I used to love blogging. I ate it, drank it, and slept on it at night. Then I became a consultant and professional blogger, earning a living giving advice and blogging for others. Then I burned out on politics and started blogging about digital tech and music (and more pop cultural topics). I was even quoted in a story on a tech news site. Fun times.

Now I hardly blog at all. I returned to what I intended to do in the first place, before I’d ever heard of blogs: freelance writing.

Going through dusty boxes of notebooks, loose papers, and other stuff, I found a copy of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine (homeschooling) from Winter 2006. A reporter had interviewed me about blogging at a God Blog convention that October. I’d forgotten about it. I re-read it, and it reminded me of how much I used to love blogging. Click on the image above if you’d like to read the interview (and click again to magnify). Nothing profound. It just brought back memories.

I really need to update my writings page. In the meantime:

• Check out my online column at WORLD online, with a new article every Wednesday. I also have two articles that will appear in the print magazine on unrelated topics: the voter ID issue and the 15th anniversary of my sobriety. (Yay!) I’ve wanted to write for WORLD for a long time.

 

• I have two articles forthcoming in issues of the Christian Research Journal. One is a review of a book about Oprah Winfrey’s spirituality and the other about Tim Tebow and the media-generated mania (in the running to be the cover story–might happen, might not)

 

• I review young adult novels for BreakPoint. Hardly feels like working. I also write the occasional feature:

  – War against the Unwanted
  – Punished for Faith: The Violation of Julea Ward’s Religious Freedom

 

• My Pajamas Media column has been sporadic, but that’ll change.

You can read more posts at Michelle Malkin’s, where I’m guest-blogging.

Update (6/11):

• Teen-Sailing-Alone Survey
• Employee Told FBI ACORN Works for Democrats
• Fundraiser for Fleeing AZ Illegal Aliens
• The Right Pro-Life Ladies
• Charlie Crist Removes Pro-Life Message From Web Site
• Helen Thomas Retires
• Obama Asks Supreme Court to Overturn Napolitano-Endorsed Immigration Law
• California Assembly Passes Racial Preferences Bill
• Child Killing Center ‘Sacred and Holy Ground’?
• Racially Segregated Private Clubs and Public Money
• Phoenix Rising

Over the years, I’ve shared quite a bit with readers. For the last six months, however, I’ve been hiding something. Well, not really hiding. It is my personal business. But, I said to myself, what’s the big deal?

I’ve left Southern California. Yes, I moved again, but you’ll never guess where.

Scroll down for details:
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Hello from Honduras!

I’ve been here for six whole months. Ha!

After a friend told me how much he loved Honduras and couldn’t stop talking about how cheap it was, I decided to check it out. Went down there, saw it, dug it, and decided to stretch my meager dollars and make the place my new home.

And I don’t even have to learn Spanish! English is spoken everywhere.

I’ve been in Honduras working on my novel, and it’s glorious. The place, not my novel.

I LOVE the USA. It’s my home until the day I die. But I have to be honest. The cost of living was killing me. The bad part is, I still have to pay U.S. taxes.

I hear there’s a work-around. If there is, I’ll find it.

I’ve gotta go, but I shall return with details. Honduras is, in a word, paradise. And cheap!

…I’m filling in for Michelle Malkin (scroll down the sidebar for my posts – Star Parker running for Congress, racial preferences in the health care bill, etc.) this week while she’s on hers. I want to go to the UK, but I’ll probably have to settle for Knott’s Berry Farm. Not bad. I like roller coasters.

Writing for myself, for publications like the Christian Research Journal, for clients, for others – I used to talk, talk, talk about writing for fun and profit, now I’m doing it. For the last eight years, give or take. I like. Have a good week, everybody.

Me and my blog. Oh boy.

As I’ve mentioned a few times, I’m writing a novel in the paranormal and Christian genres. I started a year ago, and I’m presently rewriting/revising it. I hope to have it agent-ready by my birthday, May 5. Will I make it? I’ve invested a year writing this story. I’m determined to try.

Every day, whether I’m working on it or not, I discover ways to make the story better, deeper. In the process, I’ve learned tension- and suspense-building techniques, the qualities that keep the reader turning the pages, without being over the top. These things must arise organically from the story you’re trying to tell. So much to learn. I think my idea is good, but the execution? TBD.

If you’re an LBC reader also working on a novel, or you’ve completed one, I’d love to hear from you. No one in my offline life is writing a novel, and I’ve yet to join a writers group. It would be nice to “know” others also aspiring to be published novelists.

(Questions for writers who’ve completed at least two drafts of their work-in-progress: Are you a member of a writers group? Or do you go the critique partner route?)

In the meantime, I’ve become a contributor to The Bible Answer Man Hank Hanegraaff’s Christian Research Journal. My article on Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy, theologically speaking, is the cover story for the February/March 2010 issue. Quite an honor. I’ve never written a cover story before. Two more articles are forthcoming.

I miss football season. Over and out.

I forgot to note my blogiversary. Again. I forgot last year, too.

I started blogging on November 5, 2003, and received 4,960,172 visits since then. I briefly tasted big blog success, and it was good. Mostly. Thank you, readers! It still amazes me.

Will I resurrect past glory? Maybe. Perhaps, one day. Such things used to mean a lot more to me than they do now.

Blogging is no longer rebellious or novel. It just…is. My whole life I’ve tried to be different from the crowd. It’s a compulsion. However, a blog is still a wonderful medium, and I encourage anyone to give it try.

