Happy Insecure Writers Support Group Day. IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh.
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going.
Thanks to this month's awesome hosts: Raimey Gallant, Natalie Aguirre, CV Grehan, and Michelle Wallace!
Last month, I talked about goal setting. I'm happy to report I accomplished two small goals leading to one big one. I prepared my Middle Grade science fiction adventure story for my editor and sent it off to her. The second goal was contracting for the cover. Here it is:
Blurb:
Her father is
gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the
Queen tortures and kills him.
Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known,
he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as
Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would
rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about
governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or,
better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.
Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately.
Never mind, Father
promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns
fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.
Never mind, she
ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father
is her only parent. She has to save him.
Along with her
best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets
off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know
why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But,
does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating
baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving then soon. And Lukus can’t wait to
get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her
own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.
Optional question: Besides writing what other creative outlets do you have?
Many of my creative outlets have dropped by the wayside as writing has taken over. For years, I did needlework--counted cross-stitch, needlepoint, candlewick, embroidery, and quilting. Photography has stuck around. I use pictures to record our vacations and our family. Hubs and I both have good cameras, those that take film and digital ones. He could start a museum with his cameras. 😊
So what camera do we use the most? The one on our phones. Currently, we're on vacation on the gulf coast. Our son "ordered" us to send pictures. He's going to regret that. LOL I set up an iCloud album, invited our immediate family and have been sending pictures each day. That will teach him!
The ease with which we can take pictures makes it so handy. So, I think that's one creative outlet that won't drop away.
A while ago, I shared the contest for the next IWSG anthology! Here's the cover!
Masquerade: Oddly Suited…
Masquerade: Oddly Suited
An Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology
Release date – April 30, 2019
Young Adult Fiction: Romance - General/Paranormal/Contemporary
Print ISBN 9781939844644
EBook ISBN 9781939844651
Find love at the ball…
Can a fake dating game show lead to love? Will a missing key free a clock-bound prince? Can a softball pitcher and a baseball catcher work together? Is there a vampire living in Paradise, Newfoundland? What’s more important—a virtual Traveler or a virtual date to the ball?
Ten authors explore young love in all its facets, from heartbreak to budding passion. Featuring the talents of L.G. Keltner, Jennifer Lane, C.D. Gallant-King, Elizabeth Mueller, Angela Brown, Myles Christensen, Deborah Solice, Carrie-Anne Brownian, Anstice Brown, and Chelsea Marie Ballard.
Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these ten tales will mystify and surprise even as they touch your heart. Don your mask and join the party…
Congratulations to all the winners. Happy Writing. See you next month.
Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.
I share your love of picture taking . . . but unfortunately most of mine remain on my phone unseen, unused, unappreciated. Sigh. I always have big aspirations of using Instagram when I'm snapping away but . . . The new IWSG anthology sounds awesome.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter-in-law created an iCloud album when the twins were born to share pictures with family. I love it. I created one for our vacation so the pics don't stay in my phone. LOL
DeleteWell done on the goals!
ReplyDeleteI use my phone to take pics, too. As much as I like the idea of a "real" camera, I know I'll take more photos if it's convenient = phone. :)
Me, too, Madeline. Convenience. And the pictures are pretty good, which makes using the phone even better.
DeleteI need to take more pictures with my phone. Awesome that you got your manuscript to your editor. Love your cover!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Natalie. I'm determined to get that book out of my computer and up for sale. Thanks for co-hosting.
DeleteIt's definitely hard finding other creative outlets when you're a writer. Writing has a way eating up so much of our time and crowding out other activities. Good on you for sticking with the photography!
ReplyDeleteYou are so right, James. I don't have time for all the fun hobbies I used to do.
DeleteHi Diane, thanks for stopping by my blog. I understand how hobbies can fall off. Writing is indeed all consuming.
ReplyDeleteIt sure can be. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteA lot of my hobbies have fallen to the wayside, too. I also enjoy photography. Thanks to Instagram, I'm able to indulge in that creative outlet more than if it didn't exist, since I'm usually too busy to do anything else.
ReplyDeleteI haven't joined Instagram yet. Sounds like I should. Enjoy your photography.
DeleteBest thing they every did was put a camera in a phone. I used to keep my camera in my purse. Made for a heavy load. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
LOL, Anna. Those cameras sure did weigh a lot.
DeleteLove having a camera on my phone. It comes in so handy, especially when I need to remember something like a poster full of information or a specific brand of item to get at the grocery store.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your latest book.
Great usage, Melissa. My daughter sent me a pic instead of trying to describe a package. Wonderful.
DeleteCongratulations on getting that book off to your editor! Big points for following through on a goal.
ReplyDeleteYou've had a lot of creative outlets!
Thanks, Lee. I plan to get back to some of the needlework. Better than playing computer games at night. LOL
DeleteDiane - thankfully writing provides the creative outlet I need. When a book-length story gets bogged down there are always several blog ideas ready to offer a change-of-pace. As for cell-phone photography, I know how to place calls and answer them. The rest of the bells and whistles are wasted on my. But I'm glad they work for most folks.
ReplyDeleteLOL at your phone usage. Mine has so many things I haven't figured out yet. When I can't, my daughter and DIL are ready to help. Pretty soon, it will be my granddaughter. Yikes!
DeleteSometimes I think that we indulge in different creative outlets at different stages in out lives. Whatever is most needed at the moment to access our creative outpouring becomes paramount. Or maybe the older ways we used our creativity become insufficient and must be abandoned to make space and time for the new, more satisfying ones.
