Starting Down a New Path...

I began a new story today. For the last two years, the thrill of starting a new creative project has proven elusive. I've written a few short stories that I'm  proud of, but I've mostly been working on non-fiction.

I was hiking the Timucuan Preserve last year, and the seed for a novel that I'd like to read began to germinate in my imagination. I've thought about that tale for twelve months now. In that time, that seed sprouted into something real--at least as far as my imagination was concerned.

I envisioned the settings, the characters, the narrative arc, and the broader ideas I'd like to play around with. In short, the story was begging to be written, and today I started it.

Four pages. 1100 words.

Chapter one...

Meager beginnings, but exciting times, let me tell you.

It feels good to have finished a novel in the last few weeks (this one dating back many, many months), but it feels even better to have begun another. 

If you have a story rattling around up there, just begging for some clothes, then I hope you'll follow your instincts and take it to the tailor's shop. Dress it up and take it out on the town. 

And (not coincidentally), I'm teaching a creative writing course this fall at FSCJ for those of you that would like some college credit to go along with your creative production. CRW 2000, offered Thursday afternoons at the Deerwood Center. Sign up, and we'll make some magic happen...