When I started back in 2003, it felt new and exciting. These days, I still see the value in it, and I can’t imagine giving it up. But I’ve mellowed in six years, and some things just aren’t worth the aggravation. My blog is nowhere near as popular as it once was, and that’s by design. I slowed down, chilled out, and took it in stride. Now, I make a living blogging and writing for others.

“La Shawn Barber’s Corner,” and the wonderful people I’ve met online and in person, made it possible.

Thanks again, readers.

(Image: Bloggersblog.com)

…makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl. All work and no play makes La Shawn a dull girl.

To find out if I had the discipline and stamina, I started outlining, plotting, and writing a story in long-hand in late February. Three months later, I typed it up, then let it “rest.” In mid-July, I started revising. Today, I completed the second draft, 75,000 words and 32 chapters worth. For the next couple of weeks, I’ll let it rest, then I’ll return to it with fresh eyes for draft #3.

What is the novel about? I mentioned it on the blog several months ago. I can tell you it’s written from a Christian worldview with a paranormal twist, in the vein of Christian superstars like Eric Wilson and Frank Peretti.

Will the manuscript see the publishing light of day? I’ll have a better idea once I finish a third draft. It takes as many drafts for a novice like me to turn something of this size into a readable and coherent story.

Why did I write a novel? Partly to see if I could do it, partly because I want to see my books on a shelf in Barnes & Noble some day, but mostly to tell a redemptive, God-glorifying story taut with tension and infused with suspense, and defy negative stereotypes about Christian books…even if my family and friends are the only ones who’ll ever read it.

Can’t believe I did it.

I never thought I’d see the day I twittered and facebooked more than I blogged. But here we are. So much easier to post one-liners with links throughout the day than come up with several essay-length posts every week. Or even twice a week. (Juggling several balls at present.) I probably won’t ever stop blogging. Subject matter may change, but I’m wedded to the platform itself.

As this blog currently stands, it’s got Google juice. But if you want to know what I’m reading and linking in real-time, follow me on Twitter.

If you want to discuss the commentary with others, friend me on Facebook. Today’s topics include high-scoring homeschoolers and Joker-face posters. The number of comments I get on status updates reminds me of the old “rollicking” days on the blog, where discussions sometimes got heated. To be young again…

I wish my income reflected the hours I put into doing things on my to-do list. Part of it involves wage-earning; the other, stop-talking-about-it-and-just-do-it stuff that provides no guarantee other than my personal satisfaction. Blastful™ good times, for sure.

…I’m writing a book.

A novel.

It’s a Christian, paranormal mystery with a bit of romance thrown into the mix. I briefly mentioned the specific topic a couple months ago. Do you remember what it was? (In the vein of Eric Wilson and Ted Dekker)

I don’t know if my book will see the publishing light of day, but I’m determined to finish the draft, revise it until it shines, and edit it. I’m almost halfway through the first draft. I plotted and outlined during February and started writing by the end of that month. I’m aiming for first draft completion by May 5, my birthday.

So, I haven’t dropped off the planet or given up blogging or ceased responding to e-mails. Just busy with clients, who pay my bills, and Book 1 of a three-book series, which may end up paying my bills. (God willing!)

OK, Facebook and Twitter can be time-hogs. But I’m finding them to be valuable sources for information and networking (virtual and in the flesh). I’ve disabled comments on this blog mainly because I don’t have the time or patience to monitor them anymore. The lack of discussion gives the blog a soapbox quality; for now, that suits me just fine.

But…what I miss in feedback here I make up for on Facebook, Twitter, and to a lesser extent, MySpace. If you’re reluctant to try these social networking sites, you should overcome your skepticism. I did. With no regrets.

Friend me on Facebook, where I’ve made over 1,000 professional and personal connections. Follow me on Twitter for blogging/writing topics, news links, other resources, and tidbits about my excruciatingly exciting life. Or don’t follow me. Follow others! And finally, if you’re a solo artist or in a band, let’s connect on MySpace. Why friend me? I enjoy blogging/writing about music and plan to do more. If I really like your sound, I’ll blog about you and try to convince editors to publish my stories about you.

I have a vision of what I want this web site to look like. This new theme is rest stop (will add blogroll), not the final destination. The next step is to come up with a cool header, something quick and simple to tide me over.

This blog will cover culture, digital technology, faith, and politics, and I want a header that reflects these topics. If you’re a web site designer and have ideas you’d like to share, e-mail me at lashawn@lashawnbarber.com. Please include your prices and availability.

Send letters, CDs, DVDs, books, sweets, and other treats to:

La Shawn Barber
PO Box 55341
Santa Clarita CA 91385

Last February, I decided to become active on Facebook (to see what all the hype was about), MySpace (to connect with bands and fans), and Twitter (ditto Facebook). A mere two weeks later, I wrote an “I don’t get Facebook” follow-up post, which was premature. Nine months later, I get it. And I like it (once I blocked silly “hug me!” “toss me!” applications).

I’m kept up-to-date about events, groups, causes, and people I support, and Facebook brings traffic to my blog. I’ve “met” a lot of like-minded people. If I wanted to plan an LA-area blogger meet-up, it would be easier to organize on Facebook than on the blog. In fact, I think I’ll plan a meet-up. The first and only one I attended was in 2004. I’d like to meet people in the area who read my blog, and vice versa.

• “Friend” me on Facebook, and join me and 595 pals for a fabulous meet-up party!
• “Friend” me on MySpace (especially if you’re in a band; I’m pitching music article ideas and would love to get a backstage pass), and read the unbearably exciting details of my life on Twitter.

(I know the avatar looks nothing like me, but I can pretend, can’t I?)