The X-ed Bird, Some Threads, & an Elephant in the Sky

I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with social media. I’ve been complaining about it (sometimes right here) for almost ten years. Yet there I still am.

For me, drowning in the sea of social media platforms that we “should” join isn’t new.

However…

Changes have been made and things are happening and it’s all a bit of a dumpster fire at the moment. 🔥🔥🔥

The tweeting blue bird has officially been X-ed.

Threads are weaving through the online world. Messages are floating through the big blue sky. And mammoths are running amok.

Never being one to jump at the shiny, new thing, I’ve not done so with the millions who are Threading. (Yes, I just turned that into a verb. I’m embarrassed.)

Still, I am wondering whether these new (or newer) platforms might be worth it.

Threads *seems* easy. I’ve heard of Mastodon. I recently got an invite to Bluesky. And yet. 

I’m not really active on any platforms at the moment. I honestly don’t know where to share stuff anymore. Because I want to share. Sharing is nice. 

Don’t get me started on all the privacy issues, the owners who are…sketchy or worse, the potential problems (because of said owners and, let’s face it, people on the sites). I try not to think about it too much and just live in a small bubble of followers and followees.

My random thoughts in (slightly over) 200 words.

Are you on any of these platforms? How do you like them? Which do you suggest? (And, may I ask, why?) 

 

The Shadows We Breathe #BookReviews

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 3

The Shadows We Breathe series has received some love and I wanted to share the wonderful bloggers who have posted about it. I am thrilled readers have enjoyed these anthologies and am excited to share some reviews with you. 📚🎉

Hop on over to Lemon Shark Reef to check out the books, blogs, and reviews of these lovely bloggers!

The Shadows We Breathe #BookReviews

Why I’ll Never Write a Novel

While compiling the latest anthology, I found this paragraph in the middle of one of my stories.

I wrote this while trying to pen a 500-word piece. Five. Hundred. Words. It’s no War & Peace, my friends. It’s five hundred measly words. And, wow, did I struggle.

It’s sad but kind of hilarious (to me, anyway). Figured I’d share it.

Me, writing:

Okay, think I’m done. Phew. Not bad, Sarah, not bad at…how is that only 136 words? Dammit!

Okay…add some here, one more…no, that sucks. How about here? Okay, not bad. Now it’s…what? 287 words? I can’t add anything without ruining… Well, I guess… Yeah, I could try that. Nope. Oh, how about here? And…again no.

Oh! This would work. Boom! 373 words?! FFS!

Maybe I’ll start a new one. No, I’ve worked on this all week. Argh! Okay…skim, skim…here could work…no. Here…nope.

Okay, I guess I could add to this part but I’m saving a draft because this is totally going to ruin the story. Type, type, type, aaaand…362?! Wait, what?! How?! Oh, right, I deleted that part so this part would work. RAWR!

People have asked me how I cut my pieces down to so few words. Well, that answers it. I don’t. I struggle to get to where you all are at.

We all have our crosses of t’s and dots of i’s to bear, I guess.

As funny as it is (because I really did write this in the middle of a serious story), it made me wonder if I’ll ever be able to string enough words together to write the book(s) I’ve always wanted to write. Maybe novels are not for me.

My random thoughts in 200 words or less.

Watch this space for news about the newest volume in The Shadows We Breathe series!

Do you write flash? Micro? Short stories? How do you cut your word count down (or do you)?

 

Conflicted, Hesitant, and Falling Behind #IWSG

I’m typing this out right now (that would be the morning of March 2nd) because it’s the first Wednesday of the month (I can’t believe it’s March) and it’s IWSG day.

So here is the post about my recent writing insecurities. There are many.

Let’s start with the fact that I’m typing a blog post at the 11th hour. (Or the 12th or 13th hour or whatever.) I haven’t been able to keep up online. I’ve let comments pile up and need to get to those. I’ve been spotty on social media. Also, aside from all this, I’m not actually, you know, writing so there’s that. Also…LIFE. There are ALL OF THE THINGS happening and I’m struggling to get the basics done. I’m somehow managing to get through with a “the-show-must-go-on” mindset. So there you have it.

