Happy New Year - Recapturing the joy

The end of a year usually leaves me contemplative. And this year is no exception. Recessions, book publishing in crisis, people worried for their jobs, their futures, their writing careers, these are what come to mind when I think back on 2009.

Not a great legacy for a year.

But for me what I want from 2010, is a complete and total return to the joy I once got from watching movies, tv, reading a great book. This year I am going to turn my inner critic off, because I want to watch a movie and experience the sheer rush of exhileration that I got from watching Jaws, or Raiders, for the first time.

As writers we teach ourselves to be critical. How else do we get better, but there has to be way to turn it off. I used to love certain authors, certain books, and re-read them all the time. I can still read the books I loved before I started writing, but rarely feel that way about any I've read since. (I appreciate the artistry and the effort but rarely do I reread a book anymore), and I will recapture that this year. And if I'm lucky, Judith McNaught will publish something magnificent this year.
(Judith, no stress or anything)

And this year, I'm writing just for the joy. I'm writing stories and characters, simply because they fascinate me.

Not the fastest route to publication, but the one that gives me the most joy.

And much more drunk writer talk.

Hello 2010