Rambles

I honestly think that I could write full-time. It would mean vast changes in the way that I live. And it would mean that I would write articles for magazines and newspapers, but it may be where I'm heading. Job searching has turned out to be futile or at least it has so far.

I already live a pretty simple lifestyle. I do eat out too much. And I would miss that. But I could adapt.

I'd need to write two books a year. I think that's doable, if I apply myself and make that my goal.

I wouldn't have health insurance, of course. But I don't have that now, and I haven't had any for years. I worry that I'm not taking care of myself as well as I should, but if you don't have the money, you don't have the money. Perhaps the government plan that's coming will eventually provide affordable insurance to everyone. Hey, that's possible, if unlikely.

The real question I have is whether I could be productive enough. If my gift for writing – such as it is – would continue to produce words that people would pay for. I feel like I'm almost past the age where I could make this type of leap of faith. It's now or never.

Admittedly, I wouldn't be thinking about this if a wonderful job had presented itself to me. Sadly enough, there's not a lot of wonderful jobs out there. Actually there's not a lot of jobs period. This comes as no surprise to anyone who watches the news. It doesn't seem to matter which political party is in power, the poor get poorer, the rich get richer. It's no wonder people stop voting; they begin to feel that it doesn't matter one way or another.

I'm sure I've done many things wrong on my job search. An excellent job searcher would have already found several jobs. I've done the best I can do for the most part. It's been discouraging, humbling, humiliating, etc.

I've also wondered about being self-employed. A friend of mine suggested that I get my real estate license. I have thought about doing that. It would be sales, of course, but I might be able to be my own boss. And surely I could please me. Or maybe not.

I would like to think the world revolves around people, but it actually revolves around money. That's a depressing commentary on our world. That doesn't mean I think that everyone is motivated by money. There are many wonderful people out there who make great sacrifices to help other people. Unfortunately, they seem to be in the minority these days.

I don't really have a point to this post in case you haven't noticed. I'm just rambling around inside my head, trying to make sense of everything, trying to figure out my next moves, trying to make a plan.

I am thinking that in 2011, next year, I may make a commitment to write 500-1000 words per day. I would give myself two weeks off for vacation and/or illness. In other words, treat writing just like a job. That means I would write between 175,500 and 351,000 words next year. That should be at least two books, maybe three. And many, many, many articles, blog posts, etc.

I'm thinking about setting up a website and inviting several of my writer friends to participate. Although this is adaptable to everything. For instance, an artist wants to do a sketch a day, a poet wants to do a poem a day, etc. It could even be adapted to non-artistic pursuits, such as physical fitness.

The only things I would ask of the participants is that they make a commitment to do something daily and that they post once a week on the website. Maybe a blog would be better. My friend Jean is much brighter with websites than I am. She's also an excellent writer. So yeah, I'll be hitting her up to be the website administrator.

What do you think of this? I'd really like your feedback. And maybe some suggestions for the name of the website. Let me know.

Have a great day!

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