It is now 8:00AM and breakfast was had after writing “First Blog is a Nice Early Morning Rant” and “The Origin of Buck Bloom.” This will be my third and final blog entry written for the day. The podcast* I listened to for breakfast is still playing in the background. My fresh morning momentum is starting to fad. But this is needed, I need to write this.

As admitted in “First Blog is a Nice Early Morning Rant”, I have been writing consistently since January 5, 2016. Now, consistently is a loaded word. There have been days I have not done any writing at all. Maybe for personal reasons, lack of motivation, or simply get distracted by a chronophage. I know this because I keep a daily journal on my writing.

It's a very simple format used in Excel, each column labeled as such:

[Date][Writing Project Title][Current Word Count][Current Page Count][Notes on the day]

Each column is pretty self explanatory. “Notes on the day” entities are if I worked all that day or had been away from the keyboard for one reason or another. Even then, I was ambitious enough to still write. If not for this writing journal, I would never remember when I last wrote and motivate myself after a long stretch of the dreaded “No Writing” to actually, well, write. And in the past, I would not let a long stretch last for a day, two, maybe three at most.

This year, 2024, has been a drag for many reasons. Personally, I have noticed my writing has been, to put it mildly, not as frequent as it used to be. 2024 has been a wasteland of blanks in the important columns and a noticeable plethora of “No Writing” in the [Notes].

My most favorite hobby has been neglected lately. I reflect on the year and a few personal things could be contributors. But I think the biggest one of all is the lack of focus and motivation. Writing is an important hobby of mine and I’ve kept it very personal.

Only one other person has been reading my work and I thank my good friend for his time. You know who you are. Best Alpha Reader ever!

Anyway, I have been chasing that white rabbit of a new writing project that I could truly sink my teeth into. And keep chewing on for days, weeks, maybe longer. But no amount of internal interest could ensure my motivation stays on course. Which is why I have decided to include a “Stories” page on my website.

I like to create stories that are fun and funny. So much fun and funny that I forget that maybe sharing them could be a thing. I just write for the sake of writing. But if I were to create, say, a serialized story with each chapter appearing on my blog, then it would be more than just for fun. I would also finally be sharing that fun with others.

It is an ambitious idea. One that I’m sure others have done before, with mixed results. I have a plan on how to go about sharing these serialized stories. I even type this rant right now thinking this could be the most awesome idea ever or be a beautiful disaster.

One thing I have to do is motivate myself to create new stories. I have written a lot of things but I really want 2024 to not end with a sea of “No Writing.” As of writing this blog entry, I have written four ideas for serialized stories. One in particular has been making me laugh just thinking about it. I am tempted to write it and share it with others here on the site.

So that is the purpose and hope of the “Stories” page. To be a constant motivator for me to write again. I will admit, writing the last three entries for my blog has been amazing. I have missed writing so much that I wondered why I let so many [Date] slip by blank. I’m hoping today marks a new beginning and love for the art of writing!

Thank you for reading. If you have come this far and would like to read more of my journey as it unfolds, please subscribe to my newsletter. And if I have finally gotten around to making those social media pages too, follow me on those as well.

Stay safe out there in this mad, mad, mad world,

Buck, 10/11/24

P.S. It is almost 9:00AM and it’s walking time! Get those steps in!

*shout outs to Miskatonic University Podcast