Welcome 2008

I have been blogging since September 2006 and find myself writing less than I wanted to. At first, I thought it was because I was running out of things to write. Not true. It is because I am not searching inside deep enough for subjects to write. Of course, my main subject is the writing life. But, life does not revolve around writing, writing is simply an essential part of my life like breathing, eating and sleeping.

I am working on the second draft of my novel. Many things have changed, including the title. The interesting experience for me was that change in my focus began to take place somewhere half way through. I believe this is when the characters began to write their story and I became nothing more than a messenger.

I also submitted my short story, Goodbye, Jack, to Ellery Queen. A few weeks ago, it was rejected by one magazine with a note to submit to a crime magazine. That was one of the best rejections I received! However, my lesson is to study the magazines before submitting. The local library is invaluable for magazine research. If the library does not carry a certain magazine, sometimes specialty magazine shops do. A back copy can also be ordered from the magazine publisher.

Life here has been slow for the last three or so weeks. The cold/flu/whatever-it-is had been simmering in my system until it hit full force about a week ago. I have not been able to exercise for five days. Boy, do I miss my running! But, I know it’s important to take care of myself and get better. In fact, tomorrow is a holiday and I plan on staying inside and getting myself well so that I can exercise on Tuesday or Wednesday.

My advice for this “bug” going around- take good care of yourself. Do not get the silly idea you are going to beat it and continue to overdo life. Take a rest, drink plenty of water and eat right. Sleep as much as you can. This bug is aggressive and nasty!

Finally, my goal this year is to write more on my blog, to write more short stories and submit and to bring my novel to completion and to find an agent. Lots of hard work, but well worth it.