Walking for Words

I thought I would keep this blog going while I worked on books 2, 3… wherever I end up.  But that means I’ll be talking about things other than writing, per se.  After all, it will get a bit boring if each week, I report X words written, making up about Y% of the total.

Besides, I have the countdown clock for that purpose.

So, today, I thought I would mention a contributing pastime – hiking.  I say ‘hiking’, but to be more accurate, what I do ranges from my early morning strolls (where I go for my caffeine quota for the day) to some more rigorous outings (the south rim of the Grand Canyon to the bottom and back…in a snowstorm). 

I am also a bit of a math geek and an electronic toy enthusiast.  So, to relieve me of the task of recording my steps from these caffeine runs and 4770 foot climbs, I got a Fitbit.  In fact, I celebrated my 2-year anniversary with my Fitbit, a Zip, on September 8.  And what have I done in those 2 years (and 2 weeks)?  How about 9,483,596 steps, earning my “Great Wall” badge for walking more than 5,500 miles (the length of the Great Wall of China).

 

So, what does any of this have to do with writing (and I am sure you all are thinking, ‘it has nothing to do with it’).  But it does.  At least, it does for me.  Because, I would guess that half or more of everything that went into Half A Mind was not created at the computer keyboard.  No, it came from strolls for morning coffee, or hikes around Forest Park or Hawn State Park, or on the Camino de Santiago in Spain. 

I have no idea how anyone else writes, but many of the conversations that I pen come when there is little else on my mind other than the sound of my footsteps. 

Happy writing,

BmP