November is usually the month I pick to do something sort of insane. Like write a novel, or at least 50,000 words. While I don’t ALWAYS succeed, I try to do it every year. I started with NaNoWriMo in 2010 (I had tried a few times before then, but never got very far), and have done it every year since. I managed to “win” or finish my 50,000 words once in 2012. Since 2010, I’ve always gotten at least half way there, or 25,000 words.
So every year, around this time, I usually have the itch. Note cards piled up, notebooks full of ideas. This year, for some reason, it is especially, really, really itchy. I really want to do it again (50 Shades of Virtualization almost became a thing) but I’m choosing not to.
Why? I’ve got lots of other things I need to be working on that suck up my time, and it would be a big distraction. But I still want to do something along those lines, something that would force me to write on a regular basis.
I’ve loved to write for as long as I can remember. Around this time last year, I started to make my first forays into blogging, and sort of cringe when I look back at the posts. Writing is a lot like exercise, no matter the final product, you’re still doing more than those who are just sitting on the couch. The best way to get better at writing? Just write! For as long as I can remember I’ve always had notebooks full of half written stories, and with the digital age, directories full of ideas, quck sprint style stories, and all the projects I swear I’ll finish someday.
Enter Greg Ferro, or @etherealmind, and his 30 blogs in 30 days challenge. Instead of writing a novel this month, I’ll be writing 30 blog posts in 30 days (NaNoWriMo breaks down to writing 1,667 words a day, in case you were wondering). One of my #vDM companions mentioned it. I said I was only in if one of the others joined us. It became a thing. So here we go. 30 blogs in 30 days by the folks who bring you #VirtualDesignMaster, as well as other community members who have taken the valiant pledge to come along for the ride. In some ways, I think this may be harder than NaNoWriMo. At least with NaNoWriMo I had some idea of where I wanted my novel to go (and there are some word count…tricks, if you’ve ever done NaNoWriMo, you know what I’m talking about), but #vDM30in30 will be a constant stream of new ideas daily, unless I can come up with a series of posts for more mileage, which may be a good strategy. One thing to note is there is no word count requirement for #vDM30in30, our goal is just to get people writing and the though process flowing. Make sure to check out the #vDM30in30 tag on twitter to follow along with the insanity!
(Shamelessly stolen from one of my #vDM partners in crime – Angelo Luciani!)
Of course, this wouldn’t be a vMiss production without a little twist, so I’ll also be including a link to a music video on YouTube with a song for your listening pleasure. Don’t worry, I’m not going to embed it and have it auto play or anything, just a link. You may or may not enjoy my crazy selection of music, but why not!
Song of the Day – Crush – Jellyehad
Melissa is an Independent Technology Analyst & Content Creator, focused on IT infrastructure and information security. She is a VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX-236) and has spent her career focused on the full IT infrastructure stack.