Category Archives: Posts

The Liebster Award – It’s so nice!

Posted in Posts, Websites by

LiebsterAwardImage2So yesterday I posted that a fellow blogger had given me The Liebster Award.  An award passed from blogger to blogger in an effort to build a community and expose others to new bloggers (those with under 200 followers).  This is a great idea, and I was thrilled that someone found my ramblings worthy (because there are millions upon millions of blogs on WordPress alone).  As a writer, sitting alone, day after day, struggling to make things happen, a little boost to the ol’ confidence is really, very nice.  So thank you, Michelle!  You are adorable and I wish you success in all your endeavors!  Check out her blog and send her a little love at aspecialkindofunique.

This also forced me to find blogs to follow, something I’d really been meaning to do…it was on the list.  So, with the award there are some rules and a little Q & A to get to know one another —

Liebster Rules:

1. Each nominee must link back to the person that nominated them.

2. Answer the ten questions given to you by the nominator.

3. Nominate 10 other bloggers who have less than 200 followers.

4. Create 10 questions for your nominees to answer.

5. Let the nominees know you have nominated them by going to their website and notifying them.

A little about me:

1. What’s your favourite book or series? (As an avid reader, I’m always curious!)

This is a tough one to answer.  I have the same trouble with declaring one favorite movie.  I guess I might be like those parents who adamantly profess they don’t have a favorite child, when secretly they really do prefer one over the other.  I mean I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, but, if I had to choose…Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.  Discovering this novel changed quite a lot for me.

2. A quote that inspires you?

I have many of these, tacked on my wall (and Pinterest and Facebook) as constant reminders, but the one that motivated me to follow my dreams is “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life”.  People who aren’t creatively inclined seem to always want to squash what they consider “pipe dreams”, and without art, in any form, the world would be a dull and depressing place.  If I had to continue to go to some boring office job or what-have-you, as so many think I should, I’d probably have off’d myself by now.

3. What’s one of your favourite hobbies? (Besides writing, if you consider that to be a hobby.)

I do not.  I used to have a piano growing up, and I loved to play.  I miss it.  When I have the space and the money, I’d love to buy another.

4. Favourite food dish?

I’ve been a vegetarian for over six years now, so my eating habits have changed, but I have always loved pizza.  It doesn’t matter that I had some three days ago, or yesterday, I could go for it again.

5. If you could be any mythical creature what would you be?

A mermaid, without a doubt.  I’ve always been drawn to the ocean, I scuba dive, and growing up I had ridiculously long hair, loved the movie Splash, and would often pretend to be a mermaid.  Ooh, unless I could wield magic…

6. What kind of music are you interested in and favourite bands in those genres?

I listen to a lot of classical, soundtrack (movies, even video games), and I suppose what would be considered New Age when I write.  Enya, by far, is my favorite artist, ever.  Favorite bands are Depeche Mode, Garbage, Muse, and Within Temptation, to name a few.  I’m always on the look out for new music which is why I’m a big fan of YouTube.

7. If you could visit any place in the world where would you go and why?

Oh goodness, where to start…I love to travel.  I’ve even backpacked around Europe, but I’ve never seen the Pyramids of Giza.  I did a report on them and had to build a model when I was in school, I was maybe 12, and I’ve been fascinated with them ever since.  I have a friend who currently lives in Egypt, so if I could afford the trip, I could knock that off the bucket list.

8. What kind of quirks do you have?

Oh, what creative doesn’t have their quirks?!  I’d say I’m borderline OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).  I like things to be in their place, I hate that I don’t have enough room in my tiny apartment for everything to be put away properly, but I’m not so bad that I need all my canned labels facing out, although they usually do (because how else would you know what it was?).  I’m also a procrastinator.  I know it.  I admit it freely, because at this point in my life, I really can’t change who I am, and there’s something about the pressure of a time-sensitive deadline that really gets the blood flowing.

9. How would you describe yourself personality wise?

I suppose I’m sort of a contradiction.  When I have to go out socially, if I don’t really know anyone, I’m quiet, reserved.  But, I used to be a server/bartender where I had to be social with strangers.  Even though I’m an artist, which usually lends itself to less seriousness and responsibility, I’m sometimes too rational, too cautious, having loads of responsibility tossed on me at an early age.

