In my little Webnote box on Netvibes (my startup page, and the best thing to happen to me since Firefox), I have a memo about a possible topic for blog content. It says this:

*Writing surroundings, writing times; thought I was an evening, solitary writer. I seem to be more of a morning public writer.

Yet here I am at roughly 1:30AM, alone in my room, designing the herald of Dajobas. (As per the Sinister Adventures challenge, which I mentioned in an earlier post.) And no, that’s not a euphemism for something else.

I’ve been concentrating effort on trying to be a writer for long enough to know that just when you think you’ve established a ground rule for yourself, it will be broken - but even this surprised me. I also usually tell myself I don’t like writing with unfamiliar tools, be it a pen I’m unfamiliar with, a pencil I don’t like, or (FSM forbid), a computer I dislike. Yet here I am on my new PC, Dantalion, with unfamiliar keyboard and software galore. The pros and cons of a Mac vs a PC from a writing POV will likely be the topic of another post, but for now suffice it to say that I was considering my iBook to be my prime writer’s companion.

Being struck with totally unexpected inspiration made me pause and think. How many times have I - and perhaps other writers out there - forged concepts of ideal writing habits which really don’t exist? Have we perhaps blocked out moments of inspiration because of rigorous habit? Or, is habit all that finally gets novels written?

It’s hard to tell what set me off tonight, though I think it might have been my closer look at the NSI playWRITE competition’s guidelines (which I also linked to earlier). I was going on the assumption that you had to have a full module to pitch, but it looks more like you’re pitching yourself, and your talents. Perhaps naively, this worries me less!

Or perhaps it was the beer. A San Franciscan Anchor Steam, for the curious.

With full verve and vigor, onwards I charge!

Today’s writing accomplishment (so far): 1500-odd words on an essay. Oh boy!

Back to Dajobas’ herald.

[Music] The Strike of a Blade - Hitoshi Sakimoto - Final Fantasy XII OST