I'll Think of a Catchy Title Later

Wherein I explain the background of this Blog, and the circumstances that led me to create it.

During my law school orientation in the Fall of 2005, I sat reading a book, waiting for the lecture to begin.  A professor walked by my seat, and remarked “I hope you enjoy that book; you won’t be reading for pleasure again until at least your third year of practice.”

I would love to say I responded with some witty retort, but I was a new law student, intimidated by the authority of the professor, and so I chuckled, put my book aside, and prepared to take notes.  However, that evening I finished the book, opened up an Excel spreadsheet, and wrote down the title and name of the author.  From that point on, each time I completed a book for pleasure, I added it to the list.  I never stopped reading, not through law school, not while studying for the bar exam, and not in my first two years of practice.

That first book was, appropriately enough, 1L by Scott Turow, a book about being a first year law student.  Last night, in the wee hours before I went to sleep, I completed Terry Pratchett’s I Shall Wear Midnight and added it to my list.  It was my 500th book since that conversation.

I believe in literature, and in the value of reading for fun, for education, and in furtherance of my quest to become more fluent with the English language.  In my youth, I always wanted to write- not as a profession, mind you, but as a way to share thoughts and ideas, to entertain people and engage them in a meaningful way.  I did not believe I could achieve that goal without a solid foundation as a reader.

My goal is to make the transition to writing through blogging.  Moving from consumer to provider is still an intimidating proposition in my head; my hope is that by writing in an informal forum, I can overcome my ingrained resistance to public writing and explore the wonderful tools of the written word.

The subject matter of this blog is going to be broad and eclectic; essentially, I am going to write about what interests me.  I plan to talk about books I enjoy, current events, politics, and my experience as a practicing attorney.  Only a short time ago, I would define blogging success in terms of readership and following.  Today, as I actually start this undertaking, I view success much differently.  I want this blog to be engaging, readable, and authentic.  I want to see my writing improve over time.  Most of all, I want this to be a creative outlet, and if that means generating content that people find interesting, all the better.  Readership may be a side-effect, but it is not the goal.

Enough introduction- I think I’ll begin working on my first substantive post.

~Andrew