Happy New Year: IWSG Question and Writer's Prayer for 2019

My thanks to Alex and the Insecure Writer’s Support Group in giving writers an opportunity to express their fears and insecurities. A great way to offer encouragement too. Anyone can join. Just click on the tab above and sign up. Postings are the first Wednesday of every month. Members are encouraged to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. 

The awesome co-hosts today are Patricia Lynne, Lisa Buie-Collard, Kim Lajevardi, and Fundy Blue!


Today’s optional question for discussion: "What are your favorite and least favorite questions people ask you about your writing?"

Since moving to a new community in 2014, an hour from any major city, I rarely see other writers. I miss being asked about my writing and never minded their interest or questions. We were in the same boat and usually shared similar struggles.

Word did eventually spread when my novel was published here in 2017. As I am shy about sharing my writing life, my new neighbors were surprised when they learned about my book in a local newspaper. There is a definite disconnect between being an introverted writer and the requirement I promote my writing in an extroverted fashion. It's a strange disconnect for me. Am I alone in this? I therefore felt terribly out of my comfort zone and probably blew it by not setting up some community book signing. I've only had one. 

Awkward questions about my next book followed, which of course made sense if I wanted more readers. And then there was that unspoken question....that if I was a writer, well....why hadn't I published anything else yet? I guess I satisfied their curiosity by publishing garden articles over the summer in the newspaper, but I wish I wasn't such a slow writer. 

As for daily goals, my husband gave me a miniature timer for 4 daily events. Thinking about this, I listed some practical have-to events. I know I can fit in other things I love like reading, gardening and cooking, as these require little motivation.

1- Blog & other social media -1 hour or less daily as needed

2- Write daily - 3 hours or more

3- Exercise daily - at least 30 minutes 

4- Bills, filing, etc. - 1 hour or less daily as needed

So then I felt inspired this morning and wrote a Writer's Prayer for 2019, which I share below....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

  

"A Writer's Prayer for 2019" 

May you walk along the free

sandy shores of discovery. 

May kindness find its way 

to you and yours with the break of day.

May you bask in the warm sun, 

pausing for a bit of fun.

May you find gold amidst the embers

and peace and comfort in the forest firs. 

May words flow like petals from heaven,

soft and pure with healing, again and again.

May words flow with joy, faith, and laughter 

when nothing else matters.

May your writer's pen bless you abundantly, 

and ten-fold more, those who read and see.

~~Sharon Himsl

Sharon M. Himsl

Published: Evernight Teen 

The Shells of Mersing

IWSG: Reflecting on my Writing Life

A supportive, encouraging group for writers. 

Thank you awesome co-hosts for November 7 

posting: Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor, 

Ann V. Friend, JQ Rose and Elizabeth Seckman!

How has your creativity in life evolved since you began writing?

Bear with me. I start with the negatives but end on a positive note. I've been writing for many years now, but only recently was my fiction published. I actually found a publisher (a small press). 

Initially, I was over the moon excited, as only my nonfiction had been published before, and this was the novel I'd spent 10 years rewriting. Out of the gate sales were okay I guess, but then dropped to practically nothing. (It's been 16 months). 

Now I'm wondering what (if anything) I did wrong. The publisher did do some marketing, but most it would seem depended upon my efforts. I hear other writers complain about their low sales and wonder. What are normal sales anyway? I've followed all of the online advice, setting up a Blog, Twitter, FB, Instagram and have spent an enormous amount of time learning the process. 

Allowed to fester, this kind of thinking gets me in a rut. I contemplate silly things like:

--My profile photo online. Should I smile more and look less serious? Maybe a caricature would be better. How about a younger photo?    
--Embarrassment. I committed to doing the NaNo this November, but now I'm so pitifully behind, it's a 'why bother'. 
--Feeling like I'm in a popularity contest. Why did "they" get so many reviews? Why did "they" get so many visits and comments at their blog?  Oh....the road to jealousy is a bad one, folks.
--Blog overhaul. Should I go with a different color? A new theme? Would it be more energizing? Would it generate sales? Do ads even work?

This kind of thinking feels like such a time waster. Feeling sorry for one's self never accomplishes much, other than to rewind and start all over again.Thankfully, I'm too busy to linger long. The best therapy is really to get back to work....whatever the task at hand is. 

Truth is, I enjoy writing. When I wrote a garden column for our local newspaper this summer at zero pay, I didn't mind. I had always wanted to write about gardening. I've gained confidence as a writer over the years. A younger me would have felt unqualified to write for a newspaper. As an academic editor (now retired), I learned the importance of "less is more." Academic writers tend to be overly verbose and I got pretty good at red-inking their manuscripts. If nothing else, I learned that 'rough' drafts are indeed that--they always need work. 

Freelancing with an educational publisher later helped me stay focused on the topic at hand. I tend to wander in my thoughts, easily distracted with the details. I still have a certain editor's voice in my head ("stay on target"/"keep your focus). I learned how to research history too, at the library and online when it was still the wild, wild internet west. We have so much data available today. It's almost scary. I've done quite a bit of pioneer women's history at my blog as a result. 

I'm more reflective these days and find myself wanting to write poetry. 

View of sunset from author's home.

I'm a slow writer but I'm okay with that. I tend to be a perfectionist and like the results. I've been reading a book about happiness. It talks about the importance of the three P's in life: Purpose, Pride and Pleasure. I took a little quiz and I came up short on having enough pleasure in my life. I recently returned to church, which should help, as socialization is key to finding healthy pleasure. I fully understand the other P's. Purpose and Pride in what I do are important to me. Right now, I'm helping my mother write her memoirs and it's taking precedence over my current novel. She's 93 and I love being able to honor her in this way. I'm learning so much about our family too.

