I’m a writer in my 20s and I also love to run, but I’ve been having trouble doing both lately.
I sold my first short stories when I was a teenager and my first novel soon after I graduated college. That novel was published by a New York publisher (and quickly forgotten) when I was 24. At least the Publishers Weekly review was good.
I ran in high school for a while, and then again in college for a while, and then I had a great stretch during 2006 when I ran every day, nearly building to marathon-length treks. So far this year I’ve had a handful of good months running (50+ miles) and a handful of terrible months (less than 25 miles), but nothing like 2006.
My agent has been shopping my new novel since January, and I’ve been trying to get another novel rolling. Although I did write a novella I’m very pleased with, it’s far too short for New York to even consider, and several novels have crashed and burned over the last eight months.
This blog is my attempt to get back into the swing of things on both fronts by reporting on my efforts to any strangers who happen to wander by. My goal is to write every day again and to start a running program — and hopefully make some real progress on the new novel before my agent asks how it’s coming along! I’m also hoping to comment on the publishing business in general and my 12+ years of experience as a writer. I think you can probably learn a few things from my mistakes.
Will this work? Will I feel a surge of motivation to keep writing and running because I’m posting daily updates anonymously for anonymous strangers to read? Who knows.
More importantly, will I have fun? I sure hope so. What’s the point of life if you’re not enjoying what you’re doing?
I’m already receiving questions about the publishing business and my writing in general, and although I don’t promise to post specifics, I do welcome the emails. I’ll answer what I can in future posts.
I can be contacted via email at writingrunner (at) gmail (dot) com
