I was standing in the shower today thinking about how I wanted to utilize this blog. Basically, I’ve blogged about debt reduction, my personal life, my fertility journey (Holy Hannah! I had two kids in two years – I’m fertile), and cooking.
So – this is a writing blog, in a sense. I write for a living – I spent seven years in newspapers and I am a proposal manager for a software consulting firm, so much of what I write is not my own creation. But what do I want to be when I grow up? A writer. More precisely, I want to write fiction that is consumed by the masses. Or, I just want to write and write and write and someday, I want my great-grandchildren to come across my words and think to themselves “wow, she wasn’t just a batty old broad after all!”
This is a writing blog. You’d think that after 20+ years of writing, I’d be chock full of expert advice on writing, but that’s not so.
So what did I do today to further my dream? I entered a short story that has the working title of “Sanctuary” in a short story contest for a respected publication. I have no clue what the odds are of winning. But it’s a story that I like and it’s a story that I’ve polished. I’m probably going to shop it around to a couple other publications / contests because it has a suspense / paranormal bent to it that might fit better elsewhere. But it’s a start.
Another thing that I’m doing, which comes from my world as a professional writer (and I’ve found that my mind seems to really respond to spreadsheets and tables … it helps me think and process), is that I’m keeping an Excel spreadsheet that tracks what contests I’m entering or publications that have my various stories in hand. This was partially inspired by reading about Kresley Cole’s process – her “rule of 25.” USA Today had an article that mentioned this method. Here’s another blog post where this method is mentioned.
I am not there yet. I’m pretty far from it, but it’s a start. 2014 is my year. It will be a year of finishing projects, getting feedback and continued efforts to grow as a writer.
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Reading: “Breaking Free from Emotional Eating” by Geneen Roth (why yes, that isn’t fiction and no, I’m not zipping through it like I’d be zipping through something by Deborah Harkness, but I have food issues. I admit it.)
michellekubitz 