Inversely Proportional

It used to be that I worked on this blog while I was at work. I've worked in computer labs for the last several years, sometimes in the wee hours of the morning, so I had ample time to write. Now, I only put in 6 hours per week in the labs, and I spend most of that time doing actual work - you know, academic stuff. The stuff I'm actually supposed to be here to do. In fact, it's pretty clear that my blog productivity is inversely proportional to the difficulty of my studies.

The idea that the vast archives of this blog (836 posts!) are simply the result of my undergrad degrees not being challenging enough to keep me busy is too depressing to contemplate. I have convinced myself and others that I am, in fact, a writer of sorts, so this is supposed to be my bag. That identity comes with assumptions, and I have embraced those clichés wholeheartedly. I have allowed the world to believe, or possibly even fostered the belief that I am filled to the brim with witty observations and clever analyses of the world. It is exhausting being so laden with punditry - if I don't write it down, I might just 'splode...

The truth is significantly more dull. My life is thesis. Right now I am barely able to scrape together 3-5 minutes of left-wing venom to spew on the radio every Friday night. I know this will end, but it isn't happening fast enough - or it's too fast and I feel as though I won't get done, ever. I'll die under a pile of phenomenological articles, my cold stiff fingers clutching one more draft of the thesis that never was...

Please disregard the apocalyptic whining above - I'm over-medicated right now. The point of this post was to say that I have a plan for returning to sanity once this is all over.

In the back of my head a story has been taking shape. I suppose it would fall into the fantasy genre, but not of the Tolkien stripe. It's got some steampunk elements, a bit of swords and sorcery, and naturally, a big hunk of religion.

I'm not sure how I will go about it, but readers of this blog will certainly be privy to the details of it's composition. I have considered posting excerpts here, or possibly posting the excerpts on a separate blog created solely for that purpose while posting my notes and thoughts on the writing here. All of that will be decided when I have time to spend on decisions.

In the mean time, pray for me as I grind out the final days of my MA.