10. Do you have a religion or belief system you follow; if so, what is it and why? 

Ooh, this is one of those taboo type questions.  Nice.  I was raised as a non-denominational Christian, which means you follow the Bible’s teachings and believe in Jesus, but after a few “experiences” with supposed Christians, I was turned off to the whole idea of organized religion.  I don’t accept the Bible as law, because it was written, and altered, by men to serve their own purposes.  I don’t think the world is well off, but believing there is no God, no higher purpose, is depressing and bleak.

And here are my nominees (which I promise to finish another day as this was very time consuming):

 1. The Art Blot
 4. Tetoaws
My Questions:
 1. As a writer, I should ask, “What is your favorite book?” but I will expand that to include whatever your most treasured reading is (poetry, graphic novels, short story, what-have-you).
 2. What is your favorite movie?  (Yes, you may only choose one.)
 3. Coffee or tea?
 4. Are you a gamer?  If so, what’s your favorite game or series.
 5. What sound brings you the most pleasure?
 6. If you had the opportunity to go anywhere today, where would it be?
 7. If you could live in another era, which would it be?  And where?
 8. Do you have any pet peeves concerning the current state of the “modern age”?
 9. Do you have any kids or furkids?
10. And for a little fluff…do you have a celebrity crush?  Or is there an actor you could watch for an hour and a half just doing some mundane task?  Like sitting in a corner?
And so the torch is passed.  Thank you for this wonderful opportunity to explore other amazing people and their blogs and for this honor!
xx, Rach

Moving Forward on The Journey

Posted in Posts, Quotes by

LiebsterAwardImage2

I recently read a quote that said, “How can you expect the universe to give you what you want when you’re not clear on what it is that you want?”.  Or something to that effect.  When I made the conscious decision to change things this year, they started to change.  When I made my goals clear and started acting upon them, the universe began to respond.

On Saturday, I met with a group of women with different pursuits in the entertainment industry and am meeting with two of them further to discuss collaborations.  Then I received a lovely message that another blogger, aspecialkindofunique, had given me The Liebster Award (which I will work on tonight).  This award recognizes new bloggers with under 200 followers for their content.  Thank You!  Thank You!

See, all it took was a little mental kick in the butt to start making things happen!  I have my writer’s group tonight and then I’m attending a meeting with a career coach later this week to learn how to further my career goals.  All of this has been a huge confidence boost and a great motivator to keep moving forward.

So thank you to all of you who have been supportive and encouraging as I start this new phase of the journey, progress!

Here’s to making good things happen!  Good luck!

A Little About Character

Posted in Posts, Tips by

We’ve all heard the phrase, “write what you know”.  Obviously, this is not a literal writing tool or we wouldn’t have the vast array of stories we do.  What it all boils down to is character.  Your characters must be real, believable, and encourage our sympathy or disdain (I mean who doesn’t love to hate a character?  Have you all met Joffrey on Game of Thrones?).  And for some reason, this is sometimes hard to do.  We are people.  We are surrounded by people everyday, and yet when writing them down, they somehow lose their substance.

The same for dialogue.  Why is dialogue so difficult to write sometimes when we talk everyday?  Another topic for another day.

I was having a conversation with my younger sister about dating habits.  And it sparked the idea for this topic.  There are different mindsets depending on age.  The teen years are all hormones and angst – Everything is a tragedy.  The twenties are about exploration and self-discovery – It’s all about the chase, the idea of someone.  The thirties are about settling down and grown up responsibilities – There’s little patience for games.  The forties are about finally being comfortable in your own skin…etc.  Knowing the age of your main character and your audience might ease the storytelling process as many factors will already being in place, but obviously, don’t rely on those as crutches.  No two people are the same, even from the same family.  A great variety of personal, societal, and cultural differences separate us and unite us in our differences, no matter our age.

I’ve always been a people watcher.  A trait among most writers, and a useful tool to build an arsenal to peruse come story time.  I used to go to this tourist trap on the weekends with my best friend where we’d sit on the patio of our favorite cafe with our cappuccinos and watch the droves shop.  Sometimes we’d make up stories, back stories, what-have-you for the strangers we found so fascinating; that’s his mistress, they’ve been married for three days, he’s afraid to tell her he gambled away their vacation money, etc.  Experiencing more of life, knowing a variety of personalities adds to your knowledge bank and might help when fleshing out your characters.

