Good morning, fellow readers and writers. I’m posting my progress blog this morning from my Writer’s Group in San Marcos. We’ve been talking today about the differences between writing books for publication and writing for fanfiction. Recently, I read a post on tumblr about how many readers now choose fanfiction over traditionally published books. I know that I have read more fanfiction and listened to more audiobooks in the last five years than I have read actual, whole printed books, and I would like discuss this more soon. As an author, I want to think about how techniques vary when we adapt from one audience to another and how the way we read and write is evolving.
For today, though, I’m simply posting about my reading, writing, and weight loss progress.
First things first, I finished reading Hunger, by Roxane Gay. I know I’ve said it before, but I truly feel every person needs to read this book. Gay puts so much of herself into her narrative, offering insight into how much we hunger for things, and how grievously we punish ourselves over those desires. Reading this book helped me reach back into my own childhood hurts, to unearth the roots of my own eating issues, and to examine them without ripping them up in the process.
I’m currently reading Everything I Never Told You, by Celeste Ng. This book is fantastic. It’s hauntingly beautiful and beautifully painful. It hurts me, but with every page, I find myself inspired by Ng’s prose. She makes me want to write more and to explore the hidden stories we keep drowned inside ourselves.
Next up, I’m re-reading The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Le Guin. Last year, I read her short story The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas, which has changed me in ways I’m only beginning to understand. I last read Left Hand of Darkness when I was in college, and I think I’ve grown a lot since then. I love re-reading books after many years have passed because, with the really good ones, my understanding deepens and I’m able to take away so much more.
This week, I continued writing a new story, one that I think will be exceedingly difficult but necessary to write. I wrote 4,448 words, rough-drafting three new chapters, bringing the story’s total to five. Right now, the dominant theme is that love should never be a cage. There’s also something about the difference between people growing apart and people falling apart. So yeah… we’ll see, guys. We’ll see.
Finally, my weight loss progress, for which I’m particularly proud: After one year and one month, I officially lost twenty pounds. My weight as of Friday was 167.4, putting me 5.4 pounds from my ultimate 25-pound goal. I have focused on changing some unhealthy eating habits and food associations, plus a moderate level of exercise (40 minutes of elliptical, four times a week).
This brings us to the beginning of the second month of 2018! My hope is that you are healthy and well, and that you are finding ways to love yourself for who you are right now, today. Much love and many blessings ? More soon.