Post 44 of 92

What's changed?  It seems I'm having another crack at writing a book.  That writers group has tickled something into life again.   I used to want to be a writer and for years I wrote and wrote and wrote so that it was as much a part of me as breathing - but always, save for the two book attempts, only and forever journaling.  Keeping a daily journal kept me sane at times when I made a lot of bad choices.  Not sure how I would've coped if I hadn't been writing things out every day. 

As for writing?  When I was with the writer, that particularly disastrous relationship, I tried to write for publication.  Old dried stick writing.  Bloody awful.  Yet my love for making things that weren't there before never died - still do that with art but writing?  I'm not original or intelligent enough to do more than cover the same ground, awkwardly, that others have done.  I used to be able to think about things more deeply than I do now.  I don't read my old journals for that reason (and for the fact that they stink like mildew -shut away in that trunk as they are).

Yet here I am again several thousand words into another world that started with the words, 'the buildings were tall'.  Not a very prepossessing phrase to start a book with but there you go.

Have spent an inordinate amount of time trying and discarding writing software.  Notepad doesn't cut it.  Used yWriter before and remember why I hated it.  After trying it again thought I might check out the reviews.  One reviewer called it 'intutive'.  His intuition must be very well developed!  Write Monkey was another that I used before.  Know I'm not IT savvy but surely directions followed should elicit a successful outcome.  Used Office Libre for awhile but it's really not for novels.  Discovered I couldn't (easily) find a way to start another chapter which started me on the quest for the near perfect FREE writing software.

Now have Freewriter and save for a couple of niggly bits it works well.  It's straightforward and not too weighed down with, for me, unnecessary bells and whistles.  Now if I can only get the backing up onto USB sticks sorted.  Keep getting error messages.  Have bought a brand new one today so here's hoping.  Having lost one and a half books to dead and dying computers I am a Backing Up Convert.

Making no promises to myself about the book.  If I don't finish it, fine.  If I do, wonderful!

Realize part of this is trying to make a life for myself for the future when I won't have the freedoms I enjoy now.  There will come a time when zipping around the place like I do today won't be possible.  I don't give the job Full Time Carer as much thought as perhaps I should.  I'm too busy and it will come soon enough.  Bugger.