As with any research, if there’s something you want to know about for your character, find the right avenue; speak to someone with the insight, read a psychology book, and definitely read The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell.  Find a family member, friend of a friend, or colleague that might be able to help you.  Go sit somewhere where a cross-section of society might converge and listen, watch.  Just remember, it’s the character that draws us in.  No matter what the story is, no matter where it takes place or when, if we don’t care about the character’s struggle, we won’t care about the rest.  And it doesn’t always have to be a “good guy” we’re invested in.  There are plenty of anti-heroes (Rick from The Walking Dead) and likeable/redeemable “bad guys” we’ll follow (and who doesn’t love a bad boy?  Why else is Loki of the Thor movies (and The Avengers) more popular than the title character?  This would be wonderful opportunity to post another Tom Hiddleston picture, but…).

So explore the variety that is human nature.  There’s lots to choose from.  This might be where that “write what you know” phrase comes in handy.  We already have a wealth of character information at our fingertips (family, friends, exes), and in some ways, our characters are extensions of ourselves.  There is some facet of us in them.  This is what we know.  We just have to be brave enough to put it on the page.

Best of luck and have a great weekend!

A Few Things…

Posted in Images, Posts, Tips, Websites by

A long weekend with my sister off from work led to very little progress on the writing front.  We did finally watch some movies on the ever-growing Netflix queue, so a little progress made on the personal to do list, as well as getting the living space more organized.  Yay.  And I’m finally making some headway in the novel, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.  It takes a little effort, because his writing style is very particular, but a definite read for any writer.  Quick overview – it’s about the future and how books are banned.  One of my goals (not to be completed in a year) is to read all the “best” books.  I grew up in a state that ranks at the bottom of education, so I’ve taken it upon myself to read those things I should have years ago.  I alternate a must-read with a pleasure-read, but have been doing rather poorly the last year or so, so, it’s on the list!  Here’s a link to the 100 Best Novels, if you’re up for the challenge.  I was recently asked why I’m doing this, and my response, “I’m a writer.  I should be educated in those that are considered great in my field”.

I wanted to do more with my dot.com (I love saying that), so I’ve started to add “Excerpts” of my work for a little insight into the types of stories I’ve written (all part of the “branding” I’m trying to achieve), a “Calendar of Events” for contests and writing opportunities (there are links for you to explore), and a Pinterest link to see the types of things that inspire me; people, places, castles, clothes, art, etc.  Take a gander if you want to waste a little time –

Hiddles(rugged)

(in adding that link, I still had Tom Hiddleston on the page, so that was a nice, welcome sight…So this is for my fellow Hiddles’ swooners!  Yes, those are both words.  Or will be.)  All of these are a work in progress.  And I’d love if you’d share any writing items (contests, meetings, conventions, classes, etc) of note as well.  I’ll put them up on the calendar.

Today’s post is a little random, as I am, at the moment…LitReactor shared The 10 Weirdest and Most Wonderful Libraries in the World.  I think I could be happy working in a library.  I’ve always wanted to open a little coffee/tea shop and have loads of books that people could take, swap, share.  That’ll be later.

And then not to forget about the writer’s struggle, The Write Life shared the Unconventional Guide to Freelance Writing.  This would be a monetary investment, but sometimes, it’s necessary.  I have a couple of those to make in order to move forward.  This would be one of those catch-22 scenarios where you need a little money to make a little money.

So it’s Thursday and this is my first post of the week.  Shameful.  I hope you’re all doing better than I!

Continued success!

Websites for Writers

Posted in Posts, Tips, Websites by

This list will probably take some time to go through, but I wanted to share it.  The Write Life Presents: The 100 Best Websites for Writers in 2014.  I’ll slowly make my way and if anything stands out, I’ll be sure to make special note of it.  And please do the same.

Here’s to a productive week!  Best of luck!

New Look & An Interesting Article

Posted in Posts, Tips, Websites by

I’m going to try this new look out for the next week and see how it “feels”.  I’d love some feedback or ways to improve.  What do you all think?  Yay or nay?  I’m not sure yet…

So the article I read, “What to write about when you don’t know what to write about” from ItStartsWith might be helpful for when you’re staring at that blinking cursor upon a stark white, blank screen.  If you need some inspiration to just start writing, anything, this article may help get those ideas flowing.  Sometimes I feel if I’m not working on one of my scripts than I’m wasting time, but writing anything is always good.  It keeps the mind sharp, continuously active and thinking, and ideas come from the most unexpected places.

