Return to normal ... whatever that is

Back home in Seattle. It's a strange thing: I find beauty everywhere I go, but nowhere is home in the same way as Seattle is. Even the Bay Area, where I spent nearly a decade of my life and which I know better (in some ways), doesn't have the same quality of at-home-ness as here.

So I'm back to my unemployed meanderings.

No, that's not quite true. I've been accepted by an agency that connects freelance writers to companies in need of web content. So I have become a freelance writer. That's my new job title.

And I realize, I've never really thought of myself as a writer. I've always thought of myself as an aspiring writer. A wannabe.

The fact is, I'm a writer exactly as much as I write and put my work out for others to read. And maybe even pay for. Once in a while.

So, I have a new goal: to fulfill my duties and job description as a writer. To that end, I'll be making a couple changes in my life:

• I'll be scheduling writing into my day as an appointment, as if it was a job -- because it is
• I'll be focusing my writing on areas that I think I can sell my work and make something like a living off of it
• As part of that, I'll be starting a couple new blogs, that I hope will fill a gap in the blogosphere today; here's what I'm thinking of calling them:
  • Virtue Quest - on growing toward happiness by developing virtue
  • Everyday Aquinas - on how the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas applies to everyday life in the 21st century
• devoting some of my writing time to long-term projects, meaning novels and non-fiction books

So I guess it's not really "back" to normal, as much as it's trying to implement a new normal. If I can make this kind of life "normal", then I should be able to make a living as a writer.

I don't plan to let go of this blog, for those of you who have become utterly dependent on my ruminations for giving meaning and purpose to your lives. But this will be my "personal" blog, rather than my "professional" blog. I'd love to have your feedback on my work, both personal and professional. I'd also like to know if any of you are trying similar disciplines to make your way through this vale of tears.

So keep reading, and I'll let you know what kind of progress I'm making. And thanks for your support (especially you, Amy!)