Dear Diary/Blog/Journal Site: Is this thing on?

(taps microphone)

The forward/right arrow on my keyboard is slightly sticking, and it's driving me crazy. The last time I tried to clean a keyboard I killed it (using foaming glass cleaner spray might have had something to do with it) so I'm a little gun-shy on getting aggressive with it. I share this situation with you so that you understand that this annoyance isn't preventing me from what I've needed to do for a long time: write about my writing, and write about reading and writing in general.

Yes, it's practice. It's decompression. It's cathartic. Writing is -to resort to contemporary vernacular- "all of the things". Coffee is "all of the things" too, but I have to exercise caution in combining it with writing as the close proximity can create issues. And add one more excuse for not writing.

I've been bedeviled by not-writing for over half a decade (more on that later.. but maybe less would be better). Personal issues, and none of them objectively valid, are my excuse for not-writing. But they were there, nonetheless, and poured salt on the raw and fertile material of creativity. I had a small outlet through art, but nothing is catharsis for my soul like writing. Nothing.

I've started re-tooling my novel that's been in the vault for four years (working title: "The Source of Dread"), discovered it's a pretty damned good story, and am now formatting my first short story collection, The Haunted Outside. Note cards and outlining have begun for another novel, Lake of Fire. I haven't been this inspired in a long time. A writing group actually interested in growth as writers that I had the fortune to find via social media has been added to the mix.

A good mix.

And so we're here. I'm here. And I'm glad. And I have a first post to get this writing thing going again. And sincerely, I'm glad you're here, too.