I just realized that it has been just a skosh over a year since I last posted. In my defense, last year was absolutely insane. I think that everyone who has managed to emerge from the grim tunnels of 2016 into the grand, blistering unknown of 2017 can understand what I mean.

For me in particular, a lot of stuff happened that affected the way that I write, not to mention what I write, and how I manage to find the time and energy to do it. I’m gonna see if I can’t hash out a lot of that in future posts as I attempt to bring myself back around to the ways of the blogosphere.

When blogs get volatile, is that because they are thick with blogiston?

Yup, that’s the same high-quality wordplay you can expect as ever.

So, what did I get up to in 2016? Well, here’s a bit of a list:

• Got a new job.
• Formed some new writing habits.
• Discovered a new way of outlining.
• Finished the first draft of a novel from outline to end in record time (seven months!) thanks to the previous two bullets.
• Built a BEEFY (but wildly cheap) gaming computer that has actually been written on far more than it’s been gamed on.
• Discovered that Novlr is an amazing writing platform.
• Learned that I unironically love Ninja Sex Party.
• Reveled in the magic of mechanical keyboards.
• Bought a house (this is somehow a thing that happened).
• Began watching Legends of Tomorrow and hey Caity Lotz is awesome.
• Discovered that oh hey, I actually do like coffee.
• Consumed shit-tons of coffee.
• Played a buncha tabletop games that still need posting up in this.
• Read just really a LOT of incredible books by Gail Carriger and Tanya Huff via Audible and my fancy e-reader (which I won from a Camp NaNoWriMo raffle last year!).
• Read some really garbage books, mostly via Kindle.
• Scratched out the first and second drafts of a very short collection of very short stories I fully intend to release on Amazon.
• Actually won NaNoWriMo for once (this is also somehow a thing that happened).
• Determined that the novel that I finished drafting back in 2014? The whole thing needs to go. Starting from scratch with that beast.
• Realized that I’m an adult and there is literally nobody who can stop me from ordering pizza when I want it.

Oh, and I guess there were some other things that happened in 2016, like that time many of the wonderful and talented people from my childhood passed away, and that time we elected a Hutt gangster to the highest office in the land (insult to actual Hutt gangsters, etc., etc.), and that time when Claudia Black continued to be the most gorgeous and awesome woman on the planet.

But it’s 2017 now! Madness may reign, but each new day is another day to make up cool shit and write it down. And with my fancy new writing schedule, I ought to be able to keep up with blog posts and podcasts, too! Because my pals and I have been gaming quite a bit, and it’s my fondest hope that you’ll enjoy listening to our tasty dork-jams.

J-DUB OUT