As for the question of the month, that’s an easy yes.

Have I ever been conflicted about writing something? Actually, as I’m typing that, I’m going to emphasize that affirmative to a “hell yes!” So many times for so many reasons, yes, I’ve been conflicted, hesitant, and downright scared to write something. The times I did it anyway, I have some regrets. The times I didn’t do it, I have some regrets. That, I believe, is The Way of the Writer, is it not? I think that’s a common experience we writers share.

What about you, fellow writers? Have you ever been conflicted or hesitant to write something? To put it out there? How did that work for you? Any regrets?

IWSG Question of the Month

March Prompt – Have you ever been conflicted about writing a story or adding a scene to a story? How did you decide to write it or not?

IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh. 

Stress #WritersLife #IWSG

Stress? What would a writer know about that? Pfft.

I have so many posts about stress, this could simply be a string of links to those. I won’t do that to you.

Among other things, I’ve written about the pressure of “success”, too-many ideas syndrome, and trying to fit writing into my schedule while juggling the numerous responsibilities of life. Dealing with the technical side of stuff (formatting, universal links, formatting, working in Canva, formatting). Trying to keep up with blogging and social media. And putting myself out there with marketing, promotion, etc.

Trying to choose which of those stresses me the most is like trying to choose which wine I like best. It depends.

I’d probably bundle some themed stress-baskets, as a lot of these go together quite nicely.

Writer’s Stress Basket One: Time (lack of, trying to find some), Success (what that even means to each individual writer vs what the world expects it to mean), Blogging (see “Time”), Social Media (see “Time” and, also, just ugh…), Life (see “Time” and, also sapping of energy/creativity). Add a bow and we’re done.

Writer’s Stress Basket Two: Formatting, Uploading, Downloading, Graphics, Promos/Ads, Word, Anything at all to do with computers, Anything at all to do with platforms, Anything at all to do with file types. This one needs some ribbons hanging off the handle.

Writer’s Stress Basket Three: Marketing and Promotion. Add some metallic tinsel crinkle paper and we’re ready to go.

At any given time, my writer’s life delivers me one of these lovely little baskets so that’s where I’m at on that.

What delights me about writing? Well, I feel I should give an equal amount of time to discussing that. It would only be fair. But I’m not going to. Writing, itself, delights me. It really does. I love it. It’s a lifelong pal. Also, putting something of quality out into the world that I created, that I worked hard on, that I am proud of…well, that’s delightful.

HAPPY DECEMBER!
🎄🕎🎅🏻❄⛄

The writer’s life is challenging. It’s full of stressors. Which ones are your biggest bugbears? What brings you delight in your writing life?

IWSG Question of the Month

December Prompt – In your writing, what stresses you the most? What delights you?

IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh. 

Blurbs Drive Me Batty #IWSG

Blurbs, am I right? They’re the scourge of the writing world. A plague. They must be destroyed.

Blurbs are the bane of every author’s existence. (At least mine. And it’s my blog so I say OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!)

Also, I’ll add, intros. Ugh. Though not quite as bad as blurbs, intros are pretty awful. I have a whole post on rejected book intros that’s totally worth reading. It’s sad and kind of hilarious and 100% true.

Here’s a snippet from that post (which could definitely work for blurbs):

During this time of lunacy when I was alienating friends and forcing family to disown me, I came up with some real doozies.

The following introductions are real. They were not written for your amusement. But I thought I would share them with you in case you are amused. It’s okay, you can totally be embarrassed for me.

