Thank You!

I just wanted to say a quick Thank You!  

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles
 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

My Beginnings Blogfest was more of a success than I ever expected, and it's thanks to all of my wonderful readers.  When I decided to host my first blogfest, I worried that no one would participate.  In the end, more than fifty people took part, and the posts were all fabulous!  I learned so much about the awesome bloggers that make the blogosphere the wonderful community it is.  I even met some new faces, and that's always a good thing.

For those of you who couldn't participate but took the time to read what your fellow bloggers had to say, you deserve a pat on the back too.  Your kind words of encouragement are  always inspiring!

Beginnings Blogfest

The last of the sun’s dying rays have just winked out of existence beneath the corn-leaf horizon of the farmer’s field next door.  As I stealthily move across the yard, peeking behind every tree trunk and lawn chair with the gusto that only a twelve-year-old can bring to the task, I move closer to my escape into space.  Above my head, the stars are just beginning to awaken from their daytime slumber, and they bring with them the promise of my escape. 

I hear a hint of my mother’s voice, which causes my body to freeze in place.  For several terrified moments, I hold my breath to be sure that nothing I am doing will give away my location.  After a few more words drift across the shadow-strewn yard, I heave a silent sigh of relief.  Her voice is emanating from the kitchen window, and I am confident that the tree I am nearest to is currently obstructing me from her vision. 

Several sly strides bring me at last to my goal.  The ladder that leans against the garage is within my grasp, and the old familiar texture of the splintered wood against the skin of my palms brings me a sense of reassurance that few other things could.  The straps of my tattered book bag strain against my shoulders as I proceed in a vertical trajectory up the antiquated rungs.  All that I need is present and accounted for, and that list is fully present in my mind the entire time I am ascending that ladder.

Writing notebook.

Flashlight with extra batteries.

Three pencils (a writer can never be too careful).

Beautiful star-strewn sky.

This is the first page of a 30 page paper I wrote in college (the assignment called for 15).  For this assignment, I took on the task of analyzing how I became a writer.  I decided to open it with a scene out of my childhood.    Looking at it now, I see that I was trying too hard with the language, and were I writing it now, I'd do it differently.  Yet, I felt it would be more honest to share this segment as I originally wrote it.  

Growing up, I did sneak up to the garage roof to write, because I found the view inspiring.  My escapades scared my mother every time, so I had to be covert.  I had to seek inspiration.  I had to write.  I carried a writing notebook with me everywhere, even at school.  I was taunted all the time for this, but I couldn't give it up.  I loved writing too much to change.  I had to be able to write everywhere I went.

Unfortunately, I let the cruel words haunt me.  Though I kept writing, I shuddered at the thought of putting my writing out there to be scrutinized. What if people made fun of the writing as much as they'd made fun of me?  I lost a lot of time, because I used those insecurities as a shield.

Yet, here I am.  I have officially been blogging for one year.  I'm hosting my first blogfest.  Now that I've realized how great this community is, I often wish I started this blog years ago.  I studied writing in college, and I graduated in 2008.  Realistically I could have been blogging for a lot longer than I have been, but I was scared.  I didn't know what I wanted my blog to look like.  Why would anyone want to read my words?  I didn't have a clue how to move past my fears.

Sometimes it takes a hard dose of reality to push us forward.  And reality hit me hard.  My mom died at the age of 47, and I had no choice but to confront my own mortality.  The assumption that we have all the time in the world is illusory. We need to grab hold of our dreams and make them happen now.  So, after considering matters, I finally decided to start this blog.  I didn't know what to say, so I just started writing. 

Here's my first blog entry.

So . . . Why Do This?

Here I am, an aspiring writer for the majority of my life.  I wrote my first novel when I was 7.  It was 120 pages of rambling mess, but it was a beginning.  I haven't stopped since, though I have yet to be paid for doing it.  Instead I've worked jobs that I don't like, telling myself that I can leave when my writing career takes off.  Well, I'm getting tired of waiting for that day, so it's time to light a fire under my seat and really give this thing a shot. 

I am also a mother of two boys.  One is almost 3, the other is 8 months.  The two of them frequently drive me to the brink of insanity.  At least I say that until I remember that, as an aspiring writer (of science fiction no less), a great many of us were never quite right in the head to begin with.  Anyway, that hardly matters.  I love my family to death, and because of that, I feel I need to make this career path work, for them and for my own sanity (or lack thereof). 

So, hopefully this blog will give me a chance to keep my writing skills sharp, rant so I don't have to let all my frustration loose on my poor husband (though I'm sure he'll still get some of it), and hold myself accountable for everything that I promise myself that I'll do regarding my writing.  After all, when  there's a public record, it's harder to lie to yourself. 

