Ruminations of an Old Goat

As I've mentioned in earlier columns, the year is almost over. We're closing in on the time when we're expected to come up with all our resolutions for the new year. I've never been really big on those things, rarely think about them and even more rarely bother to make them. This year is going to be different. I'm not only going to issue a few resolutions, I'm going to make them publicly. Who knows, maybe that will help me keep them. And so, I hereby resolve to:

Finish writing a novel, preferably the one I started during NaNoWriMo. I've only got 3400 words written on that one, so there's plenty left for me to write. Following through on this resolution could have a significant effect on my writing future. That's not because I think the novel will necessarily be picked up by a publisher and make lots of money. It's because I have always found myself daunted by the size of the task of writing a novel. I'm great at shorter writing tasks, ones where the end is in sight even from the very beginning. That's one reason comic books were such a great medium for me; the end of an issue was always within sight, even from the very beginning. That held even for multi-part stories. Given that, perhaps I should consider writing chap books or something.

Record a storytelling CD. Lord knows I've got the equipment, the stories, and the inclination. Some of you out there in Friday Challenge land even have the technical production capabilities I lack. But I'm pretty sure I could produce a reasonable sounding CD all by myself. In the past, I've wanted my CD to be made from a live performance. I always enjoy the energy I get from a live audience and feel as if the CD would probably be better recorded live. On the other hand, it's much tougher to fix mistakes from a live recording. So, maybe it's time to find a few hours of quiet time in the house and record the CD. Wait, quiet time in the house? I knew there was something stopping me from recording the CD at home!

Work out science fiction versions of tradition folk tales. While I don't necessarily see science fiction storytelling becoming huge, it does seem to me that there might be chances to perform at science fiction conventions around the southeast. At both conventions I attended this summer, NASFIC and Dragon*Con, there were a lot of bands performing. If filk singing (science fiction folk singing) can reach the point where hundreds of filk bands are producing thousands of filk CDs, it seems reasonable that science fiction folk tales could find a market. I figure I need at least half a dozen converted stories to start with, but will need to double that number once I get started. I've already got four folk tales selected and am nearly finished converting one of them.

Maybe, finally, find the rest of the team I need to get a smartphone application project off the ground. I need an artist and a software developer. Unfortunately, I've been trying to get this project off the ground for almost two years with absolutely no success at all. I'm pretty sure I could find a software developer without any real trouble. As with comic book writing, my big problem is finding an artist. I don't know why I think 2011 might be different than 2009 and 2010, but maybe it will be. The idea is to produce audio picture books for kids to listen to when their parents need some peace and quiet. I still think it's a great idea, I just can't find any artists who can spare the time required to work on spec.

There you go, four resolutions for the new year. Any of them could really help further my artistic ambitions. If I can pull off all four, I'll definitely have had a year of serious accomplishment. I'll keep you posted on my progress.