IWSG: March 2018

It’s IWSG time again. Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts for putting this on. When it comes to insecurity, I have a big one: Marketing.

There’s not much more in the world that makes my stomach churn than marketing. I hate it. I know hate’s a strong word, but it’s true. I HATE marketing. I long for the days when writers lived in shacks and slipped their manuscripts into random mailboxes. It’s not that I’m shy. I’m not. I’m actually very social. It’s that I hate talking up my work. I think it should speak for itself. I know I’m a good writer—but that doesn’t mean I need to or should have to tell people that. It wasn’t until recently that I attempted to market at all. Those of you who follow this blog can attest to that—my posts are random at best. But I’ve finally decided I have to, no matter how much I hate it. Decided isn’t actually the right word. I’m being pushed into it. God has had just about enough of my waffling and has drawn a line in the sand. I am to obey or else (I really don’t want to know what the or else is). He’s led me this far, I guess it’s time to dive in. Pray for me.

IWSG--12/6/17

Welcome. It’s the first Wednesday of the month, making it IWSG time. Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts for putting this on. For those of you who don’t know, IWSG stands for Insecure Writer’s Support Group—a monthly online gathering for posting about this crazy thing called writing. Please join us. 

For me it’s a weird time of year—just coming off the hectic schedule of NaNo, where for the first time ever I failed to meet the 50,000 word count—turns out it’s not a good idea to go away for a week when you’re supposed to be pushing out almost 2,000 words per day. Now it’s December, where I’m crazy busy for a whole different reason. Christmas is coming and I’m hosting this year and my husband and I thought now would be a good time to gut out our whole kitchen. Maybe a part of me really does like the time crunch. Hopefully this turns out better than NaNo. I’ve got seventeen people expecting a meal from that kitchen in a less than a month. Right now there’s no working faucet and just drywall on the walls. Pray for me. Seriously. Right now. 

Anyhow…

For those of you who don’t know, I’ve been a psychiatric nurse for years and one of the groups I lead over and over is on relaxation—closing your eyes and deep breathing, counting to ten, that sort of stuff. It’s funny how you forget to apply what you teach to yourself, at least I do. So this month I’m going to deep breath. I’m going to count to ten. I’m going to finish the book I started for NaNo, even if it takes me three months to do it instead of one. I’m going to enjoy my Christmas gathering, which will probably end with all of us washing the dishes in the bathroom sink.

Until then--

Mel

11/24/17

11/21/17

IWSG; February 2017

Today is the first Wednesday of the month, making it IWSG time Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts for putting this on each month. For those of you who don’t know, IWSG stands for Insecure Writer’s Support Group, an online community of writers supporting each other through and in this crazy work we chose to do.

This month my insecurity is about control, or lack of it.  My husband is training to run a marathon. He’s already run a half, and while He’s always been very athletic and in really good shape, I wasn’t thrilled with the idea. He’s forty-six. Now I know that’s still relatively young, but I had an uncle who died of unexpected heart failure at forty-six, and I just can’t shake the worries that come along with having lost someone I love so young. But I’m not the kind of wife to tell her husband what he can and cannot do, so I just supported him the best I could, and let the worries fester. Last night my husband was out on a run, nothing crazy, maybe four miles, and I got the phone call. Thankfully, it was from him and not an ambulance, and thankfully it was his knee and not his heart. As I helped him hobble to the car, dreams and plans shattered in an instant, I realized how little any of us can plan for anything. We have no idea what’s going to happen today or tomorrow because none of us in control. Sobering thought. And you know what? That’s okay. Because maybe my husband’s blown-out knee might have saved us from something much graver later on. What does this have to do with my insecurities as a writer? Nothing. Everything. Ask yourself this: How can we feel secure about anything when we have control over nothing? I guess that’s where faith and trust come in.

What are you trusting in?

January 2017: Five Year Goal in Review

I can’t believe it’s the last Friday of January, but it is and here we are, at another Five Year Goal Review day. For those of who don’t know what I’m talking about, The Five Year Goal is a monthly blog hop put on by Misha Gerrick (thanks Misha for putting this on!) where you make a long term goal (five years) and work towards it, posting your progress on the last Friday of each month. I started this venture a little over a year ago, so I’m a little vested.

My goal is to have a world class publishing company.

A little history:

My husband and I started Black and White Publishing Co. several years ago, but at that time we did not actively seek out other authors. Honestly, I didn’t think we had anything to offer a person that they couldn’t (with a little time and research) do for themselves. Face it. Today you can hire an editor, a cover designer, someone to format your book, and someone else to market it. In five minute you can upload your book onto Amazon, Nook, Kobo, iTunes and in ten you can be earning royalties, without someone like me taking a cut of anything. I care about authors. I want them to succeed. Why would I stick my hand into something they don’t need me to? And then *Ubooks came along. This is something authors can’t do for themselves. This is something only Black and White can offer. Last Spring we offered our first contract to an author besides me. Now we are up to seven, some with multiple books in contract. This is such an exciting time for us. It’s still in the beginning, still at the top of the hill, still pushing the boulder with two hands, barely inching forward. But it is moving.

I can’t wait to see it fly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Ubooks are a patent pending book format where books are set on video feed with or without audio. Check them out at setbooksfree.org

IWSG: January 2017

Hello everyone. Today’s the first Wednesday of the month, which makes it IWSG time. Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh and co-hosts for putting this on. For those of you new to this concept, IWSG stands for Insecure Writer’s Support Group, and it’s just what it sounds like, a support group for writers. And all writers are insecure; I don’t care what they tell you. We all cringe a little when we read a bad review, all stare at a blank screen from time to time, wondering if “it” has left us.

Neither of those are my issue this month, although I have plenty experience with both. This month I’m struggling with something completely new: with the thought of being done as a writer. Not done, done in the sense of the word, as in I will never write again, more like an honest evaluation thing. For the last two years I’ve only written shorter pieces. I’ve done a few anthologies and a lot of flash, a couple children’s pieces, but that’s about it. I haven’t worked on a full length novel in over two years, and while I do have some ideas floating around (that middle grade fantasy still haunts me), I don’t have any plans to start plugging away at them in the near future. I’ve got other things on my plate. Important things. Things I am purposely choosing. Is this what it feels like to be done?  Has anyone else out there been at this place before?