Since I want to do this in a serious way, I took some time in choosing the title for this blog.  As any writer knows, titles mean everything.  You have a few short words to persuade a potential reader to take time to hear what you have to say.  People value their time and money enough to be cautious about this.  As an aspiring writer (meaning my income is meager at best at this point) and frenzied mother, I can understand this. Anyway, I selected the title "Writing Off the Edge" because I often feel like I'm writing myself off the edge with frustration.  The creative process is a tricky thing.  My stories often don't come out on the page like I wish they would, and it's my job to make them work.  Sometimes they refuse.  I also like the idea of going outside convention when you can, though I can't say I always do this successfully. Sometimes coloring outside the lines, or writing off the edge of the page, can be frightening, but when it's done well, it can be very rewarding. 

Well, that's my spiel.  It's the new year, which means I have a resolution to uphold. Time to get back to that story I'm working on.  Well, after I feed my kids dinner, anyway. 

This first attempt at blogging was hardly poetic or world-changing for those who might have read it, but it changed my world.  In writing this, I made a declaration to myself.  I declared that I wouldn't deny what I've known for my whole life.  I am a writer.  Each time I return to this blog, I'm making that declaration all over again.

Thanks to all of you who've joined me on my journey!  You've been wonderful.

Studying for Success

First of all, I'd like to thank Kyra Lennon for hosting the Christmas Dress-Up Contest.  I won the prize for the silliest photo, and the prize for that was a $15 Amazon gift card.  This is an awesome time of year to win such a prize, and I promise I already put it to good use!  Congratulations to the other winners as well!  There were some great photos out there.  If you haven't seen my photo, you can find it here.

The last week before Christmas means that this is also the last week before my husband gets more than a week off work.  He deserves it though.  He's been working overtime, so he needs the break.  However, I also need to make the most of the week ahead, because as we all know, changes in the daily routine make productivity iffy.  Some of you will find yourselves with more time to read and write over the remaining holiday season.  I, however, will find myself with less.  Yet never fear.  I intend to make the most of the time I get with my family next week.

However, for now I should focus on the week ahead rather than what will be happening next week.  I just finished reading On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King.  This book was fun, informative, and helped me think a lot about the choices I make as a writer.  Next I plan to read Zen in the Art of Writing: Essays on Creativity by Ray Bradbury.  I have always been a huge fan of Bradbury, and as a relatively unaccomplished writer, I could use all the help I can get.

Aside from my reading this week, I also plan to take part in the Build Me a Blog-Hop.  This event is hosted by the ever awesome David Powers King.  If you want an avatar, blog banner, or new blog background, head on over to see how you might be able to win one of those coveted prizes!

So, yeah, that's my plan for this week.  Read, write, blog hop, take care of the family, and wait for December 22nd to roll around.  I can't wait to prove once and for all that the Mayan calendar had to end somewhere, and that ending doesn't mean the end of the world.  After all, how long were the Mayans supposed to keep writing out their calendar?  Dang, they'd have to run out of room (or end up with severe hand cramp) eventually!

And after we get past that predicted apocalypse, you'll have my Beginnings Blogfest waiting for you on the other side!  Head on over to sign up if you haven't already!  If you do sign up, you have two fabulous badges to choose from!  You know one of them would look amazing on your blog, right?

P.S.-Pleiades, you tend to go MIA this time of year.  Please stick it out for this week at least!

The DejaVu Blogfest and a Blogfest Reminder

I just discovered the DejaVu blogfest a few hours ago.  Having already gone through the process of resurrecting a post once this year, I knew there were other posts worth bringing to the surface.  Thanks to DL Hammons for giving me the excuse to shine a light on another post that's been buried by the passage of time.

Now, before I post my actual entry for this blogfest, I wanted to mention another post that I seriously considered using in case any of you are curious about it.  The runner up I considered using was a flash fiction piece called "A Complicated Suicide."  This piece turned out to be funny in just the right way, and I enjoyed writing it.  The inspiration for it also came quite suddenly, and this makes for some of the best writing.  I ultimately decided it was a tad too long to put up here, but if you have the time, I'd love for you to take a look at that as well!

The following, my actual entry for this blogfest, was posted on Sunday, July 22, 2012.  I chose this one in part because Saz101 later went on to use a quote from this post in a future blog post of her own.  You can see the quote she used HERE. That was flattering enough to keep this post in mind over these last few months.

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Blogspiration is brought to you by Saz 101 and Growing Up YA.  The goal is to inspire thought and dialogue by posting something that ignites that creative spark.

This week I bring you a quote that got me thinking.  

