It's November! My birthday month! But first it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.
Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the IWSG provides a place where writers can air their insecurities and both get and give support to fellow writers. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and put your blog on the linky list.
The optional question: November is National Novel Writing Month. Have you ever participated? If not, why?
I've never fully participated. While running local events for a writer's group, I had several unpleasant experiences with whatever the "official" local folks are who run things under the guise of the overarching group. Ever since then, I've had zero interest in being a part of anything they have to do.
However, I've long done my own version where I set my own rules, especially as I'm primarily a short story author. It started as ShaNoShoStoWriEdSubMo (Shannon's Novel and Short Story Writing, Editing, and Submitting Month). I set my own realistic goals for what I needed to achieve to further my own specific career. This month I'm in a class and I also have novel editing to work on, plus I'll be attending the 20 Books to 50k writing conference in Vegas, so I likely won't be setting any ShaNo goals, but I encourage others to use the energy of NaNo to set their own goals if they don't want to or can't participate in the bigger group. That gathered energy of writers can promote a lot of progress and provide support.
I have some news before I jump in with my October submission stats. October is always a busy month for me (gee, I wonder why), but the below are some things you can enjoy for free!
I was also a guest on two podcasts, both of which went live in the last week:
The Bookshelf Odyssey is an author podcast. You can listen to my conversation with Art at Buzzsprout or search your favorite podcast platform. The video version can be viewed on YouTube.
Paranormal: The New Normal is a paranormal podcast (clearly, haha), so I talked about some experiences from my life. I did previously post the video of this, but it is now out on podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple.
I also did a reading of one of my unpublished stories, "The Pitter Patter of Little Feet" for Stories Live! The theme was: The future is dark. You can view it on YouTube. (If you're interested in reading on one of the monthly episodes, let me know on here and I'll connect you with Amy Armstrong, who puts these together and hosts them.
Okay, time for my submission stats for October. I do this each month with my IWSG post in order to keep myself accountable.
2 acceptances
1 request to send a new story
1 publication release
7 rejections
11 submissions
20 stories currently on submission
8 stories in limbo until I have time to sit down, research, and submit
Are you submitting? Any submission news? What are your insecurities? Are you participating in NaNoWriMo?
I also did a live reading of my Lupercalia/Valentine's horror piece, Blind Date from Happy Ghoulidays, which is available on YouTube to watch: Stories Live! Love Kills.
To thank everyone who allowed me to be a guest during my book launch for The Business of Short Stories, my beta readers, and those who helped in other ways, I invited them to send me something they'd like to share. Following are their books or blog posts they wanted to share, and hopefully a great way to pick up a new read!
Toi Thomas writes clean adult fiction and nonfiction, as well as writes and illustrates picture books. Click here to see a book trailer for her picture books. Her latest release is Why Are You Afraid?, a book that helps parents start the race conversation with their kids.
When a prominent Pismawallops Island businessman drops dead at JJ’s feet in the Have-A-Bite Bakery, there’s more on the line than catching a murderer. Can JJ save the bakery—and maintain her supply of espresso brownies?
Thank you to these folks and everyone else who helped!
Chrys Fey is doing a reading challenge this year that I intend to take part in. The Read with Fey Challenge asks that you read 10 books for writers in 2022. It started January 1 and will go through December 31.
Read with Fey: Reading Challenge for Writers
You don't have to read 10 books for writers. Set your own goal! I likely won't make it to 10, as nonfiction books take me longer to read and I have other nonfiction books to read this year, so I'm going to set my goal for 5 books for writers.
Hashtags for the challenge: #ReadWithFey #ReadWithFey2022
There's no sign up, but she does have an option for you to add yourself to the storygraph she's created. Read more at Write with Fey.
And, hey, my book counts as a book for writers, so if you've picked it up or plan to, that's one down!
Speaking of which, I have more formats available for The Business of Short Stories now, most of which are at this Books2Read universal link. For some reason I've had a lot of problem getting the Books2Read link to auto-populate, so I've had to manually add a bunch of the links. It doesn't show on this link, but the book is also available from Walmart. Check out my Publications tab for more direct links.
Are you participating in Chrys's challenge? Do you already have some books you're interested in reading for it? Have you read any of the books in this post?
It's the first Wednesday in October, so it's time again for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.
Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, this group serves to seek and provide reassurance for our insecurities. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and put your blog on the sign-up list.
This week's optional question is: In your writing, where do you draw the line, with either topics or language?
I don't have many hard and fast lines. In writing horror, there are lines I'll cross that others might not, but there are also places I don't want to tread, such as pedophilia. In terms of language, I won't say words I wouldn't say in real life, such as racist terms, and I don't aim to put in a bunch of profanity, but I do cuss in real life, so it will show up in my writing some. I tend to keep it mostly clean except for the lesser cuss words, though. Short version: I try not to set too many hard limits in advance. If I write something that makes me too uncomfortable or that won't sell, I'll remove it.
