I See Your Madness and Raise You My Glass

If you're reading this, chances are you fancy yourself a writer. (If you aren't reading this, I can call you a cactus-faced fish fingers and custard eater and you'd never know.) You probably loved books as a kid and fell into writing because of your boundless imagination, after which the art of creating worlds and characters grabbed you by the soul and refused to relinquish you. As someone who's been writing fiction and poetry for over a decade, I greet you as a comrade.

Writing is a highly rewarding pursuit, but it's also frustrating, draining and ultimately lonely. As word artists, we authors transcribe the canter, breath, pulse and spirit of the world around us into pieces of our imaginations and souls that the rest of society calls "stories." The act of writing is intensely personal and beautiful as we choose to share our intimate labors with the potentially critical and frightening outside world. Family and friends don't quite understand our introspection, quirkiness or craziness, which isolates us even more. Fortunately, however, there are people out there who are just as insane as we are: other writers.

Let's face it, folks: we need each other for sanity's sake. Who else but another writer could say, "Oh my gosh, I read my drafts in a British accent, too!" without being sarcastic? Or congratulate someone for writing a paragraph in two hours? Only a writer understands a writer. When we meet up to discuss our field, we laugh and commiserate.

And that's the purpose of this blog. It's a virtual support group. For me. And you, I guess, since you've got that look on your face.

Before we get to the laughing and commiserating, there are a few things you should know about me.

1. I like pie.
2. I make references to TV shows and movies all the time.
3. I've already made two references. If you can name them, you get awesome points.
4. Awesome points are highly collectible and used as currency in many parallel universes.
5. Actual value of awesome points varies depending upon inflation and points are non-transferable. Sorry.

But seriously.

1. I write mostly fantasy, but I've dabbled in young adult fiction, science fiction, non-fiction and historical fiction.
2. I also write poetry and music.
3. I'm currently working on a sequel to my first novel (unpublished, but maybe one day...) as well as a new novella concept. Part of the reason I started this blog was to force myself to write more consistently. My rationale is that you lot will comment on my witty and relevant posts about the writing process and therefore inspire me to slog through the writer's block. Which reminds me...
4. I won't be posting portions of my works-in-progress. This blog is about writing, not about showcasing my stuff. I generally don't let people read unfinished drafts, anyway. And finally...
5. Agree with something I say? Have something to add? Advice to give? Leave me a comment! This blog's supposed to be interactive.

Welcome to the insanity that is my mind. I'll leave you with a quote I think sums up what it means to be a writer:

"I reject your reality and substitute my own."
- Adam Savage