writing

A few years back I was invited to join a group website. I’ll leave out the name because it’s not important. I created an account, a very basic one, and ignored it. The only reason I did it in the first place was people I knew asked me to be in the group. I felt guilty, like I needed to help them out, so I joined.

Every once in awhile, I’d get a request and accept the invite. This past week, I got another one. I decided to investigate the site a little further and looked at my old profile. I had no idea what I wrote so I thought it would be a good idea to update. Since I write, I thought joining a few writers’ groups wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

Well, little did I know, I would start getting emails from every group within the hour. I know I can elect to not have them sent, but I was curious. I might learn something new, discover fresh ideas and make some connections.

So far, this is what I learned. Someone sold a book and didn’t get paid. They wanted to know what piracy was. What? Trust me. That’s exactly what it said.

Not to get into details, but people politely posted questions to help this person out. They asked: How did this person know they sold a book? Answer: Someone told them they bought a book.

Do they have a contract? Do they get paid quarterly? Never answered.

Did they independently publish? Many helpful facts were given about how self-published authors get paid. Again, the poster never answered.

I sat back and took a deep breath. I asked myself what did you get yourself into? I thought professionals and aspiring authors would be sharing information. Hopefully better topics will be come up in the future.

Then I reread the post. Was it about the excitement of selling a book or did this person just want to get paid? They weren’t overjoyed they sold their book? That someone wanted to read it?

If you write to get a payday, then you might be in the wrong profession. Maybe the top 1% can call it their passion and their career.

So if you write, write because you love it. Not that someone will buy your book and you’re waiting to get paid.

I don’t want someone to just buy my book. It would make my day if they read it.

 

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Kudos and high praise to the bloggers who keep coming up with great topics and ideas for their blogs. I have to admit at times I draw a blank. And, no, the next sentence of this post will not be “and today is one of those days”.

Instead I want to give a shout out to all bloggers, whether I follow you or not or just read you here and there. Some of you blog daily. High fives to you. Others are consistently clever or funny. I marvel at the ability. I strive for humor once in a great while and hope to succeed.

Then there’s the group who can turn words into poetry or find great quotes to back up their thoughts. I wish I had that talent. I fumble around when someone asks, “What’s your favorite song?” To be fair, I never liked that question. Hard to have just one, isn’t it? But to be able to pull quotes from the air or write like a song is quite a gift.

Another group of bloggers I enjoy are the ones who give advice I’m looking for. Now I know we don’t like people telling us what to do but when you go looking for it…that’s a completely different matter.

I look for writing help, editing ideas, promotions that work and other nuggets that will help me in my writing endeavors. I have a special folder created for all the ones I like and want to read again.

I researched “ideas for blogs” and read all the helpful hints. Stick to popular topics, add categories and tags, blog often. It’s a lot of work. I promised myself I would try to blog once a week when I started. Will I stick to that promise? I’ll try but decided to give myself a break. There’s no real handbook for bloggers.

One thing I can say, blogging keeps me on my toes. Sometimes a phrase catches my eye or I’ll read something in the newspaper or see something on-line and think, “I have to blog about that”. I’ve been introduced to some great blogs from people who follow me. I go to their site and read their posts. So many interesting points of view in our world.

Is blogging hard work? A little more difficult than I first imagined. Will I give up? No, I don’t think so. I see it as a challenge. I’ve met new people through it. I’ve read and learned things I never would have if I didn’t start.

So kudos to you, fellow bloggers. Keep up the good work. Keep writing. Someone might find your blog one day, read it and unknowingly you may help them in some way or make their day.

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Pavarotti was talking about the advice he got from his father when he couldn’t decide between teaching and singing. His father told him, “Son, if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. For life, you must choose one chair.”

I love that message. His father wasn’t rich or famous but gave great advice. Too often in this fast paced world, people want things handed to them or become an overnight sensation. The easier it is, the better.

When I first started writing my book, I kept telling myself I was crazy. I researched how many words a book should have and found 60,000 to 100,000 as the common answer. I decided if I made the commitment, I’d stick it out till the end, regardless the outcome.

I wrote, researched, and read each chapter over and over again. I had no idea how many words it was because I decided that wasn’t important. The essential thing was to get the words on the paper. Worry about the small stuff later.

I finally gave in and used the tool bar to click “word count”. Imagine my surprise when I had 55,000 words and wasn’t nearly done. I chose one chair and stuck to it. More stepping stones would come along after the book was written but I had met the challenge. As I continued on, each task needed to be handled with that same mindset. One chair at a time.

The message is clear. Stick to one thing and do it well. If you don’t love what you’re doing, try to see it through to the end. You never know what might happen and you could end up liking it. Can you change your mind and follow a different path? Absolutely. Just do it one chair at a time.

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working_class_heroThis post is dedicated to my fellow writers…whether you write novels, short stories, screen plays, blog or secretly write for yourself…don’t give up. I recently read a sad entry. An author with my same publisher blogged she would no longer write anymore of her series. Her words were from the heart and as I read I felt the pain.

She said she wasn’t in it for the money, she just wanted some interest. I think all writers feel that same way. You want someone to notice your work.

Before I read that post, I had begun to analyze this new world of books. So much is out there…self-published books, books with small press publishers and books with the big guys. The last group gets the most attention and publicity. The little guys struggle to get noticed.

When I started feeling sorry for myself, I thought about the entertainment industry. If you think about it, movies have just a handful of stars. Some of them make two or three films a year. Only those chosen few get to make the big blockbusters. Same goes for music or any creative art. These people are stars because of talent, word of mouth, being in the right place at the right time or just plain luck.

