You used what?

First, happy holidays, Merry Ho ho, and a happy new year to all. My apologies for the lengthy absence. It’s been a busy time all around, and quite frankly, I wanted to take a bit of time off to get back to the essence of what I live and breathe; writing. I know this is considered writing, but I’m talking about my truest passion, my artistic baby, my Rachmaninoff, my Beethoven’s fifth. . . eh, who am by trying to kid? My regular life got in my way, and I just haven’t had the time to work on the blog. But, the writing part is true. I am in the tumultuous throes of the second novel, and it’s coming along quite nicely.

This is a very cool segue into this particular diatribe.

I made a statement in a previous blog about what I used to write my first novel. It wasn’t necessarily application-specific, but more so what I wrote it on.

I used my iPad.

For the whole thing?

Yes… for the whole thing.

Someone asked me how something like that was possible. My reply was that it was easy, and it made the most sense. If you think about it from a practical standpoint, it was the only thing that made sense, for someone like me.

In this day and age, with conveniences such as e-mail, video messaging, GPS, and my all- time favorite- media streaming, traditional ways of accomplishing business and everyday tasks are shifting. Let’s face it, even the creative arts such as recording music on 4- track players, although a lot of fun to do, is falling by the wayside. With all the amazing advancements in digital recording, it’s more equitable to the bottom line and just plain easier to do.

The same could be said for writing. Long ago, authors could sit down in a quiet room and put pen to paper and create magnificent stories with the only working machine being their mind. I believe with some, that still holds true. Me?… That’s not my thing.

After spending so many years in the professional world, I’ve learned to use technology to my advantage.

Rule of thumb #42, work smarter, not harder.

Even if I didn’t have the thumb rule, my life is just as chaotic as everyone else’s. I need all the help I can get; just ask my wife.

Writing, in any form, cannot be compared to things such as doing laundry or taking out the garbage. Unless you are a professional or creative chef, there’s no inspiration when you make a pancake; all you have to do is follow a simple recipe. Writing, on the other hand, is a little more involved.

I don’t have the time that it takes to just sit behind a desk with a computer and pound out some words. It’s simply not convenient, and in most cases, is not conducive for the imagination. You can’t force creativity. Sometimes, the environment or the setting can affect where and how my stories evolved. Some of the most creative sections in my first novel came when I was rocking my children to sleep in the nursery at night. A thought or an idea on a bridge or arc in the story hit me, and I had to get it down. Even if I couldn’t do full-on writing, I had my iPad to jot down the notes, so I wouldn’t forget.

It worked so well for me in the beginning as I developed the story content, that I just continued using it. It’s soon evolved into an indispensable convenience. Being stuck in a snowstorm in Chicago produced some of my best ideas. I pulled out my trusty iPad and wrote them down. You just don’t know when a ground-breaking epiphany will hit you like a train.

Rule of thumb #56, capture the moment, it may pass and never return.

Moral of this story? Old-school ways are still important. Embracing the new ways are not so bad. Find your groove, and let the writing magic happen.