and then i quit the internet for some days.

A of all:

I won!

Which is totally old news, since it's been hanging out over there on the progress ticker for weeks now.
*takes down progress ticker*

Anyway, yay! And a slight bit of "good riddance," too.

I say "good riddance" because, well, my brain got fried. I proved, once and for all, that I can write 50k words of a sh**ty first draft in 30 days. Good for me. I don't think it was a complete waste of creative energy. I made a few good, strong discoveries and shaped a couple of exciting and compelling characters (a couple. meaning, like, TWO, of the 50-or-so that came into being. yeesh). But, ultimately? I blanked on how to write with intent.

Two weeks ago, I went back to my *real* WiP, and here's what I thought:

"Crap. This one has to make sense."

Thanks, NaNoBrain.

And then, in true Julie-fashion, I gave myself a little too much space. I haven't written anything, and I mean ANYTHING (note the almost-three-week blogger absence), since November 28. In my defense, I *have* been doing other things. The play, for one! Happy sigh. My current literary dry spell is nothing compared to my recently assuaged, theatrical dry spell (two and a half years = longest I've been not-on-stage since I was 12, for reals). So, at least I have that.

And then I quit the internet for some days.
Twice.

And then my mother-in-law showed me this:

found somewhere in here!

Books. Christmas lights. Tea lamp.

And, for some reason, things changed. Yes. I can still do this.
I can write and act at the same time. I can be BOTH.
Duh. I even mentioned writing in my actor's bio.*

Why am I always the last one to figure this sort of thing out?

*No, seriously. I did. And now EVERYONE who comes to the play will know. The secret's finally out... (eek.)