Challenge

There are a lot of wonderful things about setting challenges and goals. For me, it's a way to grow and learn. It doesn't have to be about a prize, but the challenge itself has to mean something.

As a writer, I like to write every day. As a person with responsibilities, there are a lot of things that can get in the way of even a simple goal like that. Then it depends on what you count as writing - does a blog count? does an article work toward the quota? Do you make exceptions because family obligations dragged you out of town?

I'm a fiction writer. Since that is my goal, I've been pushing hard to be brainstorming about fiction or writing fiction every day. I do not count blogs, which means I don't always post something here though I would like to fill it with random ideas. Or not so random.

So this month's challenge is to prepare to write a short story every day. I haven't decided if I'm going to wait until November to write them or what, but I'm setting them down in pieces to make myself think about it. I'm working on character, plot, theme, setting, and a couple other things. And yes, most if not all of them will be in the erotica genre.

I love the writing energy that comes with NaNoWriMo and so many participants flood the air with their creativity and enthusiasm. I'm not out to write a novel just yet, though it isn't impossible, but this year I'd love to get a bunch of short stories out and possibly ready to get submitted to magazines and such.

There are 31 days this month, and I brainstormed about 90 ideas to try to get me there. Some are fleshed out more than others from years of gleaning little bits here and there. Others are a word or two that means something to me about how things will change or progress. If I start with 90 ideas (and if anyone wants to run something else by me, I wouldn't mind inspiration though I'm not making guarantees), I should easily be able to end up with a short story every day.

For today I'm set. I have a story in mind. It's not written yet, but I have enough details to mark out the things I want to say. Tomorrow will bring something else, I hope. Indulging my creativity in the past has always brought more connections my way, so I'll keep you posted on my journey. Thanks for reading.

The other random thought in my head is I need an alpha reader. Yeah, beta and/or gamma would also be wonderful, but somewhere I need to cultivate that one first person who reads everything I write and knows enough about writing - generally and erotica specifically - to give me feedback.