APRIL 14, 2020 – Today marks the one-year anniversary of my blog. This is my 337th posting—so far. (The “missing” entries were from a two-week wedding sojourn in Portugal last June and another fortnight wedding extravaganza (same matrimonial couple) stateside in August.)
At 500-words per post, the total wordage piles up to 168,500 (not counting titles). Bonus land: over 300 “illustrations.”
At this juncture, I thought my loyal followers would find some amusement in a recently conducted self-interview . . .
ME ONE: Congratulations on your blog, such as it is.
ME TOO: Why, thank you . . . er, uh, I think.
ME ONE: The fact that you’ve persisted in this venture suggests that it’s brought reward but also that you’re a little OCD.
ME TOO: As to the reward, I can attest affirmatively and with conviction. As to the OCD part—I also affirm, mostly to inoculate myself against the charge: the salient feature of almost every psychiatric and psychological order is denial on the part of the person so afflicted.
ME ONE: I’ll leave that where you put it.
ME TOO: That’s probably just as well.
ME ONE: Moving on . . . Tell a little about your process—how, for example, you decide on a topic.
ME TOO: A key benefit of writing daily is that it heightens my awareness. Just as a photographer is always on the lookout for a good picture, I’m always on the hunt for a good subject. This hunting instinct kicks in whenever I’m interacting with other people, apprehending the news, reading a book, out viewing the world and its wonders, gazing skyward at night and beholding the vastness of our tiny corner of infinity. In short, in every conscious moment I’m on the lookout for an idea, a concept, an experience, a memory to write about.
ME ONE: Do you have a dedicated writing time?
ME TOO: Always first thing in the morning after breakfast. Before the Covid-19 stay-in-place order, I’d often take a crack at a subject the evening before posting. Then, after sleeping on it, I’d polish it off first thing the next morning and post. For the past month, however, with a little more time on my hands, I’ve been starting and completing each post in one session.
ME ONE: What’s the biggest challenge of maintaining a daily blog?
ME TOO: Probably the biggest one is proof-reading. Given the time it takes to assemble thoughts into cogent order, then condense them to 500 words, I inevitably run into . . . the clock. As the buzzer goes off, I have to come up quickly with a title and decide on an image. Before long, the phone rings, an urgent email demands attention, or my daily “to-do” list reminders interfere. Not so long ago, I’d have to catch a bus. So, almost every day, to make one “deadline” or another, I wind up posting and dashing. Later, I’ll try to go back and proof more thoroughly. Nearly always I’ll find a typo or worse, clumsy construction. I cringe to think how much more editing is required.
ME ONE: Speaking of the clock . . . Again, congratulations!
ME TOO: Thanks!
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© 2020 by Eric Nilsson
