I'm three months into writing "On Hillsborough", and I appear to be having my first case of "writer's block". Not that there isn't any Hillsborough news to report - there's always news. Here are two recent items:
- The township insurance consultant has found a way to save $400,000 per year in insurance premiums for the 165 township employees.
- Congressman Mike Ferguson has secured nearly $300,000 to fund the purchase of 66 self-contained breathing apparatuses for Hillsborough firemen.
These are both great stories, and worthy of mention, but I won't be elaborating on them here. The problem is that when I began writing the blog back in June, I promised myself that I wasn't going to merely regurgitate what you can already read in the Courier News and in the other local papers. I intended to use the news stories as jumping off points to provide commentary on the town and community - but there is just no where to go with these two items. Kudos all around for a job well done, and that's it.
At the outset, the directives I received from the Courier News were simple - write about Hillsborough, write about Somerset County, write about central New Jersey, or write about yourself. "Entries can be long or short", I was told, "just be sure to write five days a week"! A quick look through my blog archive shows that I have done just that, usually spending about two hours a day, or ten hours a week writing the blog - or in the case of the past few days, staring at a blank sheet of paper.
Yes, paper. From the beginning I have written out a rough draft in long hand for nearly every entry. I find that it helps me focus my thoughts, and my poor handwriting ensures that there will be a lot of changes from the first to the final draft - usually for the better.
As much as I appreciate the artistry of being able to sit at the keyboard and bang out a two-fingered masterpiece (Kerouac is one of my heroes) - I'm no artist. So as far as the blog is concerned, I won't be sitting here re-writing news stories to fit some quota, because that wouldn't be writing all...that's typing.
That's one reason why I turned down C-N's offer twice - once before Glenn, and once either before you were recruited, or around the same time. 5 days a week is an awful lot, especially for someone who wants to do a good job - one which requires creativity, research as appropriate, and careful, thoughtful writing.
ReplyDeleteBut the pay must make up for all that pressure! I know, I know ....
If you're looking for something to write about, check out the "Gateway at Sunnymeade" development that is underway off of Falcon Rd. 698 age restricted homes on 190 of what used to be pristine woodland acres...Thanks to past Builder's Remedy Lawsuits and closed door negotiations between builder & past town officials, this is what we now have. Do some research on this and you will be plenty to blog about.
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