ReplyDeleteI love that philosophy, Olga. It sure makes sense.
DeleteI used to cross-stitch too. I'm finding so many creative people. Congrats on your book and I love the cover!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Cathrina. I love that cover, too. Wish I could say I did it. My creativity doesn't extend in that direction.
DeleteDiane, I'm glad you're reaching your goals. A lot of things fall by the wayside so we can fit in our writing.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Denise. I think it has to. Right now, writing is most important to me.
DeleteCongrats on getting the book off! What an accomplishment. I love the cover - I'm a book cover geek.
ReplyDeleteI've had a number of hobbies that have fallen by the wayside - sewing and clothes design, oil painting, gourmet cooking, fabric art - all these things had a season in my life. Now is the season of my writing.
Thanks, Lee. I like your reference to season. Now is my season to write, too.
DeletePhotography seems to be a popular hobby!
ReplyDeleteIt is, Sandra. With our phones, it's so easy.
DeleteThe cameras in phones these days are really good cameras. And they make it easy too. I love photography as well. So much fun.
ReplyDeleteSo true, Lynda.
DeleteCongrats on accomplishing your goals, Diane! I love photography, too. Now I just need a better camera!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Raimey.
DeleteCongratulations on the new release. Camera phones are so awesome! I like photography too, but have no talent. I'm just glad mother nature allows me to capture it's beauty, sometimes, even well! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Yolanda. I love the convenience of the phone's camera. Capturing nature is easy and thrilling.
DeleteRESCUING sounds very intriguing. Thumbs up.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sandra!
DeleteWell done for accomplishing your goals and getting your book sent off. I've been looking through old photos recently and it really struck home how important photos can be for recording our lives.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Suzanne. One of the things we need to do with old photos is identify who's in them. Too soon our kids will be going through those old pictures and asking themselves who are those people?
DeleteThat's awesome you now have a cover and are closer to release.
ReplyDeleteThanks for plugging the IWSG anthology.
Isn't it funny how we all use our phones now to take photos?
Thanks, Alex. I'm getting excited about its release. Our phones have such great cameras and it's easy.
DeleteCongratulations Diane! I know you're happy to have made that goal. Good luck and hope you don't have too many revisions! LOL. I use my phone, too almost exclusively for photos anymore!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa. I took all our vacation pictures with my phone. So easy.
DeleteNice cover. Shows the genre very nicely without being overdone. Good luck with the edit. I haven't sent anything to an editor yet, but I can imagine it must be nerve-wracking to look over the comments when you get it back.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ken. I love the cover, too. When I get back edits, I read them, set it aside, wait a day (sometimes 2 LOL) then get to work. If I have a real concern--like the editor didn't get something--I'll contact her and we talk it out. I've had great editors who work so well with me.
DeleteCongrats on the goals and nice cover! The book sounds interesting, once it's out I'll have to see if my boys would be interested in reading. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Meka. I'll be sure to announce it. :)
DeleteCongratulations on your latest work. That is certainly creative and the cover is great. Photography is fun. I still use my camera more than my phone. Guess it's cause I'm used to it. Love photos of wildlife and clouds and all of the outdoors. Have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Beverly. Our weekend was tiring. We drove from Gulf Shores, AL back to Michigan, just ahead of the latest winter storm.
DeleteCongrats!! The story sounds terrific - love your voice and the sprinkles of world-building in there.
ReplyDeletePhotography is fun - I'm just learning the basics.
Thanks so much, Jemi. Enjoy taking pictures.
DeleteBravo to you, Diane, for this MG science fiction adventure. I love the cover. Totally awesome. Also the two sides of the IWSG anthology. Oh, and I like my camera better than my phone, although it takes much time to download the pictures I want to keep. All best to you!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Victoria. That's one of the reasons I don't use my camera. I like the handiness of my phone. But I'm sure the pictures are better with the camera.
DeleteCongrats on making your goals. That's a cool cover. I like to take pictures with my daughter's iPad Mini because I've figured out how to send them to my gmail account. I haven't figured out how to easily move pictures from our digital camera to my computer without involving the hubs.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tamara. I email pictures to myself to get the pics from my camera to my computer. I also set up an iCloud account to send my pictures to. Then I can share them with my family. BTW, my DIL set one up so I learned from her.
DeleteGreat cover, and congrats on meeting a goal! You remind me that my photography is another creative outlet—I was thinking I wasn’t doing anything but write, but I am in fact taking millions of photos, which I’m not getting edited as promptly as I should.
ReplyDeleteLOL, Rebecca. I rarely edit my photos. What you see is what I took. Thanks so much for stopping by.
DeleteLove your new cover. And congrats on meeting those goals!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Samantha.
DeleteCongrats on your new release, Diane! That's awesome.
ReplyDeleteI'm a fan of photography too, but aside from cellphone snaps of the kitties, I usually only think to take photos when I travel.
Thanks, J.H. I take a lot of pics of the grandkids, too.
DeleteThanks, Jen. I'm hoping the book will release next month. My DIL posts photos and videos of her 3 kids in an iCloud album. Her parents live 2k miles away so I know they appreciate seeing the kiddies grow and change and "talk". We did when they lived far away from us. Videos from the phone camera are so easy.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on achieving your goals!
ReplyDeleteRonel visiting for Feb's IWSG Day Being an Insecure Writer -- And Happy About It
Thanks, Ronel. I have to laugh at your blog title. Being happy is great.
Delete