Hello, long-neglected blog. I have missed you. Today is the first day of 2020. I have two resolutions for this year (decade, really, as long as you aren’t one of those “there-is-no-year-zero-and-the-decade-starts-with-2021” die-hards): write more and carbon footprint less. As you can clearly read from my second resolution, the first is in dire need of attention.

That’s not actually true, though. The truth is I write a lot. I write every day. Verbizing nouns is just one of those things we do nowadays because Internet (the last two words being the title of an enlightening book I am currently reading). The problem with my writing, however, is that I am the only one who ever reads it. I write daily on a site called 750 Words, I belong to a supportive writing network and participate in writing sprints as often as I can, I get semi-regular coaching sessions from the amazing Jenna Avery and Erin Stegeman, I work on my screenplays, novels, short stories, etc. just a little bit every day... But no one READS these things because I don’t actually put them out there. Also because no one reads screenplays except other screenwriters and the people actually making the movie. Seriously, when was the last time you heard someone say “I just read the most INCREDIBLE screenplay for a movie that no one has made and probably never will because it would be too expensive and has nothing to do with existing IP!”

(Don’t answer that question if you work as a Hollywood assistant... I’m trying to make a point here.)

So aside from occasionally publishing a short story or submitting a screenplay to a contest, my writing stays stuck in the database bowels of a website or in my writing journal. Both of which I am sure will be hacked and/or stolen someday, but are INTENDED to be private. Meanwhile, I pay monthly to maintain this website and then ignore it about 300 days of the year.

Part of this neglect stems from the fact that I am a single parent. You think my website is an un-maintained mess? Stop by my house on any given weekday and this site will feel like a well-oiled machine. Most of it stems from that place familiar to all creative people: fear. Fear of rejection, fear of ridicule, fear of being ignored, fear of drawing too much attention, fear of being too honest, fear of not being honest enough... I’m going to address that fear right here on this blog, though. As often as I can, I am just going to hit the “publish” button after my hour-long writing sprint is up. I’m not going to examine every word and edit the post to death, I’m just going to try to stay conversational, verbed words included. That split infinitive up there? I’m going to ignore it and publish anyway.

So that takes care of resolution number one. What about resolution number two? Reducing one’s carbon footprint in the light of the climate crisis can seem like an impossible task. Even more so when we read about how statistically the changes an individual makes to their daily lifestyle do little to offset the extreme damage being done by manufacturers and oil companies.

That doesn’t mean we get carte blanche to ignore our behavior and wreck our shared home. On top of that, our collective voices and behaviors are, in fact, pushing corporations to make changes. It seems like every auto company has released or is working on an electric car. Businesses are shifting to using more environmentally-friendly packaging and being more transparent about their environmental impact (partly because they are being sued and called out- I support all kinds of groups that speak to this kind of advocacy. Maybe that can be a future blog post). So my goal this year is to share the little actions I am taking to being a better Earth tenant.

So here’s to 2020! Here’s to making change and facing fears. Here’s to dusting off neglected things. Here’s to dancing like no one or anyone or everyone is watching.