Fresh Start, Fresh Blog

There's nothing I love more than a fresh start. Okay, that's actually not true--I love a lot of things, most of which I'm sure to blabber about here at one point or another. But I do indeed love new beginnings of all sorts--new relationships, new jobs, new hair styles, even new notebooks... There's just something about the promise of a fresh, new adventure that intriques me and reels me in. That probably explains why this blog is something like my 114th, but I digress...

Those of you who know me know that I've been MIA in the writing world for the past several months in order to take care of some "lifely" business. But as that journey comes to a long awaited end, I'm more ready than ever to get back to my true passion. Erm, okay, that's not true either--I'm actually pretty damn freaked out about writing again. Honestly, I feel completely out of the loop and I'm scared to death at the prospect of having to relearn the ropes. Yes, I know writing is pretty much like riding a bike, and that's not what terrifies me really...

It's reconnecting with the writing world that has my nails chewed to a quick and the butterflies set loose in my stomach, because, let's face it, connections and networking play a huge role in writerly success. Yep, you've gotta have talent, first and foremost, but being involved and getting your name and work and reputation out there can take you a long way, too. Proving you're dedicated and serious about making a career out of writing and all that, which I admittedly haven't been that great about in the past, because, well, I wasn't that serious. I thought I was. I thought I knew what I wanted, what I had to do. Truth be told, I still don't know. But I think the fact that I now know I don't know gives me an advantage that I didn't have before. No misconceptions or denial going on here (that I know of anyhow LOL). I'm essentially starting all over, but this time I've got the advantage of falling flat on my face before on my side.

That said, the first thing I want to work on, to make sure I really make the most of things this time around, is to be honest with myself (like this) at all times. In the past, I've both cut myself way too much slack and have been my own worst critic. Yeah. How the hell does that work, right? It's true though and it's a wonder I haven't driven myself completely, totally freaking insane with all the yo-yoing. No wonder I haven't done anything productive--two steps forward and then two steps back equals no progress. That can't happen this time around and, to accomplish that, I need to recall this very post, this very paragraph, and the cold, hard reality that if I want to be published, I'm going to have to bust my ass to get there. Plain and simple. No self-coddling and irrational self-loathing allowed. It just doesn't work that way.

Now, I'm still tying up some loose ends in that "lifely" business I mentioned before, so I may or may not spend a whole lotta time here in the next couple of weeks, but, rest assured, I will be back. In the meantime, I wish you much love and warm wishes for a wonderful holiday season...