Welcome

So here I am, sitting at a computer writing my first blog. It wasn’t that long ago that I didn’t even know what a blog was. Oh sure, I had heard the term “BLOG,” but to me it was some new kind of cybertechnoelectronicsomethin’. I was an artist. I was a painter. I didn’t need to learn internet jargon or computer lingo, and what in the world would I want with a blog, whatever it was?

Writing has always piqued my interest, and now-and-then I’ve come up with an engaging storyline. I have had ideas for murder mysteries, fantasy novels, family stories and children’s books, which of course I would illustrate. I often thought I would like to tell stories in some form. How hard could writing a book be? I loved to read. I figured I would write a book some day, as soon as I had the time. Of course, if I had that much time I would rather paint.

Then, a couple of years ago, I signed up for a Community Ed class for wannabe writers called, “So You Want to Write a Book.” It was an informal gathering of around 14 people, of all ages, who enjoyed writing and had stories to tell. Over the course of 6 weeks or so, we wrote short stories as homework and sometimes shared them the following week. There was a tremendous amount of encouragement and constructive criticism and I was intrigued to see parallels between writing and art. I learned that one of the characteristics of a successful writer is that they always feel the need to write, the compulsion to write, and are not content without doing so. I cannot say I am incomplete if I am not writing but that’s the way I often feel about art – there’s something lacking if I’m not doing art in some form. When the series ended, we were all sad to see our time together come to a close. We exchanged names and addresses and emails. Perhaps some have stayed in touch and continued their camaraderie, but I felt I needed to focus on my art.

My head is filled with plans for paintings and drawings, so many that I may never have enough time to finish them all! I intend to try though. And I still have stories to tell and ideas to share, and now that I know what a blog is, I think it may be the perfect outlet. I hope you will come here often to see what I have to say and what new pieces of art I am currently involved with. I will love to hear from you with comments on either.

Until later,
Dennis