#IWSG: A New Year

 

Happy Insecure Writer's 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. We are rockin' the neurotic writing world!

The awesome co-hosts for the January 6 posting of the IWSG are Ronel Janse van Vuuren , J Lenni Dorner, Gwen Gardner Sandra Cox, and Louise - Fundy Blue!

January 6 question - Being a writer, when you're reading someone else's work, what stops you from finishing a book/throws you out of the story/frustrates you the most about other people's books?

Bad grammar, spelling errors, typos. A few here and there are understandable. As often as I (and others) proof my stories, I'll still find a mistake after the book is published. But frequent errors tell me the book wasn't proofed well. That yanks me out of the story.

So, how is 2021 shaping up for you? After a year of little writing, I decided I had to get back to it. I set my goal for January, to start with, to write a paragraph a day. Baby steps. Even if I only have ten minutes before bed and haven't written yet, I can open the file and write one paragraph. 

I just gave you my key--open the file. Once the file is open, I have to read the previous page to get back into the story. Writing one paragraph is no pressure. What's happened in the past 5 days of 2021? I've written more than a paragraph each day. Actually, I've averaged over 200 words/day. The lack of expectation makes it easy. Takes away the pressure. Hopefully, I can keep up my pace or at least one paragraph a day.

Hope. That's my key word for 2021. I wrote about hope in my post on Paranormal Romantics. Hope is what's keeping me going. Hope for a better year.

I hope you have a good 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.

Insecure Writers Support Group

It’s time for the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. The purpose is 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! A big THANKS to Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh for starting this group and keeping it going. And to this month's awesome hosts Hart Johnson, Chemist Ken, Candilynn Fite, Terri Rochenski, Clare Dugmore, and Lilica Blake!

HOPE

Birds woke me up this morning. If you live in the south/southwest, that may not seem significant to you. After the brutal winter we had this year with record low temps (Polar Vortex) and record snowfall (over 150”), birds definitely signal that spring has finally come. The first signal of spring was sunshine. Then the snow melt. Amid the brown grasses, I see bits of green. And the tip of a lone tulip is pushing its way out of the ground. On Monday, we hit 63°.

Tomorrow we’re supposed to be in the 30s. That would almost be depressing. Except. I heard bird songs this morning. That gives me hope that the warmth will be back.

In many ways, that’s how it is with our writing careers. We go through bad patches, we get rejections, we feel like nothing good is ever going to happen. Having hope gets us from the depression of winter to the optimism of spring.

To everyone who is participating in the A to Z Challenge, good luck!

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.