More than words

March 2, 2016March 2, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 57 Comments

Yesterday, my friend Whitney who blogs about the huge renovation she and her husband are doing to their house, posted some before and after photos. She’s been blogging since August and I commented on how much had changed in that time. She responded by asking me if I knew how many words I’d written in that same period of time. Whitney and I met right at the beginning of both of our journeys. Honestly, I’ve never thought about it but she made me curious and reflective.

I started this blog very tentatively back in 2014. I posted a non-fiction piece about a trip to Ireland. I repeated a story a tour guide had told me about fairy trees. There’s just something about that place. It inspires the poet and the dreamer for sure.

Next, I wrote and posted three fairy tales set in the far, hazy past. Then nothing for a while — months, in fact. But then at the end of June 2015, I published my first novel. It was time to get serious. This blog was to be my author platform, my doorway into a community of other creators and poets and dreamers.

Since August 2015, I have written Second Chances (working title), the fourth book in my novel series at 91,853 words and started the fifth, which has a few chapters complete totaling 6,058 words. I’ve also written a ten part series called Diary of a New Writer which totals 8,118 words. My ongoing fictional piece Here Lies a Soldier has run up to 7,368 words so far. My short stories based on songs add up to another 13,451 words. The Year of Drinking Adventurously has yielded another 4,150 words. And all the other blog posts, poems, limericks and so forth add up to 27,314 words. For a grand total of 158,312 words in 7 months time.

Does that seem like a lot? It isn’t really. On average it works out to 754 words a day. For those of you who have participated in NaNoWriMo, you’d need more than twice that many words per day to complete the challenge. Obviously, I’m not trying to keep to a schedule as rigorous as that, but I am trying to be a consistent and productive writer. I return once again to the important role that discipline plays in successful writing. Without going back into exhaustive detail about it, I’ll just say that having a schedule –one that is practical and fits into your life comfortably, is key. When you figure out that schedule, stick to it.

I love to write, it brings me a lot of joy. But it’s more than words. I would go so far as to say that it’s been therapeutic. There are things I can write about in fiction that I’d be reluctant to talk about otherwise. And this community I’ve found? Absolutely priceless. I love you guys!

How about it, writers and bloggers? Have you ever counted up your words? And what do you love most about blogging?

Yo, it’s Philly.

February 23, 2016February 23, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 28 Comments

Week 8 in The Year of Drinking Adventurously!

Rye beer is here. Before you get all up in my face about Thomas Jefferson being from Virginia, let me explain. Yards Brewing Company is a local Philadelphia microbrewery with a collection of beers called “Ales of the Revolution” which (supposedly) follow the tradtional recipes created by the Founding Fathers – Thomas Jefferson being one. The brewmaster at Yards worked with along Philadelphia’s famous City Tavern, which dates from pre-Revolutionary times, to come up with the recipe for Thomas Jefferson’s Tavern Ale. It’s a golden ale, crafted with rye as one of its malted grains.

51fffcpqPZL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_ According to Jeff’s book: “… it was fairly common for brewers to supplement barley malt and other grains with rye during colonial times. It was more about what was available to them at the time, than it was about a particular flavor profile they were pursuing.”

If old Tommy’s recipe has been authentically reproduced, then this is a really great ale. And at 8% alcohol, it’s a butt kicker! The brewmaster recommends pairing the tavern ale with a rich, fatty meat like roast duck. I drank mine with “locally sourced” potato chips. I found the pairing to be quite enchanting. The saltiness of the chips was subtly complimented by the liquidity of the ale. That tangy rye flavor added a little zing to the otherwise bland potato. And chips are fatty, right? It’s kind of like roast duck, in that sense.

I am disappointed that Yards doesn’t give John Adams some love. He is my favorite Founding Father. Mostly because of David McCullough’s book “John Adams” and the HBO miniseries it spawned. John Adams and his wife, Abigail, were the nation’s first power couple.

Abby was a force in her own right – my kind of lady! The letters they wrote to each other are eloquent, intelligent and absolutely beautiful. They called each other “my dearest friend” which I find oddly romantic. I cried at the end of the book when Abigail died. Oops – spoilers!

Oh well, perhaps Adams wasn’t the party animal Jefferson, Franklin and Washington were. But since he “paired” so well with Jefferson, perhaps we could at least name a roast duck dish for him.

Don’t forget to stop by and see what Lula drank this week!

Feeling a little chili

February 16, 2016February 16, 2016 ~ Meg ~ 25 Comments

Week 7 of the Year of Drinking Adventurously!

So beer! Yay! We have left the realm of exotic potent potables and returned to a place I am familiar with – the land of beer! You have no idea how excited I am! Or maybe you do, I haven’t ended a sentence with anything but an exclamation point so far!

The first entry in the brew department is Chili Pepper beer, a subgenre of the micro- or craft brew movement. According to Jeff’s book: 51fffcpqPZL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_

Nothing pairs better with spicy food, than a chili pepper beer. In fact, it leaves wine in the dust, much to the chagrin of wine snobs. I went on a mission to find Left Hand Brewing Company’s Fade to Black Porter. My pals at North Penn Beverage had it in stock! Listen to the description: Dried ancho, smoked Serrano, and brown chipotle peppers, infused in a dark mahogany, medium bodied porter. The resulting brew balances the vegetal, peppery heat with a subtle smokiness, making it a good companion for rich stews of assorted wild game. It also kind of makes me want to go hunting. (Kidding!)

Mr. Sorick wearing shades so he can’t be identified in a line-up.

Alas, Harry, my situationally practical husband, pointed out that buying an expensive (ish) case of porter that only I would drink (because he is lame!), when we already have 2 full kegs of home brew and a case of Great Lakes Brewing Company’s Edmund Fitzgerald (which is also a porter), is kind of silly.

“But it’s for my blog!” I whined. “And it sounds so good!”

“Go look for it at Wegman’s,” he replied with a long-suffering sigh. “At least, you can buy just a six-pack.”

“Fine,” I grumbled. “No squirrel and turnip stew for you.”

But of course Wegman’s didn’t have the Fade to Black. Grr. So what I came home with was Tommyknocker Green Chile Lager pictured in the header. And it was not at all what I wanted. Now, I’m not going to bash the Tommyknocker* (cough!) because beneath the green chile flavor was a nice crisp lager. I would absolutely consider trying some of the other varieties they brew. They seem like a pretty cool little brewery. Of course, not one to waste beer, I will find a way to use the Green Chile Lager. It might actually make a good base for a marinade or be incorporated into an actual batch of chili. Nevertheless, now I really need that Fade to Black Porter! I considered venturing out in the snowstorm for it, but better judgement prevailed. Then again, if I’d ended up in a ditch, at least Harry would have to acknowledge that it’s never practical to settle for something you don’t really want.

Don’t forget to check in with Lula and see what she drank this week!

*A little folklore from the side of the bottle: “Tommyknockers slipped into the mining camps of Idaho Springs in the 1800s with the discovery of gold in our mountains and streams. Those mischievous elves, though hardly ever seen, were often heard singing and working. They guided many fortunate miners from harm’s way and to the gold they sought.”