Blog Upkeep Fail

So in a previous post I talked about how this was my third attempt at a blog, but that this time I had a plan! Well I did, and I do. I have two notebooks full of great ideas for blog posts. Somehow none of them seem to make it here. My challenge has always been finding the time to do this.

Well I am no longer going to try to find the time. When you try to find the time to do things, everything else gets in the way. This time I am making the time. "Wow that sounds great," you say. "How are you doing that?" Well, I quit my job. "Huh? You quit your well-paid job with benefits to write a blog for free? Are you NUTS!!?" Well -- yes. In fact, I am. But, no I didn't quit my job to write a blog. I quit my job because I am a writer who was paid to write words for other people and had no creative energy left at the end of the day for my own writing projects. While I did love my job and was passionate about my company's products and services, there was a hole in my heart.

One week ago yesterday I made the leap to be a freelance writer and editor. While terrifying, it has also been exhilarating. Fortunately, I have a network built up and I am not wanting for paid work. Ironically, most of this work is in communications. But that is how folks know me best. I am good at it and I am grateful that I am not hungry and on the street with my husband, two kids and the cat.

My hope is that by making the time for myself and my own writing projects, I can transition away from the communications stuff and begin to earn my income as a "legitimate" writer. I plan to chronicle my efforts because I am just narcissistic enough to believe that you care enough to follow my angst-ridden journey coming into my own as a writer. Check back often. I'm sure it will be a wild ride. I know, I know, I have teased you before and not followed through. Please feel free to work with me as my accountability partner and poke me in the comment section belooooooow.

Celebrating Books

I love books. I love reading books. But most of all I love talking about books. I have a bookshelf in every room in my home except the bathroom and that is just because I worry about condensation from the teenagers' 45 minute showers destroying the books or there would be one in there too.

What do I read? Well just about everything. I collect reference books just because it is fun. You never know when you might need to know the Hungarian word for yellow, sárga (SHARgah) by the way. I love non-fiction, I love fiction, science fiction, "literary" fiction, historical fiction, I have even been known to read the odd cheesy romance. Even the much-maligned Dan Brown. 

My dream job would be working for the CBC on Authors and Company with Eleanor Wachtel or The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers. OR better yet, having my own show called Talking Books!  ......wait.  

Oh yeah, and I am also a writer myself. I don't have anything of any consequence published yet. I have been a contributing author for educational resources for elementary students. I work in communications so I write lots of ad copy, newsletters, press releases and that sort of nonsense. 

One day I may have my own books published but for now I am content in celebrating the works of other authors. So check back here from time to time and I'll share with you my faves old and new. I'd love to hear about your favorite books so leave your comments below. All comments are moderated to avoid trolls and spam, please don't take it personally.

New Blog

This is now my third attempt at a blog. The biggest challenge for me has always been the upkeep, but this time I have a plan! I have a story idea file now so I never (fingers crossed) run out of things to write about and I plan to keep them short. One thing I never seem to run out of is words. I am verbose and even talkative. Well that is the challenge I have set for myself -- to be more concise and that just equals better tighter writing.

Leave your comments below, I'd love to hear from you, but all comments are moderated to avoid trolls and spam. Don't take it personally. I learned about comment moderation from Drew McLellan who writes a marketing blog I follow. He is a very smart person that you might want to follow too.