NaBloPoMo Day 1: Find your grail

Tonight my mother and I had a lovely, cultural sort of evening: We enjoyed listening to the Pittsburgh Symphony performing Mozart and Strauss, we stopped for a post-show cocktail and soaked up the downtown nighttime vibe, spotted the concert soloist and politely thanked him for a wonderful show, etc. etc. You might think that we …

A post a day keeps the doctor away

A few times today, I told people at PCPGH3 to try writing a blog post every day. It’s an interesting discipline. When I’ve blogged daily, I’ve posted some rather boring stuff, but I’ve also created more interesting and unique content. If you’re interested in trying the post-a-day practice, the perfect opportunity is just a few …

The day after: thoughts on my Month Impossible

NY – Long Island: Belmont Park – Finish Line Originally uploaded by wallyg Today, I did not have to write a massive number of words for a crappy first draft of a novel. I didn’t have to draw anything. I planned to write a blog post, but I was not required to do so. I’ve …

Month Impossible: Day Thirty, This is the end

Cold War Clock Originally uploaded by ckaiserca Ten in the morning, November 30. Fourteen hours to go, fifteen thousand words to go. I am cutting it really, really close.       UPDATE: 12:15pm: Now at 37,011 words, plus one more drawing completed. Time for lunch. Lunchtime entertainment: the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. UPDATE: 3:24pm: …

Month Impossible: Day Twenty-Nine, Tick-tick-tick

clock Originally uploaded by Poagao It’s a quarter after nine pm, the second to last night of November. Here’s what I need to finish before midnight tomorrow night: 1. Write 19,692 words and have them verified by the NaNoWriMo word count tool (allow time for the crush of others also trying to verify at the …

Month Impossible: Day Twenty-eight, Strip malls and worldwide connectedness

It is a quarter to midnight on a Wednesday night at the end of November. I’m sitting in my car, parked outside a strip mall on McKnight Road, a shopping district in the suburbs north of Pittsburgh. I’m parked here because there’s a Starbucks here. The Starbucks is closed, but that’s fine with me because …

Month Impossible: Day Twenty-seven, Murderers, animated treadmills, and yet more writing

I’ve mentioned before that "Murderers," currently playing at City Theatre on Pittsburgh’s South Side, is a terrific play and well worth your time and money, yes? The play is three monologues, each by a different actor, each beginning with the sentence, "I am a murderer." The play is by Jeffrey Hatcher, a playwright with a …

Month Impossible: Day Twenty-six, Let’s get it on

Steelers win. Worst ever Monday Night Football game, and possibly worst ever NFL game. But we won, and it counts. Starting my NaNoWriMo writing for the day … now. Yeah, it sucks. Even my mom thinks I’m not going to meet the 50K goal. But she’s kind of a pessimist. Will be drawing during breaks …