Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.  I’ve been talking about this for awhile.  Writing “the book”.  I had a few ideas of what I wanted to write a book about, but first I would start writing a blog, just to see how it would go over.  It has been a therapeutic venture for me and hopefully a time of entertainment or thought for my readers, whoever you may be.  You see, that’s a part of what is interesting about this blog thing.  I know how many are reading, but I don’t necessarily know who you are unless you say something on social media to me.

I have had readers from all over the world, some maybe only once but apparently have someone in Ireland who reads once in a while which is really pretty cool.  I wasn’t sure  I would have any readers here in town, much less across the country or across the world. Twenty six countries on every continent except Antarctica.  It’s amazing what the power of words and the internet can do.

While I haven’t written every day, I’ve done better than I thought I would.  In looking at my stats, I have written enough words for two novels since I began this crazy adventure. 96,000 words for 2018 alone.  Some blogs were composed of passionate, from the heart words and others struggled for words.  Writing is every bit as much a creative process as the music I have made my career, and while I question my authenticity as a writer – after all, I have no credentials to speak of, I also know there are musicians out there who have no so-called credentials as well, other than passion, work ethic and a dream, and yet they continue to touch people’s hearts through their art.  That is the hope I have for my writing.

I have learned from this past year that the things that touch people most are the honest, heartfelt, emotional blogs that either talk about my personal life experiences or how I feel about music and kids.  My purpose originally was to just talk about what kinds of daily experiences I had, but I have been heartwarmingly surprised that people sometimes have an interest in me and not just what I experience.  It has been eyeopening to connect with people who have experienced the same types of life events or shared philosophies who thank me for saying what they’ve been feeling or thinking.  It has also proven to be heartbreaking when I hear from people who are struggling when I never would have guessed they were.  It has made me look at others and myself in a different way.

So now I have accomplished my first goal, to write my very own blog.  What next?  Well, it seems I can create my own website now to get my blog out to more people.  Scary, but every new step should be a little scary.  And we will begin the year of the book.  “What’s So Special About Being a Music Specialist?” is one idea I’ve thought of but it seems too narrow.  I’ve thought about it being my personal journey through music.  I’ve thought about it just being anecdotes about my kids and my teaching experiences.  What I could use is feedback from readers as to what interests you in my writing.

June 1 is the target date to begin work on the book, just because I want a solid date, and so the form of the blog may change a bit as I focus on a bigger picture this year and then we’ll see where I it goes.  Thanks for supporting the new adventure of mine and for any feedback you want to give!