Our waking hours form the text of our lives, our dreams, the commentary.
Anonymous

As someone who loves documentaries and listening to the commentary for beloved TV shows, this quote makes perfect sense to me.  The commentary track gives you an insight into the dreams of others.  The narrator of a story gives you access to the dreams of your characters.

When you sleep, your dreams can clue you in to the things that are bothering you.

Listen to your dreams.  Whether they be the dreams that come when you sleep or the ones that tell you where you want to be, they have meaning.  As the commentary track to your life, you can use those dreams to look at what you're doing, and you may even learn how to best pursue your goal.

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The entry stuck out for me because it meant something to someone else, and as a writer, that in turn means something to me.  So there you go.  Be sure to check out the other entries for this cool blogfest!

Also, one last note.  I'm hosting the Beginnings Blogfest on January 9, 2013. If you'd like to check it out, click HERE.  And to entice you, here are the buttons you can choose from to display on your blog!

Insecure Writer's Support Group: December 2012

Is it the first Wednesday of the month already?  Geez, time flies!  Anyway, my calendar is telling me that it's time for another meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Our Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh deserves many thanks for creating such an awesome group.  The group is so amazing, in fact, that Alex has had to start recruiting two co-hosts for each month.  The co-hosts this month are Livia @ Leave it to Livia and Tasha Seegmiller.  Good luck ladies!  I have every confidence that you'll rock as co-hosts!

I've had a bit of a confidence booster this week, so I'm not quite as insecure as I might typically be.  I'm organizing the Beginnings Blogfest, which is my first foray into the world of hosting.  Besides, of course, co-hosting IWSG last month. I'm grateful for that first experience, because it's given me the confidence to try. And so far, several awesome bloggers have signed up!  I'd also like to thank Alex for his helpful hints about hosting a blogfest.  They've been invaluable.

If anything is continuing to make me feel insecure right now, it's time.  That's why these monthly postings come around again so quickly.  That's why it's already the end of 2012.  Some days it feels like you just need to grab a hold of the time you have and hang on.  If we let our insecurities get the best of us, we'll lose even more valuable time that we could have been dedicating to achieving our goals.  So is an insecurity about time a good thing to have because it can motivate you?  Or is it bad because you risk worrying about too much?  Great. Now I'm insecure about the insecurity that I have about my insecurity.  A perpetual loop of insecurity!

Okay, that's enough of the silliness for now. Before wrapping this post up in a nice bow, I thought I'd give a quick shout out for two blogfests I'm doing in the next several days.  First is the Zombie Blog Hop on Friday, December 7th.  Head on over to Precious Monsters to check it out!  Come on.  It's zombies!  I'm concocting a bit of zombie flash fiction for the occasion, but you can do anything.  The entry just has to be zombie-related in some way.

The Cheers, Cavanaugh Blogfest is also happening next week.  If you haven't heard about it, you've been living under a rock.  There's no other explanation. Pitch in, for soon the ninja dies of embarrassment!

That's all for now.  Hop around to support your fellow insecure writers!

Announcing the Beginnings Blogfest

My 1 year blogoversary is coming up, and I figured a blogfest would be an appropriate way to celebrate this milestone.  Now, I've endured some of the usual insecurities.  What if no one signs up?  What if people think my idea for a blogfest is stupid?  What if the world ends before the day of my blogfest?

Okay, I'll admit it, that last one isn't a legitimate concern for me.  If anything, the end of the world would spare me the humiliation of no one signing up.

Either way, I'll never know until I try, so here we go!

The Beginnings Blogfest

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

As I writer, I can appreciate how important beginnings are.  Everyone has to start somewhere.  Everything brilliant was inspired by some specific turn of events.  In celebration of completing one trip around the sun since I started blogging, I want to give everyone a chance to write about a beginning that is important to them.

Do you want to share the events that inspired you to start blogging?  Perhaps you'd like to recall that first awkward blog entry where you tried to introduce yourself to the blogging world.

Or maybe you'd like to write about what inspired you to embark on your career path.  When did the passion for this career choice begin, and how did you go about making it a reality?

You could even start at your real beginning and talk a little about where you were born and what the times were like.

Or, if you'd rather not talk about yourself, you can write about the origins of a favorite book, movie, artistic movement, or pretty much anything else.  After all, I'd feel bad asking you to adhere to any strict guidelines since I'm asking you to write something original.

That being said, if you've already written a post on the subject and you'd rather share that, feel free!  Sometimes posts are received better the second time around.

That's it!  Try to keep your post a reasonable length, but I won't give you any exact word limits for this.  Sometimes self-expression revolts against word limits.  I know this from experience.

So, if you want to join in, sign up, grab a badge (there are two to choose from), and feel free to spread the word!