it is bottled and offered for consumption.

As I write this, I find one more piece to the picture. Maple syrup is presented in a range

of grades, and arguments rage over which is best. I maintain that it is all a matter of personal

taste - and of finding the product that suits the situation. Light ‘Golden’ syrup might be perfect

for one mood, whereas another occasion, or preference, may call for the ‘Very Dark’.

I am content to generate a light product - easy-read whodunits for everyday use. I

collect and process the material with care, and subject it to regular review and filtering before it is packaged and released, but I gladly leave the extra dark stuff for people who want to sink their teeth into something heavier.