Lately I’ve been in a bit of a “Now what can I do to get
some momentum happening?” kind of mode. The old “What can I do to stand out as
a writer?” question falling from my lips far too often. Fortunately I have
friends who don’t hold back. As they began to run out of patience with the
whining, solid advice began to appear. Ladies, (and guys) I love you all; I
want you to know that.
So, what did they tell me? “Are you nuts? You are already a
standout. You need to shake up that blog a bit, give it a new look, make it
easier to find the good stuff, and then write lots more great stories.” Ok, I
can work with that.
“You write for the few as well as the many, Pru. You write
conventional books, yes, but you also write for those who have nothing. Lesbian
romance with some actual romance and a story line is very unusual.
Transgendered romance is impossible to find. Make sure you put these tags on
your work to make it easier to find for those who are desperately looking.”
Ok, more great advice. I’m listening ladies and gentlemen.
As proof I offer the new look of the blog. Check out the page listings at the
top to find your favorite genre. This is just the beginning, I promise.
Now, on with the goals for ROW80
1. Blog twice each week.
Did that, and I have a start on this week.
2. Continue to read and comment on the blogs
of my fellow writers
I did manage this one. I so enjoy this.
3. Write at least 4K words per week.
Done and exceeded.
4. Read at least one book every two weeks.
Finished two and am looking for a third.
Okay, so some of you may be thinking I have set the bar a
bit low here and perhaps I have. However, in my defense I suggest that you need
to do this once in a while just to remain sane. How many of you have had to do
this before?
The same goes for shaking up the old routine, do you have
friends who will give you a kick in the pants to get you moving again?
Posts
Love those kick-us-in-the-pants friends. :) Whenever I have a moment of "What if my writing sucks?", my hubby and mom put me in my place. Regardless of their biases, the support is invaluable.
ReplyDeleteLoving the new blog look, Prudence! Hope you have the best week.
Thanks August. Hoping your week rocks too.
DeleteIt's always good to have the support of "okay, you have whined enough, now pull on your big girl panties and fix it" friends. I am not so good at following their advice, but that may be because I am unnacostommed to having such friends. I am really glad you got good ideas and am extremely happy to see that you trimmed your goals down to something that lets you enjoy the little bit of summer you get! I have no doubts that you will exceed your goals when you get on a roll, but they are easy enough when you are busy.
ReplyDeleteYes girl, and you were indeed a strong influence here. Thanks so much for your input.
DeleteWhat else is your lil sis supposed to do if not goad you out of the dumps?
Deleteok, that was weird, I posted a comment, hit enter and i went to the blogger site. not. so if you get two comments, i'm not drinking, Pru, I'm just having 'puter issues. good post. well done on the goals.
ReplyDeleteMe either Louise, (hides Irish coffee behind books) Thanks for the Kudos. I'm loving your blog; I'm learning amazing things there.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, I definitely needed a couple of weeks where I set the bar lower! When those get too easy, it's time to step it up a notch again! Your friends are totally right - put out there what you have, because people are looking for those niches! So good job on the blog rework.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog. Saw your comment on EA and stopped by. My blog is http://www.indiedesignz.com/blog if you'd like to check it out. Look forward to reading more of your posts and good luck on the goals.
ReplyDelete