As far as insecurities, October tends to be my busy month for appearances (horror and all...), and this year is no different. But I've found that being home for a year without really going anywhere or seeing anyone undid all the progress I'd made with being around other people. It doesn't come naturally for me to be outgoing and be able to talk to people. I'm very introverted, though I enjoy presenting, which makes no sense. So my insecurities are about whether or not I can still pull off the appearances and make them look natural, rather than being stressed. I think I did well at my first appearance of the month this past weekend at MileHiCon, so that's good.
Speaking of which, I had three panels and one reading. The reading was in a genre I don't write (utopian), so I wrote a flash piece that was utopian, but still had a touch of horror (utopia gone wrong). I was nervous all weekend until I read it, but got positive feedback, so shew. The panels all went well. I was moderator on two of them, and we had some good conversations about overused tropes, short stories, and revisiting childhood favorites.
I've got two more online appearances this month, so if you're interested you can attend from anywhere. I'll be doing a reading (story TBD) online via Stories Live Wednesday, October 20, at 7:00 PM, along with several other people. This is FREE on YouTube! You can access the page on my appearances tab, and I'll post about it on my Facebook that day. It does stay online, so I'll add the video to my appearances tab once it airs, too. Also, I'm doing a horror panel Saturday, October 16, from 12:30 to 3:30 PM with some awesome horror writers, but this one is $20 and will be via Zoom. The link for this is also on my appearances tab, if you're interested. It's put on by Pikes Peak Writers.
Time for stats! I post my submission stats each month to keep on top of things. In September, my stats were:
10 submissions
10 rejections
Sent 2 queries on stories that had been out for a long time
Pulled 1 story after not hearing back on the query (the other one was a rejection)
Currently have 24 submissions out
Not a ton to report, but it feels good to be back in the groove. Work is progressing on my NF WIP and I finished one short story and one piece of flash fiction. I'd like to get a short story done each week on top of the non-fiction book work, but there's been a lot going on, so I'm not going to beat myself up.
How about you? Are you getting work done? Any submissions? How about acceptances? What are your insecurities?
Hi guys! I have a live reading tonight via YouTube. Stephen Graham Jones and Jeamus Wilkes will also be reading, and The Dollhouse Thieves will be performing. The theme is Ghostly Campfire Edition. You can CLICK HERE to go to the YouTube channel. It starts at 7 PM MT tonight. By the way, there's a Facebook page you can join if you want to know about upcoming readings. I think they're every month. There's a Hot for Teacher theme coming up soon. These are run by Amy Armstrong.
My husband and I celebrated our 24 year anniversary last week. We went out for a late night dinner on the patio of a local restaurant. Maybe next year we can take a little trip for our 25th. It's the first time I've worn makeup and dressy clothes in MONTHS!
About a month ago, I put notice in at my day job. Friday was my last day, so I've officially embarked on a dedicated writing schedule. It's time I focus more on my writing and see what I can do right now while I get my health under control.
I've taken inspiration from Becky Clark, who wrote Eight Weeks to a Complete Novel: Write Faster, Write Better, Be More Organized. While I haven't read the book yet, I did take a half-day workshop she taught based on her book. The thing about Becky is that she's highly organized and she gets her words in. She mentioned the other day that she writes Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Wednesdays she cleans her house and tends to chores, errands, and appointments. While she and I have very different writing methods, this particular idea will be incredibly helpful for a variety of reasons:
*With my ADHD, I tend to get overwhelmed if there's a lot to do, and I basically meltdown and get nothing whatsoever done, because it takes work to pare it down to what I should do right now. I've found lists and schedules to be helpful with this. Having a regular ongoing schedule and routine should help even more.*As a mom, I tend to feel guilty if I'm not tending to household things and spending some good time with my kids. This method of scheduling will ensure I don't give up writing until I've cleaned the house, that I get both of those things done, and that I have evenings and weekends to spend with the kids without having to feel guilty because I'm not writing.
The tweaks I'm doing to work on my health and ensure I don't overdo things, but that I get physical movement in (by the way, she does have a scheduling method in the book that includes getting exercise in) are:
1.Doing sun salutations before breakfast. To break back into yoga, which I think will ultimately help with the fibromyalgia and my other physical issues, I'm starting with the easy stuff to get in the habit and improve my flexibility. I used to be incredibly flexible before a chiropractor screwed up my neck and the rest of my spine.
2.Starting my day with breakfast and no restrictions on how I relax while having breakfast. A problem at the day job was that my sleep schedule is incredibly messed up, and I was constantly waking up with just enough time to get to work, which meant no breakfast, and usually no food until a late dinner. Since my job picked up during the pandemic and I was filling in as a server (my regular job was as a bookkeeper), I wasn't feeding my family until 9 at night, since I got off at about 8:30. This isn't helpful for someone with a permanent migraine (not eating protein steadily or hydrating well enough can lead to a major increase in the migraine). When I did have breakfast, I'd shove it down so fast and rush off. It's not healthy (and yes, I get a lot of people do this, and it's not healthy for any of them). So now I have no time limit, and I can peruse Facebook, read, play a game on my phone, or watch TV.