• I like writing. I don’t like spiders. I made a book. Read it.
• I think I’d rather become dinner for the Swamp Thing than continue working on this foreword. Which is ridiculous because the Swamp Thing protects people (and is probably a vegetarian).
• Short fiction is like dark chocolate. It’s pure cocoa with no fillers. A small piece is rich and satisfying.
• I don’t like writing bios, forewords, or introductions. Actually, I don’t care for anything that requires me to tell readers about myself or my work.
• This pumpkin spice stuff is seriously getting out of control. Here’s a book with NO pumpkin spice in it.
• I’ve missed meals, skipped family outings, remained unshowered for two five days, typed until my eyes were sand paper and my fingers bled, developed headaches that laughed at Tylenol, and alienated many friends with my writer moods. I do hope you appreciate all that went into this book and that you will take pity on me and read it.
• I triple dog dare you not to read this book!
• This is a collection of mini stories… But, wait! There’s more! No, there isn’t. But mini stories are fun and delicious. Like those little cupcakes with sprinkles that you can eat a bunch of without having to explain yourself to anybody because they expect you to eat more than one.
• Will this torment never cease?!!!
• I’m seriously considering finding a vampire and asking it (“him”? or “her”?) to turn me so I have an excuse to not finish this intro. No, seriously. Now I’m wondering. What is the correct pronoun for creatures of the night? Are they “it” or do you refer to them by the gender they were before they were bitten? And, technically, they are still that gender. Regardless, if I were a turned into a vampire it would require some adjustment on my part. Would that be an acceptable reason for not including an introduction to this collection?
• There is nothing (not one thing) in this book that mentions the United States political system, the election, or the candidates.
• Short fiction is known by many names. Flash, sudden, postcard, micro, hint… Hint fiction. Get it? Hinting at Shadows does hint at darkness but it’s also hint fiction. Cool, huh? *nudge* *nudge* *wink* *wink* Know what I mean?
• I’d rather be watching Harry Potter.
• If I write any more introductions, there’s a real possibility I will spontaneously combust.

Titles? Now that’s a different ball of wax. I love titles. Titles for books, blog posts, short stories, flash… Titles are wonderful. Delightful. Magically delicious. (And easy. And fun. Have I mentioned I love them?)

What say you, gentle readers? Can you write blurbs easily? (If so, I don’t like you anymore. Kidding. But do comment because I may hire you.) What about titles? How easy or difficult are those for you?

IWSG Question of the Month

November Prompt – Which is more difficult–coming up with a title for your book or writing the blurb?

IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh. 

One Link to Rule Them All

 

 

Most of you know of the “universal” or “global” link for books. A lot of authors use it. The link allows you to customize your book url so it redirects interested readers to the correct country. (Amazon .com becomes Amazon .ca or Amazon .co.uk—you get the idea.)

So, yes, I do want this. And, sure, I’m willing to learn about different options. Which is why I’m here today.

The companies that change your link range from free to one-time fee to monthly subscription. So you can assume they range in services. (They do.) We’re going from cut-and-paste-your-link to tracking sales, customizing domains, and tons of other techie stuff I don’t understand.

Some give you a link that automatically redirects your Amazon customers. So your country’s Amazon store will become their country’s Amazon store. This allows readers to quickly and easily buy your book from the site where they have an account. This is Amazon only.

Others completely transform your link. They go global and create a link that works in every country, on every operating system (iOS, Android, Windows…), in every store (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks…), on every device (laptop, tablet, phone…) so you’re not only international, you’re, like, intergalactic.

Here are a few that I’ve seen. If you use any of these, please let me know in the comments. If you know of any I’ve missed, drop those in the comments, too. Inquiring minds want to know.

 

SmartURL

BookLinker

RelinksMe

Books2Read

Genius Link

 

My random thoughts in (a bit over) 200 words.

Do you use a universal link? Do you like it? Which company would you suggest and why (price, ease-of-use, accessibility for buyers)?

 

I was recently searching for the best universal/global link when I remembered this post. Forgot it was from 2017 (!) but, as it’s still relevant and quite timely for me, thought I’d repost it.

Since that post, I’ve been using BookLinker, and it’s worked fine, but I’d like to change it. I don’t need (or want) bells and whistles but do want to branch out (and away from an Amazon-only link). 

Laser Focused? #IWSG

 

It’s June already? What? How?

This summer is going to be interesting. Watch for some announcements and fun, my friends. Working on a thing at the moment and am pretty damn excited. 

Speaking of which, the question this month is about shelving drafts. I’m not having any of that right now. And I usually don’t. Except when I do. My collections don’t get shelved. I work and work (and work) until they’re as-near-to-perfect-as-I-can-manage then I’m done. Longer pieces are usually shelved (anywhere from a few days to ten years) but not because I feel the need to get space from them. More because I lose confidence in my abilities or something shiny comes along.

