Mission: Accomplished!

I did it!  I did it!  Kim'sNoBlogMo is over.  It was a success.  I wrote 30 blog entries.  In a row!

My goal was to write one per day.  There were a few occasions where I ended up doing two in one day due to circumstances that simply did not allow for be to make a post that day, but 30 were still written.  Go me!  They have not been particularly well written from a grammatical point of view.  That was not my purpose.  I simply wrote what I felt and was often somewhat crunched for time, therefore editing was not really a part of the process.

It was an exercise in discipline and an experiment of sorts.  I love to write.  It is my therapy.  It is how I best express myself.  I have long wanted to write a particular book or two.  The Universe has been strongly calling me to get my ass in gear and get on it.  My greatest struggle is time.  I know what I want to write, but I also know that I need to be in a certain frame of mind to do it and once there, will not want to stop.  Thus, I need a tremendous amount of uninterrupted time to write it.  That is what I am lacking.  I will either lose sleep repeatedly (I barely get enough as it is) or need to take a month or three off and write non-stop in order to accomplish it in the way I want to.  Thus, I've not yet done it.

Part of my goal of Kim's blog month (inspired by NaNoWriMo) was to cultivate a writing practice.  To get myself in the 'groove' of creative writing.  To test the waters and see if I could carve out some time to write and if anyone at all would be interested in what I had to say.  I discovered I can find the time and in fact, look forward to it.  It has meant I've lost sleep or time spent on other things.  My 'to do' pile is looming large on my desk as a result.  Mt. Laundry is going to rival Everest soon.  The house... well, clean is overrated with two boys anyway.

Most of my entries take anywhere from 15 min to an hour to write.  Most of the time, once I sit to write, the words flow fairly easily.  The subject matter of the blog has been rather varied.  It's about love, light, laughter and chocolate.  I do believe I have covered all of those topics at least once!  I have re-discovered my joy of writing.  The fire has been re-ignited and I find myself really wanting to turn it into something meaningful for myself and for someone else out there who might benefit from it.  Mission accomplished!

My secondary goal of a month of daily blogging was to see if anyone at all was interested in what I wrote about and what subjects caught people's attention.  Half of the battle of a popular blog is coming up with subject matter that someone wants to read.  I suppose, in theory, that comes from the title of the post or how creatively it's framed when posted to a social media site.  If it's shared, I guess that is the highest form of compliment I could receive.

I did not write to get people to read my blog, however.  I wrote because I wanted to.  It's a glimpse at the real me.  What goes on inside my heart and head on a daily basis.  The things that inspire me, that are important to me, that touch me, that are on my mind in any given day.  Some have been light and silly and benign.  Some just observations about current events or daily occurrences in my life.  Others have been more emotional, personal and deep.  Some are even educational, at least I hope they are.

It's been interesting to see how many people read an entry vs. how many comment on it.  It's been fascinating to see which topics were the most viewed and which got almost no one's attention.  It doesn't change what or how I write, it's just a very interesting observation.  I do wish more people commented.  Feedback is important!  Some comment to the blog directly, some via the social media sites via a 'like' or a direct comment and some personally message me.  I enjoy that.  Most people do not comment at all. It's nice to know if I stirred an emotion in someone else or if something I wrote touched someone on some level or helped them.  Especially if I'm throwing my heart and soul out there with a certain vulnerability.  THAT is why I do it.

So, for those of you who actually read my blog, thanks!  All 20 of you!  :-)  Wait, it's hard to tell how many of those were repeat views... Maybe it's only 5...  I really have no idea how many different people read it or if it's been shared beyond what I can see on Facebook.  I can only see how many times a particular post was viewed.  Regardless, I am grateful anyone at all takes the time to read what I think, feel and write.  It is an honor to have your time and your interest.  I hope with all that I am something I have said has resonated with you, given you pause and helped you in some way.

I will keep writing, for me.  I do hope somewhere along the way, something I write helps someone else along  in their journey.  I will start working on that book.  I have to.  For me.  For a certain audience.  I'll let you know how it goes.  Now that Kim'sNoBlogMo is over, I may not write daily.  December is a very emotional month for me, so chances are what I do write will be emotionally charged.  I hope you come along for the ride.  I'd love to have you!

Peace and gratitude,
Kim