It has been about three years since I have done any serious blogging. When I noticed that I had shared on three opinionated posts on Facebook recently I decided that it is time for be to return to blogging. Hopefully this will be a way for me to express myself and prepare myself for a professional writing gig one day. I have been attempting to read a book for roughly a year and a half now called: Kiss Ass Creativity. Now most of this just has to do with the fact that I've wanted to the first exercises I saw in the book and I never was willing to make the time. Well I am willing to make time right now while I'm away. Besides I find myself totally doing a ton of work on other writing so I figured that I should knock out this exercise while I'm feeling it. Pretty much the book asked for you to dream of your greatest creative success. Seeing as I didn't want to dream of the big one, publishing a book I chose something that is definitely hard for me to do: Write a complete draft of a novel. Now you might be saying, "Jayrod, you've been writing for years now. We've had to listen to you talk about your damned story for the past 16 to 18 years. And you haven't finished a draft yet? You're not going to finish anything." And it is true. I've been talking so long that I've neglected the most important part of writing... writing! 

I've done tons to my story over the years and it has matured and changed and I've become a better writer for it, but I haven't taken the plunge and done it yet. Well all of that is coming to an end. This November I am going to do a project called NaNoWriMo. It is better known as National Novel Writing Month. During that month you spend your free time getting through a draft of a story of at least 50,000 words. (I already know that the first novel I want to write will likely be closer to 300,000 words when all is said and done.) So I have decided to take up the gauntlet and do it. During this month you are likely to hear me talking about writing a lot. It will consume my thoughts, but I realize most of you won't really want to hear about it. So I figure the best way to deal with it is to share my feelings about it here where if you want to read and enjoy my journey with me you can, and if not oh well. The exercise asks us to experience the moment of completion. I cannot think of being more relieved, more satisfied, or more thankful than to actually finish a draft now. It would be wonderful. It would mean that I overcame my own failings of rewriting constantly, writing inconsistently, and worst of all being afraid to express myself fully. I would have dealt with my wife not being fully engaged in my work, finding people to support me in the draft, and caring more about me than all the other people who make demands on my time. I would be able to say I finished something and have something to really show everyone that I'm serious about my work. So really this is the concrete step in the foundation of succeeding this upcoming month at my draft. I believe I can put down 50,000 words in a month. I believe even more that I can make this not simply an exercise, but a habit in my life. I believe most of all that as I make this transition from someone who writes to a writer that I'll find support. Friends will cheer me on, my wife will believe that this is more than a passing fancy, and I'll begin to really believe in myself. Well here's to the lives of the characters I hope people will love, hate, and read about. To creation and beyond!