Writing

[Clodfobble]

So, about six weeks ago I decided I was going to write a novel. The general desire to do so had always been in me; I used to write all the time as a teenager. And since my employer exploded last August, I haven't yet found a full-time audio gig again, so I've had lots of time in between various contract jobs to sit around the house wishing I had something productive to do. Plus, I was further encouraged by the fact that a friend of mine recently had her first book picked up for publication. (Technically two books; part of the contract stipulated a sequel, which she's writing now. The first book should be on shelves next April.) And my friend's a good writer and all, but I look at her stuff and say, "Heck, I can write that well..."

Currently, I have just shy of 40,000 words (62 pages single-spaced in Word with 1 inch margins,) which I'm told is close to the halfway point. A first-time novel is expected to be between 80,000 and 120,000 words, and you're really only allowed to get longer once you're established. For the first month I was forcing myself to write at least 1500 words a day, but now that my stepkids are here for the summer, my available time has shrunk and fragmented considerably. No more 2-hour blocks of concentration for me. I'm sure I'll get back into the swing of things in August, though, once they go back to their mom's house.

I have been warned that just like every waiter in LA is really an actor, "everyone has a manuscript" that they are trying to get published. I personally think it's more like "everyone has started a manuscript," because I just don't know that many people who can actually put that many words on paper--but I know a lot of people who write short stories. Anyone else here ever tried or thought about trying to write?