Last but not least, I found a better way to connect with the IWSG group. Turns out Facebook is an easy way to connect with other members (as opposed to the blog-o-sphere). Members responded quickly to a question I had asked recently about autographing books. Linking my blog post to FB and IWSG site will help promote this post too. There is always a learning curve isn't there? I'm looking forward to connecting with more writers in this group. I live in a rural community, an hour's drive to any writers' groups. IWSG is starting to fill that void.

Sharon M. Himsl

Published: Evernight Teen 

The Shells of Mersing

IWSG: No Show, No Go

The Insecure Writers Support Group meets online every first Wednesday of the month. Founded by  
Alex J. Cavanaugh, IWSG was created to support and encourage all writers in every phase of their work, from writing to marketing. Click here to join, and for more information. The website has writing tips and much more. 

Hosted in March by: 
Chemist Ken, Suzanne Sapseed, and Shannon Lawrence!
 

This month my focus has been on making a public commitment to pursue publishing and all that involves: researching agents and publishers, polishing, polishing, polishing my novel, formatting the manuscript, reassessing if a previous synopsis works (it didn't), and sending out queries. I haven't sent out one query yet! Okay, deep breath, deep breath. Maybe this is normal. You think you're ready, but then you discover half a dozen things you haven't finished. 

The big thing is I've reduced the word count from 96k to 84k. The goal is 80k, which is more in the ball park for this genre (contemporary adventure mystery-YA). I decided that I wasn't following the so-called rules for a first time novelist. No sense shooting myself in the foot with a higher than normal word count. 

In other words, I didn't want an agent to think I didn't do my homework. I saved the original just in case I'm asked to flesh things out more, and I didn't cut any scenes, just a whole lot of flab. One thing that stood out to me, since this is a novel for young adults, is that I had adults dominating scenes too much in spots. I can't write this story without the help of adults, but where kids step up to the plate, I gave them more to say, and adults less. I used contractions more, which also reduced word count.

But the lurking ever present worry is that I will not finish.....and this process will drag on forever. I've had similar starts out the gate, and I don't want this to happen again. I no longer have an outside job and haven't for awhile, or other time-threatening interferences, so no excuses this time. No excuses!  

No Show, No Go, as the saying goes. 

On a brighter note, I'm still at the start gate, digging my toes in the sand, trying to ignore the phenomenal talent on my right and left (focus, focus, focus), and waiting for the gun to go off. I haven't given up (another pattern in my past), and God willing, I would really like to believe that this time is different.  

Also, I like what editor Cheryl B. Klein (who was continuity editor for two Harry Potter books) has to say about the submission process. (Anyone else read her book?). It's really about finding "the right match," she explains. "It's like dating."

"But in fact we editors are just people, readers, like you, looking to make connections just like you. And that led me to the comparison I'm going to make today: The submissions process is like dating--an intensely personal endeavor where everyone is looking for the right match."   (Cheryl B. Klein, Second Sight, 2009)
  
And again, my thanks to the IWSG community. I know it takes great effort and time on your part to pull away from your desk and busy life to share your writing journey, whether it's to seek encouragement and answers or to offer some yourself. I hope others debating the merits of this group will stop hesitating. But mostly, I wish everyone well.....Stay the Course _/)

IWSG: Stepping Forward

 
This is my first time posting to the IWSG group (click link to participate), and already I'm feeling insecure, not wanting to say the wrong thing. But I guess this is a place where I can bare my writer soul and speak honestly, right?

I am trying to finish a novel that has been rewritten so many times it's almost an embarrassment. I've written probably ten drafts (I've lost count) and it's had several critiques. However, it's a far, far different and better book than the one I started writing nearly fifteen years ago. Today it finally feels complete, but I'm overwhelmed with the process of finding an agent and publisher. I know I need an agent. At least that will be my foremost goal in the beginning. I just don't want to back down when the going gets tough, and from what I hear, it will. I really believe in Callie's story, a fourteen year old who along with her little brother searches for their missing mother who disappeared in Thailand. So much of her story is taken from my own experience living in Malaysia and traveling to Thailand (Callie is half Malaysian). So you see, a huge chunk of my heart lives in this novel, but I know I need to be tough and also look at it as a product I'm going to sell. I need to stay objective, right? Is that possible? 

Not sure why I have hesitated so long to join this group, but it only took reading a third of IWSG's book to realize the benefits. I read the chapter on flash fiction and decided to give it a try. I had been editing my novel for so long I wasn't sure if I had a creative bone left in me. I sat down and wrote an entire scene, one I had been mulling over for months but had never put on the page. I realized I had just started another novel. I have since written a second scene, and so I'm very grateful to this group's book for motivating me.


One thing I know for sure is that I need to get the current novel off my desk. So I'm stepping forward and asking for your support, in soft little ballet slippers. Sigh.....I wish had the boldness of a gypsy dancer (hmm...not sure why I thought of gypsies.....must be from Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle trilogy. I was reading it while finishing my novel). But you know the kind of dancer I'm talking about. Basically, I'm afraid of the spotlight. I'm the actor behind the curtain, afraid to go on stage. So, I'm insecure, I admit it. Full confession. Am I as hopeless as I feel right now?

Sharon M. Himsl

Writer/Author. Blogging since 2011. 
Published with Evernight Teen: 
~~The Shells of Mersing