I’m not going to go on and on today, like I sometimes do, because I’ve been playing around with themes all afternoon, it’s now 11:45 pm, and I haven’t written a word (except for what you see here).

Best of luck everyone and have a great week!

Keeping The Promises You Make To Yourself

Posted in Posts, Tips by

There’s this phrase, a joke really, about how “you’re not really a writer unless someone sees you doing it”.  Family Guy had a cutaway once of two guys writing in a well known coffee shop where one of the guys asks the other to watch him as he writes.  There’s a bit more to it, but you get the gist.  The reason I bring this up is because I don’t go anywhere to write, but after attending my first writers group tonight, I can understand the appeal.  I don’t need the outside validation to prove to myself that I am in fact a writer, but the two hours of solitude I was able to partake in tonight was wonderful.  I sat in a little restaurant with about 20 other writers, put in my ear buds, and just focused on my work.  I don’t want to say that I liked the fact that I had no dogs or sister demanding my attention, but the little respite was welcome.  When I came home my sister told me to take two hours everyday and go to said well known coffee shop.  But my laptop is now ancient, and I suppose I could use a pen and pencil the old fashioned way, but I actually type pretty quickly, fast enough to usually keep up with my train of thought, except when my hands are cold, like they are now, and I keep shivering and hitting the wrong keys, and having to go back and fix every other word…

So attending a writers group was one of the many items on my new to do list.  A way to meet people and network and be held accountable.  As I’ve mentioned, time sometimes gets away from me and I don’t get any screenwriting done.  So I joined a handful of groups in an effort to find multiple slots of time each week to get out of the house and work.  Doesn’t that sound strange?  But, when dirty dishes are staring at you, or a Netflix marathon seems inevitable because it’s a little cold and gloomy outside, and you’d rather snuggle on the couch with your dogs or significant other then sit at your desk and “work”, getting out may be the only answer.  I think a laptop might help me as well.  Then I could snuggle and work.

One of the other  items on my list is to be more creative, in any capacity.  I’d like to learn to draw, more than balloons and stick figures.  I’d like to learn to sew, more than stitching my dogs chew toys because they are aggressive chewers.  I used to decorate cakes, so this weekend, for my sister’s birthday, I made this — IMG_0887

I don’t have any of the proper utensils to actually decorate cakes, so I’m pretty proud of the results.  My friends were impressed, so I’ll probably give this another try.  Valentine’s Day is around the corner, as is my birthday…perhaps I’ll make my own cake…

So my point is this.  Those resolutions, whatever they are, try to keep them.  Start small.  Let them build upon each other, and when you look back in three months, six, the end of the year, you will be so impressed with the progress you made and you can be proud of your accomplishments.  If you’re a fellow writer, I would recommend small page/word counts to start.  1,000 words a day or 10 pages, etc. may sound easy enough, but there’s a lot of life that could get in the way, and if you don’t hit that mark, you might be disappointed.  So start a little lower, build momentum, and add to that word count/page count every month or so.  If you get on a roll, you may write more one day, then you can celebrate.

One thing I’ve learned along the way is to celebrate your achievements, great or small.  You finished that chapter you were struggling with…treat yourself to something.  Finished the first draft on your novel…treat yourself to something big!  Your treats could be anything; a celebratory walk around the corner for a bit of fresh air, and to revel in the moment of your success.  Maybe it’s a new keyboard, or a pen, whatever.

It’s easy to let things slide (I know this better than anyone), but come the end of the year, you want to be able to look back and feel good about it all.  This is what is propelling me forward this year.  I don’t want a repeat of the last one, or two.  Remember to write down those goals and post them where you can see them.  The constant reminder helps.

Wishing you all the best!  Continued success!  And be sure to look around in the coming week as I make changes to the blog…another item to check off that list.

Pardon My Absence

Posted in Posts by

This week just flew by.  I had a couple of sick days in the middle, but seriously?!  It’s Friday night, 11:50pm.  I’ve been reading a lot of articles, taking notes regarding competitions and networking opportunities in order to create a calendar of events, and trying to update the site, but, wow…I completely lost the week.  In addition, my sister got me a book I really wanted for Christmas, and I can’t put it down.  I’ll share more on that later.