I decided the rest of us are working class heroes. We may have to try harder even though our work is just as good or better.

Creativity is a very solitary thing. You have to look inward to find it but maybe it’s time to look around. Let’s open our eyes. Yeah, I’m guilty of reading the next best seller or watching that blockbuster movie just like the next person.

I recently read some self-published books when I became a reviewer. I never would have if it wasn’t part of the job. Some of those books were quite good, others not so much but that’s how it is for everything, right? I’m glad I was exposed to something I never would have explored on my own. It’s encouraged me to explore some more.

I try to read other author friends’ books and support them. If I feel someone would enjoy those books, I recommend them. Just a drop in the bucket, but any drop will do.

So get the word out. Tell people about new or up-and-coming authors, a blog you like or a small play you went to. Browse the internet for on-line publishers and see what books they offer. Read book reviews of other bloggers and follow through on their recommendations.

Let’s not let another author who is talented and has much to give the world, give up. I know there’s too much information out there these days. We’re in an information overload society and I think we let the media tell us what’s good because it’s easy. We’re forgetting to think for ourselves.

We are the working class heroes and guess what? It’s a very large group. We could make a difference.

 

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I’m in the middle of edits for my second book. Since I don’t drink coffee or smoke cigarettes I can’t paint you a picture of my desk filled with those things. No coffee rings or a collection of half-filled mugs surround me. A cup of tea is more my style.

Writing is a lonely job, but when I start edits, it feels like someone else is now involved in my story. First instinct is to say, “How dare you?”  After careful consideration some suggestions make sense.

Writing is subjective. What one person loves, another may not. I recently had an author friend get a not-so-great review. She sent me an email to cry on my shoulder. She was hurt. We, authors, are sensitive souls and want everyone to love our work.

I read the review, and because it wasn’t about my book, I tried to find the positives…like in editing. There were a few comments that could be turned around into constructive criticism but I came to the conclusion the book wasn’t for this particular reader. It wasn’t her cup of tea. The author’s book has 20 other good reviews, so again, it’s subjective.

Editing has a place in all our lives. Sometimes we need someone to point out mistakes and we need to fix them. Sometimes, not. I think it’s how we go about it that makes the difference.

Funny how doing a simple thing like editing can make you start thinking about life in general. How you treat people. Is it okay to edit them? Sure, as long as we accept some editing in our own lives. It’s just how you go about it.

The next time you want to write an unkind review or critique a friend’s choices or give an opinion, you may want to edit that comment before it gets put out there in the world. It’s all in the way you say it. Look for the positive. You may make someone’s day.

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They start off in caterpillar form and are juicy dinner for birds, lizards and even small mammals. It’s amazing they make it to the next stage, forming a cocoon. They’re in that stage for about two weeks but have the ability to stay that way throughout the winter. The butterfly emerges as an entirely different creature than its caterpillar form.

When I taught third grade, we learned about the four stages of a butterfly as part of the science curriculum. My colleague and I worked as a team so we came up with the not-so-creative idea of folding a white sheet of paper into four parts and have the children label and draw in each square. Those would proudly be displayed on the wall outside our classrooms.

One day after school, she was hanging those designs titled Four Stages of a Butterfly so they would be ready for Open House the next night. I admired the works of art as I went along the hallway. Imagine my surprise when I came across one that said Four Stages of a Buttfly. We had a good laugh and she thanked me profusely for catching the mistake.

Butterflies have always been a part of my life, whether chasing them as a child or teaching about them at school. It’s not surprising they are now important in another way. I like to include them in my books because they’ve taken on a whole new meaning.

A Monarch visits almost every August on my birthday. I’ve come to believe it’s my dad stopping by with good wishes. A few times it didn’t come and that’s okay. It’s all in my mind anyway, right? How could something like that be true?

One year, after my birthday and no sighting, imagine my surprise when one flew right at my car’s windshield so I couldn’t miss seeing it. It was as if Dad was saying, “See, I didn’t forget.”

As a writer, I like to tuck things away in my books that others may discover and wonder if there’s a little significance to their find. Butterflies are one of those wonders. And now you know why.

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Do yprincess-and-the-peaou ever wake in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep? Your mind is going ninety miles a minute? I used to dread when it happened and called it The Princess and the Pea syndrome.

You know the old story. A wife is needed for a prince and his mother piles stacks of mattresses on top of each other. Under the bottom one, she places a pea. If the girl feels the pea during the night, she’s the next princess!

The one, true princess finally comes to town and spends the night on the mattress tower. She, of course, cannot sleep because the pea keeps her awake all night. I wouldn’t have slept for fear of falling off the bed, but that’s another story.

So now you can see why I’ve labeled sleepless nights as The Princess and the Pea syndrome. If I tell my husband that, he immediately knows I tossed and turned all night.

Since I’ve started writing my mind wakes me up more than when I taught. Instead of labeling it a curse, I’ve decided to look at it as a blessing. It’s when I do my best thinking.

My husband informed me I should keep a pad and pencil under my bed to write my thoughts down so I don’t forget. Easy for him to say as he snores away and I’m searching for my glasses in the dark. Ever try to write in the dark? It looks like a five-year-olds, who’s just learning to write. It’s crooked, overlaps and is much larger than your usual printing.

So when I have to really write something, I slip into the bathroom, flip on the light, sit on the edge of the tub or pull down the toilet seat and begin to jot down my thoughts. In the morning I admonish myself for writing like I was still in the dark.

Usually the mind calms down after writing. I also remind myself that I can sleep in now, no more alarm clocks. Sometimes it works. Other times, I think someone snuck in while I was in the bathroom writing and stuck a pea…just one tiny little one…under my mattress.

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