#IWSG – Inspiration

Hello all! It’s the first Wednesday of the month and we know what that means:

It’s time for another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group – #IWSG.

My hero, the amazing Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh founded this group and it has become a safe haven if you are an insecure writer.

Click the image if you would like to be a part of the #IWSG family. You won’t regret it.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.

 

The awesome co-hosts for the May 2 posting of the IWSG are E.M.A. Timar, J. Q. Rose, C.Lee McKenzie, and Raimey Gallant!

 

May 2 question – It’s spring! Does this season inspire you to write more than others, or not?

I can’t say that it does. The inspiration strikes when it strikes, although I fare better during the winter holidays. I started writing again a couple of weeks ago and it’s all been based on a dream I had. That makes me happy because I was beginning to worry. The ideas hadn’t been coming as often as they used to. I think I was stressing over it too much. 

Happy May everyone and let me know what season inspires you the most. 

 

 

#IWSG – GENRES AND WRITING FOR PROFIT

Hello all! It’s the first Wednesday of the month and we know what that means:

It’s time for another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group – #IWSG.

My hero, the amazing Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh founded this group and it has become a safe haven if you are an insecure writer.

Click the image if you would like to be a part of the #IWSG family. You won’t regret it.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.

 

The awesome co-hosts for the February 7 posting of the IWSG are Stephen Tremp, Pat Garcia, Angela Wooldridge, Victoria Marie Lees, and Madeline Mora-Summonte!

So, I missed last month’s posting. Again. After being culled from the previous list I swore I wouldn’t miss any posts once I ‘re-upped’. I have work to do in that department. I let so many factors, like health and life, get in the middle of my blogging. I miss it terribly. I started this blog about a year and a half after my bleed and it was my lifeline. It was my sanity in an otherwise cruel (what I thought) existence. I ‘met’ so many wonderful people and formed great online friendships. I miss that so much. 

I’ll be writing a post on My Miracle Life at some point later this week about things that are going on. I see a light at the end of a long tunnel, but that’s another post.

I don’t want anyone to think I’ve forgotten about them because I haven’t. Just know I’ve missed you all.

February 7 question – What do you love about the genre you write in most often?   

That’s a tough question to answer since I enjoy all types of genres and always find myself dabbling in a variety. I haven’t written any stories or novels recently. I have my one novel that’s about 80% completed and in rough draft form and some unfinished short stories. Of course, the stories rejected in the past don’t count. I have a few of those. 😦

I have, however, been writing for a site that pays for my work. It’s not much, but it gets me writing and keeps me focused and responsible. If there are any new writers looking to make a few dollars, the site is called Textbroker. You can sign up and they will ask you for a writing sample. Once reviewed, you will get a star rating. The higher the stars, the more you get paid. Easy-peasy.

By the way, today is my fifth anniversary with WordPress! How the time flies.

Have an awesome IWSG day!! 

#IWSG – LIFE AND WRITER’S BLOCK

Hello, all. For most of today, I thought it was Tuesday, but it’s actually the first Wednesday of the month and we know what that means:

It’s time for another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group – #IWSG.

My hero, the amazing Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh founded this group and it has become a safe haven if you are an insecure writer.

Click the image if you would like to be a part of the #IWSG family. You won’t regret it.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.

 

The awesome co-hosts for the April 5 posting of the IWSG will be Christopher D. Votey, Madeline Mora-Summonte, Fundy Blue, and Chrys Fey!

 

Please take a moment to thank them for their hard work this month.

 

To be honest, I haven’t been able to do much as far as writing. It seems that everything comes in spurts for me, the most recent being medical and therapy related. But I know some of it is due to writer’s block. I’ll stare at the screen trying to figure out what to write, but then my mind wanders to all the things going on in my life.

 

I keep a notebook by my bed because I’ve had some weird dreams and was hoping to write the ideas when I woke up, but they’re forgotten by then. But I know they were good. 

 

I’ve managed to get a lot of reading done and that keeps me from bouncing off the walls. Other than that, there hasn’t been much in the way of writing excitement. 😦

 

April 5 Question: Have you taken advantage of the annual A to Z Challenge in terms of marketing, networking, publicity for your book? What were the results? Unfortunately I’m not participating in this year’s A-Z Challenge and I don’t have a book (yet), so this doesn’t apply to me.

When life gets complicated and writing suffers, what do you do to ease some of the stress?

 

 

 

#IWSG – EXPERIENCE AS WRITER VS. READER

Hello, all! It’s the first Wednesday of the month and we know what that means:

It’s time for another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group – #IWSG.

The amazing Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh founded this group and it has become a safe haven if you are an insecure writer.

Click the image if you would like to be a part of the #IWSG family. You won’t regret it.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.

The awesome co-hosts for the February 1 posting of the IWSG are Misha Gericke, LK Hill, Juneta Key, Christy and Joylene Buter!

Make sure you take a moment to thank them for their hard work!!

February 1 Question: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?

A lot of what I learned about writing I learned from members of this very same group. Whereas I used to read just for the joy of it (obviously, I still do), now I pay closer attention to things like POV, writing style, depth of characters, etc.

I’ll read a book and make mental notes of things I do and don’t want to include in my writing. What are elements of the story that stick out to me? Are certain passages or elements critical to moving the story forward, or are they superfluous incidentals that don’t add value?

Critical thinking is key to developing your own style. It’s one of the reasons I read from various authors and genres.

What about you? How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?

 

 

 

#IWSG – HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hello, all! It’s the first Wednesday of the month and we know what that means:

It’s time for another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group – #IWSG.

My hero, the amazing Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh founded this group and it has become a safe haven if you are an insecure writer.

Click the image if you would like to be a part of the #IWSG family. You won’t regret it.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak.

Co-hosts for the January 4 posting of the IWSG are Crystal Collier, Sheena-kay Graham, Chemist Ken, LG Keltner,  Heather Gardner, and yours truly!!

First off, Happy New Year to everyone! Hope your holidays were spectacular!

 

January 4 Question: What writing rule do you wish you’d never heard?

I always have trouble with active vs. passive voice. More often than I care to admit, I’m guilty of using passive voice in a lot of my writing. Using passive voice leads to excessive word usage and vaguer sentences. Using active voice provides more ‘pop’ to your writing. Thankfully, the programs I use all let me know when I’m using passive instead of active voice. I re-write the sentences to make them active which makes it frustrating and time-consuming.

Mind you, an occasional passive sentence is fine with me, but I need work on using active voice more often. In everyday conversation, I speak with an active voice (obviously) :), but in my writing, it seems to be the opposite. How sad is that, considering this is probably rule #1! How I wish there were no difference!

What writing rule pushes your buttons?