The helpful people at WordPress sent me a lovely note this week informing me that I’ve been at this whole blogging business for four years now. Wow, that’s a long time to be beating at the same drum, especially for me. I guess that’s what happens when you have a dream that you don’t want to give up on. Four years ago I decided that I would write a book, and well, I’m still writing it. Part of writing a book these days includes vast amounts of time wasted, err, spent doing the social media thing. If it weren’t for that I wouldn’t be here.
This blog has published 386 posts that each average 400 words, which gives us around 154,400 words total. That’s not counting the 20 or so draft posts that never will see the light of day. To put things into perspective, that’s just 10,000 words, or roughly 40 pages, shy of the length of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. My own novel, which I WILL finish this year, is going to end up in the 100,000 – 110,000 word range.
Some would say that I have my priorities all mixed up, that I should put all my energy into the novel and with whatever is left do the blog thing and all the other whatnot. At this stage in the game they are probably right, I should be spending more time writing the novel and not blogging. The thing is, I like blogging, if anything for the instant gratification factor. In the beginning I needed the blog. I needed deadlines and being forced to create finished product to present to the world. Back then, I obsessed with each post, worrying about grammar and content and just how badly I was screwing up. That worry made me double check every little thing, making sure everything done right. It’s amazing what you can learn when you feel the laser-like scrutiny of the world peeking over your shoulder.
There isn’t really a right either – HA! The longer you write the more flex you learn the rules have. It’s like the pirates code, it’s “more what you’d call ‘guidelines’ than actual rules.” 
No, I needed that time to teach myself all about the craft of writing, and boy what an education. I’ve made every mistake a writer can make with drafting a novel, and I’ve spent hours and hours agonizing over my work to fix them. Yes, it’s cost me time, lots of time. And wouldn’t spend that time any other way. Some lessons have to be learned the hard way, and for me (as stubborn as I am) that’s most of them.
I’m thrilled to have made it this far, here’s to another year!
My Literary Quest 
wow we have steady heavy snow here in Provo
And we are glad you persisted
Wow, thanks – it’s meeting fellow artists like you that make blogging truly a delight.
Let’s not forget that you have two blogs!
I think about that as well. I’ve written enough blog posts to fill well moe than a novel, though that same word count in fiction would have cost me quite a bit more time with my obsessive rewriting.
I was going to add the moves and kids and various whatnot that also happened, but I thought that might be a bit of a drag to read.
If it weren’t for the fixing and tinkering I would have finished this book ages ago! I guess that’s what I get for starting out as a discovery writer and not working from an outline!
Well keep at it. I hope your novel is getting close to completion.
Thanks Karen! I’m close enough now that I can see the end in sight and what it’s going to take to get there.
Wow, you’ve been blogging for four years? I’m impressed with your determination. I’ve been at it for six months, and already feel myself starting to slip. I still remember how beautiful your excerpts from your book were at writing group. Good luck with it.
Ah shucks… you’re so sweet! I can’t really count all four years, there was a period where I didn’t post for over 6 months after my third was born. Then there are the months I take off to do NaNoWriMo.