I’ll be back on Monday with, hopefully, lots of new things!

Have a great weekend everyone and continued success!

Sticking With It

Posted in Posts, Quotes, Websites by

Okay.  Scratch two items off my new to do list — I am officially a dot.com (yay!) and I joined a handful of writer’s groups (Meetup.com).  I’ll be attending my first one next week.  I’m also working on an application to volunteer (VolunteerMatch.org — if you’re interested in finding an opportunity to volunteer as well) to teenage girls in an effort to help them find their writer’s voice.  I feel like I’m going from 0 to 60 in no time flat, but I’ve always worked much better when I have more to do.  And as the last year has shown, I’ve had way too much time on my hands with little result, so it feels good to start making plans.  What I’m hoping to gain from all this is some accountability — some pressure to produce and succeed.

I’ve set a few deadlines for finishing some writing projects in the hopes that with the spring (that time of year when agents get bombarded) I’ll have a handful of pieces ready.  In addition, I’m working on some personal goals, looking to update my blog, among the many other items on that Professional To Do List I’ve grown so fond of.  *Whew.

So here’s to sticking with it!  I hope you all are achieving some of your goals as well.  Let’s keep at it!

“The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” -Michelangelo

Best of luck!

Resolutions

Posted in Posts, Tips, Websites by

TypewriterFontWriterSo of course over the last two days every article I came across was in regards to sticking to the (writing) resolutions we make.  I’m still working on my list — a few items require an investment and I’m already becoming overwhelmed at the amount of things I’m even hinting at wanting to accomplish, both personally and professionally.  I’ve never been very good at the whole resolutions thing.  The idea of setting imaginary goals on one specific day of the year, only to be soon forgotten, seemed pointless when you can start each and any day with the same drive and purpose.  But now I sort of get it.  In the writing world, there are deadlines to be met, opportunities that come and go on an annual basis, and it’s good to be prepared right from the beginning of the new year so you know what to expect.

As I’ve learned, this is something that comes with age, time really does fly.  Days flow into one another to the point of not being able to remember what one did just two or three days before.  With a new year comes possibility.  There’s hope that this one will be different from the last, but this only works when we make a conscious effort to make it different.  We can complain all we like about our fates, but if we do nothing different, if we don’t alter our perspective and take action, then there is no one else to blame come the following year.  So the new year implies making the effort.  We reflect on our past actions and become mindful to not repeat them.

I have made a conscious decision to alter my ways.  I know I wasted too many days not writing last year consumed with depression over failed attempts at contests, not finding a “regular” job, and just a sheer lack of perspective.   Half way through the year I took notice and started to change, so that this year would be better.  Also, I’ve grown more lonely in an already lonely vocation, in part because I don’t have a “regular” job where I interact with people regularly.  So I watched too much Netflix and played too many video games, but I love doing both…This is something I vow to change this year by joining a writer’s group and volunteering.  I want to look back on my life and find it fulfilling, and the past year has not been that.  I told my sister that I had this silly notion that one day, when I’m successful and I’m being interviewed and the like, that I would like “them” to say, “Oh, wow, you do this, this, and this?  How wonderful!”  This is both a personal and professional goal, and though silly, may inspire me to do more with myself and my work.  It’s like having that Oscar speech, or what ever award you want to win, ready.  Most of us are prepared to thank those who helped us or inspired us along the way, and that in itself is a mental goal, that we would like to be standing in front of those esteemed people, worthy of being one of them.

So, here are a few links in regards to sticking to those writing resolutions.  I made note of many of them to help me as well — prioritize, make consistent, manageable progress, identify your big picture, discover and implement your 3 “NOs” as a writer, and a few more.  I hope they help.

LitReactor – The Top 4 Tips For Making Your Writing Resolutions Stick

The Write Life – 3 Steps For Creating Meaningful Goals

Chuck Palahniuk via LitReactor – 13 Writing Tips from C.P.

FabFreelanceWriting – 14 Easy Ways To Improve Your Writing Skills in 2014

Maybe as part of my own accountability, I’ll post my resolutions here.  If they’re out in the world, for anyone to see, it’ll probably hold me to them.

Best of luck and continued success!!

*Image from DL Koontz site