In the beginning there was 4,653 words...

For the first time in three attempts, I have finally began a novel for National Novel Writing Month. No it is not the one I intended to write but an old story that has been swirling about in my head since several years before I stopped trying to be a writer some time around fourteen years ago. The story began with a poem written by a friend back when we were high school students, I still perform this poem in some form most Halloweens to the horror of those that insist on hearing it.

I have long since lost touch with this friend but that poem was the beginning, then while a college student I was introduced to the writings of don marquis and his characters Archie and Mehitable. This lead to a "factual" and surprisingly well-researched report for a college assignment. While I got a good grade on that assignment, the teacher was a little concerned that I was writing a research paper trying to persuade others that a breed of intelligent cockroaches were using subliminal messages to control the course of human culture and civilization.

This was the early beginnings of my novel, originally title, "Bad Mojo," after an old PC game and later being, "Downside up," a title taken from a Peter Gabriel song. The story as told to friends (no one has every actually read excerpts of it) became the early idea from friends that my writing was some espresso and sugar induced stylings from the mixed up minds of William S. Burroughs and A. A. Milne. Think Naked Lunch finding it's way to the House at Pooh Corner after drinking more than enough coffee and honey to make both Tigger and Winnie-the-Pooh worry about me.

What originally survived of the piles and scraps of notes, musings, and scribblings took on the literary ideal of stream of conscious crashing into manic, caffeine induced cut ups until it met with a slice of gonzo journalism pie at some diner sometime long after 3AM.

No, you won't find much of the actually story on this blog, but you will get the story of what has become of "Bad Mojo," and updates on what, "Downside up," is doing to me the rest of this month. Still, if you really want to know about the story itself call me and I'll tell you a story over a late night glass of ice tea.