progress!

Well, I've jumped ahead with my writing, though I have a LONG way to go to hit my mark. Still, I'm rather pleased that I've gotten this far. Truly! And I am now ranked 49 of 167 would-be novelists. Woohoo!

One thing I'm definitely learning: I'm not cut out to be a novelist. Nope. Short stores, I think I'm your girl. But the last book I wrote was my dissertation for my doctorate and that took a couple of years to complete. I even had about fifty graphs in it, so that cut down on some of the writing. (You know, "a picture is worth a thousand words" and all that, though making the picture can take about as long as writing the words would have.) Writing that book taught me that I didn't want any more doctorates!

Writing this book is teaching me that I may not quite be ready to let my freak flag fly in this direction. I would certainly have to use a pseudonym, because if any of this material made it to print, everyone would wonder what kind of kinko I am. I guess I spent too much time in the Navy. Or maybe I've read too many of "those" magazines. Or maybe I should blame it on the a-a-a-a-alcohol, as Jamie Foxx would say (though I have liquor of any kind - except virtual on facebook! - rather infrequently these days). Or maybe, just maybe, it goes back to me not being wired right.

I've read interviews over the years of folks who act in roles that are contrary to their character. Carroll O'Connor was one of the most educated, liberal, laid-back, accepting people on the planet, EXCEPT in his role as Archie Bunker, racist bigot extraordinaire on "All In The Family." For eight years, he let his alter ego loose upon the tv screen, to much acclaim. Then there's Robin Williams, a comedian who is left of center and off the charts, effortlessly letting loose his wit in whatever venue he finds himself. EXCEPT when he's Walter Finch or Sy Parrish, the sociopaths in "Insomnia" and "One Hour Photo", respectively. Talk about creeps! he completely let his dark side come out to play.

So, maybe that accounts for the words that flow from my fingertips when a "novel" is being written. Hey, it's all fiction, right? Fiction is defined as "works of imaginative narration, especially in prose form." Imagination is "forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses." And fiction is just a milder word for fantasy, is it not? Why not make it sexual fantasy as well as romantic fantasy and dramatic fantasy? Why not, indeed? My writings are simply imagination gone wild, much like college kids on spring break: fairly harmless, but don't let the family know the details of your exploits!