Back in Action - a Quick Report from the Front Lines

Greetings from the far side of Summer! It's been a spectacularly busy few months, and there's no sign of things slowing anytime soon. I'll have some fresh reviews and musings up in the coming weeks, but nothing can distract from the imminent arrival of November, and that of course means it's time for another NaNoWriMo!

 It would be nice to be able to say something along the lines of "Now, those of you who followed last year's effort...", but there honestly wasn't much of an effort to follow. I'd decided to enter at the very last minute, with absolutely zero preparation and barely an inkling of an idea. And while I've tinkered with Breggin's Grasp since abandoning the WriMo, the goings have been mighty slow.

This year, however, I made up my mind well in advance, and signed up as soon as the site allowed. I'll detail some of my preparations soon, but suffice it to say there have been many, including the creation of my favorite means of self-inspiration, the cover.

This year's WriMo attempt won't be Science Fiction. Much as it pains me to leave the comfort of my favorite genre, I've felt a change of literary scenery might do me some good. My summer reading list included the likes of Ernest Hemingway and Henry Miller, both of whom had a tremendous influence on me. I may not be able to fully comprehend Hemingway's Iceberg Theory as yet, and Miller's proto-Beat prose might well be some of the finest I've ever seen, but I'm confident I can manage to satisfy the urge to write in a similar vein.

All in all, I'm rather upbeat about the remainder of the year. It's been an interesting one, and I look forward to expounding upon it further in the near future. For now, I've amassed a mountain of preparatory reading, and every tick of the clock brings me that much closer to November's starting gun.