This blog’s been quiet. I’m just writing. It’s fun (mostly) but doesn’t look like much. And my social media action, such as it is, has been on Twitter and Instagram. 

Instagram has been more fun than Twitter because I deal in words so much,  at work and at play, while with Instagram all you have to do is post a picture.

About 78 days ago now I decided to take part in a 100-day challenge I read about on a lovely blog called  This Itch of Writing. Itch, in turn, was inspired by the UK novelist Jenn Ashworth  who wrote:

Anyone can join in. Just turn up every day. One sentence counts. Opening the word document counts. Taking yourself for a walk or a nap to figure out a problem counts. Any type of writing counts. You don’t have to be published or be working toward publication.

No word count boot camp or productivity porn. If you don’t have the spoons to do this every day or you care for other people then you can change the rules so they suit you. If writing is part of your job (academic friends who are working to contract – this is for you) and you need to care for yourself and your colleagues by resisting work at weekends, then change the rules to make it work for you. If you miss a day or a week or change your mind it is okay.

Let’s be gentle and see what happens: I’m doing this because it reminds me to make writing more important than the stuff other people want me to make important. Let’s go! 2/100

That’s keeping the bar pretty low, I thought, I can do that! And so far I have — though some days have been more minimal than others. I think “it reminds me to make writing more important than the stuff other people want me to make important” is a beautiful phrase that cannot be said, or thought, enough.

What’s funny about #100daysofwriting, Instagram version, is that I mainly post pictures of my computer. Sometimes, to shake things up and reflect the reality of how I write, I post pictures of my notebook! Every now and then there’s one from an exotic setting like the Keighley & Worth Valley railway or the New York City subway.

So, wait, what about the sale? The Kindle version of THE JANE AUSTEN PROJECT is $1.99, down from its usual $9.99 for am I not sure how long. So if you’ve been thinking about chancing it, this is your moment.

Saturday at 7:30 p.m. I’ll be in the Barnes and Noble in Paramus at the kind invitation of the  Science Fiction Association of Bergen County, talking about my book and probably other and equally interesting  things, like science fiction and novel-writing. If you find yourself in Paramus, or in the vicinity, do stop in….