For close to 30 years, I have had a habit of writing, editing, and rewriting just about everyday: poetry, journaling, fiction, and blogging.

I go through phases where I will send some of it out to contests or for publication. Occasionally I have had someone choose to publish something I have written. These are featured on this page of ClimbingSky.

Lately though, I have been avoiding sending things out. Currently I have just one submission out, three poems to a journal I have never heard of or read. It has been there so long that I suspect someone just forgot to notify me that my submission was not a good fit for their journal.

Admittedly there is great deal of pride that comes when something I have worked on is chosen by someone I have never met to be published in a journal. It can be a big shot of confidence.

But at age 64-and-a-half, it has finally dawned on me that the experience of being “chosen” is ultimately NOT the reason I get up every morning at 5:30AM to write. It may once have been. But it has not been that for a very long time now. Validation is nice, but probably no longer necessary.

In 2024, there are other options available for sharing what I have written. The most obvious one is this blog, ClimbingSky.

So beginning this week, my own poetry and fiction will become a regular part of ClimbingSky. I hope you enjoy.