3.Reading a craft book and spending some time outside. I'm currently reading Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott. I've never read it before. Monday, my first day on the new schedule, I made myself chai with this new mix I found, and read the introduction to the book. I haven't just been outside in the sun this entire spring and summer. I thrive in the outdoors. I don't metabolize Vitamin D well. It's time for some sun!
4.Setting a daily word count and writing until I meet it. Once I've read a chapter and had my time in the sun, it's writing time. Right now, I start on the back porch with my writing. My daily count is 2000 words. I have to reach that count before I stop for the day, but if I want to continue past those 2000 words, I can.
5. I haven't started this one yet, because I'm trying to establish the routine right now, but I intend to set a timer for every hour so I can get up and do about five minutes of exercise. When it's nice out, that will be a quick walk around the block. If it's not nice outside, it might be climbing the stairs, walking around the house, or finding a quick office workout video online.
6. Attending to writing business items once the word count is done. This includes my newsletter, blog, various updates on social media, record keeping, and anything else having to do with business.
I'll work out the rest as I go. I'll also be adding a walk in the evenings come next week. And Sundays will soon be recording days for podcasts. We're hoping to launch in October, and we've got our first topic researched and ready to go. I do still have a volunteer job that takes time and creative energy, but that ends at the end of September. I could have waited until then, but I'd rather have all of this started before then. Saturdays are free time. I may actually get back to my photography and scrapbooking, and I want to take a weekly hike with my kids, weather permitting. Right now, we've been running in the 90s, so it's too hot for hikes, but we'll hit the sweet spot soon, and this being Colorado and high desert, there will be sporadic nice days throughout winter, too. I've downloaded an app that pulls up nearby trails and rates them by how hard they are, so hopefully I can discover some new trails I haven't already used. I already have a go-to for when time is limited, and I know how to make it the time I need it to be.
The thing about fibromyalgia is that you need to build yourself up to physical activity and get into better shape in order to get some relief, but you have to do it just right so you don't cause a flareup, which then sets you back however long that flareup lasts. This has been a nasty cycle for me for the last year and a half. The longer I'm forced to sit out, the worse shape I get into. Last winter I was walking everywhere, exercising regularly, and twenty pounds lighter. I've since had two flareups, the first massive, the second one not as bad, but that's the one I'm trying to pull myself out of. I'm incredibly excited to finally have the opportunity to focus on that instead of it being a peripheral hope.
So that's my big update right now. I figured I share it in case there are parts of it anyone else can use.
Recent Media
Books
The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern
This was a lusciously written book full of magic and romance, but also intrigue and grief. The author says she writes fairy tales, and I'd say that what's left behind in my mind. I'd been considering reading this for a while, but when a speaker quoted bits of it in a workshop, I decided I needed to read it sooner rather than later. Absolutely gorgeous book.
Spark Joy, by Marie Kondo
Someone at work loaned this to me. It's a lovely, relaxing, peaceful book, even if it doesn't all work for you. I can say there are things I'm not interested in trying, but there are other things I'm definitely going to try to use or to tweak so that they're usable for me. But honestly, she's just a such a sweet person, and it's a great back porch or beach read. She's all about bringing positive energy about.
Vegan Baking for Beginners: 75 Recipes for Sweet & Savory Treats, by J.L. Fields
My daughter is the only one who used this, so far, but she made the spiced sugar cookies then decorated them as characters from her favorite show Daganronpa. These cookies were so good! J.L. is a local vegan author, who does food shows and knows her stuff. She has several sets of recipe books for vegans. Though I'm not vegan, I am egg and dairy free, and I find it relaxing to be able to cook or bake something I know is safe. I also try to make vegetarian/vegan meals regularly.
TV Shows
In the Dark
This show is about a blind woman who finds her friend's body in an alley. By the time the police arrive, there's no body. They don't believe her. She sets out to not only prove her friend is dead, but to find his killer. She and her friends become embroiled in a situation they could never have imagined. This is my current binge watch. I'm often not a fan of self-damaging characters, but the emphasis on that was lessened as the show moved forward. But I will warn you that she is a very damaged character at the beginning, and self-destructive.
New Girl
I need something a bit fluffier to watch, too. This wasn't something I watched when it was originally out, but I decided to give it a second try. The things that irritated me the first time I tried it didn't bother me this time, though I get frustrated with characters who do stupid stuff all the time. Luckily, the stupid things they play for laughs aren't overdone (most of the time), and this show makes me laugh out loud, which is something I think we all need right now. It's about a set of immature roommates who bring in a new roommate: Jess. The manic pixie dreamgirl thing was being overdone with her at the time this show came out, which annoyed me at the time. Now I find her endearing.
Podcasts
Small Town Dicks
If you're familiar with The Simpsons, you'll know who Yeardley Smith is (or Herman's Head, for those few of you who also watched that along with me). She's teamed up with two detectives to discuss true crime in small towns. They bring on the detectives involved in each case, as well. There's something kind of fun about hearing Lisa Simpson talking about true crime.
Movies
Meh. Nothing exciting to put here.
Music Videos
That's all for today, folks! What are you watching? Reading? Listening to? What have you been doing to cope with things? What's your reading schedule?
