October 15, 2012 Day 1

I can't believe that I get to be a writer!  Who knew!  I have done so many other things with my life.  I've been a computer scientist, a math tutor, and far and away most importantly, a mother of five.  But always, always I have come back to writing.  Even when I was heavily into computers, it was still there.  I was preparing to teach a class on data bases and spreadsheets.  As I prepared a somewhat creative exercise for the students my boss asked, "Have you ever considered writing satire?"

I suppose I always just thought of it as a hobby, not something that I could share with others.  I have published a couple of articles in the past and made a few attempts at publishing, but still, it was always a hobby.  "What changed?" you may ask.  Well, my youngest is in school full time.  I have time to have a second career.  I explored the typical avenues, but in the end none of them really panned out like I would have liked.  My husband suggested I go the writing route.  I tried to keep a straight face while he was talking, but inside I was jumping up and down like a little kid!

So, here I am, day 1.  It's not really day one on writing, after all I would have to go back to elementary school for that, to my early fanciful stories.  (I think my first was about a little, little girl that lived in a rose.)  And this isn't day one of my current writing adventures.  I started a book last year that I am trying to get published as we speak.  It isn't even the first day I started taking this seriously.

Okay, so what is it?  It's the first day of my new routine.  I realized I can't work at home, too many distractions.  So, I decided that every morning I would head off to the library, computer in tow, to have several uninterrupted hours all to myself.

I've only been here a short time and it is already eye-opening.  The library opens at 9 am.  I needed to stop by my son's school for some PTA business, so I arrived at about 9:10.  The parking lot was already quite full!  Who would have thought?  It is a great library, but still, who knew?  I wonder what they are all up to?  Hmmm . . . good writing fodder.

I happen to live in Cuyahoga county Ohio, home to one of the country's very best library systems.  And the branch I visit has been recently remodeled.  It has wonderful nooks and crannies that are perfect for hiding away for reading or writing in peace.  What's even better is that I am sitting by a wall of windows looking out on the beautiful fall foliage.  New England may get all the glory for fall leaves, but it couldn't be any better than what I see outside my window.

Could there be a better setting for starting my new, crazy adventure?  We'll see . . .