Why, Hello There!

a.k.a. Writing During Rona

Hey, how are you? I hope you’re safe and well.

It’s certainly been what the kids these days are calling “a hot minute” since I’ve posted. It’s been pretty much about four years since my last one. Yikes. And with what’s happening in the US on Tuesday, you’d think dirty, petty politics and ongoing social unrest are what kept me away. Alas, I’m Canadian. However, I’ve never been more engaged in election coverage until now. It’s unreal how certain people like that exist outside of books, television, and film. I can certainly see why the writers at SNL are more relaxed these days. They’ve got dumpster fires full of writing fodder. Most of the time, the jokes write themselves.

Anyhoo, what kept me away is that life happened and happened hard. Health and life issues might or might not appear in a future post. For now, I’d rather talk about what I plan on doing going forward.

You’d think that with being in quarantine, I’d have more time on my hands to write, but so many factors, both external and internal, can make it difficult to tap into the creative mojo. You know what I’m talking about, right? Once you get an inkling for a story, sometimes you can’t rest until everything’s out on the page or computer screen. The opposite extreme is the creative black hole. Took me a while to find my way back and it was no bueno.

So, what’s a girl under self-renovation, self-reflection, and the eternal quest for finding her place on this spinning rock to do?

NaNoWriMo 2020. Goals, some kind of routine, accountability, and a community of other creative masochists (lol) combine to create a delicious recipe that will help kick into high gear the smattering of writing I’ve been trying to slog through these past several months.

It’s November 1, 2020, so this is my Hi, Hello post. The regular posting schedule will be Fridays to give a weekly update of the highs and lows of the ongoing writing journey, at least for the next month. I intend to have another post scheduled either at the end of the month or at the start of next month to do a roundup of the NaNoWriMo 2020 experience. I’ve done NaNo and Camp NaNo over the years and it’s always helped me to improve my skills, so I look forward to it. Baby steps, right? No need to jump out of the plane wondering if you took the parachute or the backpack with all your writing gear–let’s be real, both are essential.

Originally, I had a story idea I wanted to work on for a submission due in December. Upon a second reading of the guidelines, it turns out that they’re looking for short story submissions. I figure, it’s not Camp NaNo, so the word count would be too short. Then I had a bunch of other ideas that I’ve been wanting to tackle. So, in the spirit of masochism, I’ve decided to do all of them and write a collection of short stories to keep me on my toes for the writing challenge.

So, join me and let’s write through November, together. My handle there is transientsolitude, if you need a NaNo Buddy.

NOW, OVER TO YOU:

I’d like to start a dialogue with my lovely readers. Today’s question is this: What have we been loving during quarantine to keep us entertained? Books, movies, series, hobbies, boardgames? I’m curious what’s been keeping you afloat in 2020. What do we love, what can’t we stand? I’m curious to hear your recommendations and suggestions. Sound off in the comments below.