Speaking of which, my too-many-ideas syndrome I mentioned in last month’s IWSG post is still plaguing me. I’ve had some suggest that I shouldn’t write them down but, if I don’t, I’ll forget. Or, worse (way worse), the ideas will sit in my head, refusing to leave, and knock against my skull to be let out. Tylenol does not help with this.

That said, my focus has been off-the-charts amazing. I am working on one project. ONE. Can you believe? Admittedly, it’s a ginormous one so I’ve kind of been forced to focus. And it’s got a lot of parts so it feels like more than one project. And, actually, it’s almost to the point of an obsession. Huh. Okay. But, hey, focused, people. Huzzah!

Speaking of which… Yeah, I got nothing. Just wanted to type that again. 

 

Do you take time away from your projects? If so, why? To get some clarity/perspective? To clear your head? To wait for beta readers to get back to you? Because something shiny comes along?

IWSG Question of the Month

June Prompt – How long do you shelve your first draft before reading it and redrafting? 

IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh. 

Showers & Flowers #IWSG

 

What am I insecure about this month? Hmm.

First of all, WordPress is not being very nice and it’s not going to get any dessert. It’s possible it might get grounded if it doesn’t SHAPE UP! Stupid WordPress. Stupid formatting. ARGH! 

 

Anyhoo… I have a lot going on. Writing stuff and life stuff.

Life stuff, well, just happens and you deal. You get through it. Because. Life.

Writing stuff is…tough. I mean, writers NEED to write. That’s how we feel but, technically, it’s not true. It’s not one of the basic human needs. (But it sure does feel like it.) It’s like you must fit in your writing regardless of what else is going on. Which can be overwhelming.

Presently, I’m juggling a fair amount in the life category but, also, the writing category.

Trying to write in the spaces between life responsibilities. Editing a few books that have been patiently waiting to see the light of day. Getting those new covers together. Working on a (long-overdue) book. And, always, the technical crap. Ugh with that already. Please.

Also… My too-many-ideas syndrome is flaring up. And my ooh-a-shiny-new-project is back. I’m taking Tums but, alas, I’m still in distress.

So, yeah, a bit overwhelmed with ALL OF THE THINGS raining down on me. But April showers bring May flowers, right? Hopefully, this month will be calm. Pretty. Unsoggy. Blossoming with creative possibility and productivity.

Here’s to a bloomin’ brilliant May, my bloggy friends. 🌸

 

 

Do you try to fit your writing in or put it aside when life rains on you? Also, I’m super curious how many other writers have too-many-ideas and ooh-a-shiny-new-project syndromes. Do you? 

 

 

IWSG Question of the Month

May Prompt – Has any of your readers ever responded to your writing in a way that you didn’t expect? If so, did it surprise you?

IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh. 

Taking Writing Risks #IWSG

 

I never thought of myself as a risk-taker. A writing rebel. But, thinking on it, I guess I am.

I’ve mentioned numerous times (as recently as last month’s IWSG post) that I write what I want regardless of whether it’s popular, fits into any known genre, or is marketable. That, in itself, is risky. Also, the form, subject matter, tone, and style make my writing a pretty tailored taste.

I’m currently finishing my MS that’s not-novel, not-short-story, not-novella. And I break the rules of how it’s supposed to be written.

Also, I just posted about the possible downfalls of changing the covers of my books, wondering whether or not I should do it. Yup, I am. And they’re going to be what I like, not what they “should” be.

Oh, and, as you all know, I’m a pantser. ‘Nuff said.

So, um, yeah, I’m a risk-taking writer.

 

Wow. After writing this post, I realized I take risks in just about every area of the writing process. Yikes. 

Do you take risks in your writing?   

 

 

IWSG Question of the Month April Prompt – Are you a risk-taker when writing? Do you try something radically different in style/POV/etc. or add controversial topics to your work? IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group)

 

This post is part of IWSG , a monthly blog hop/prompt started by Alex J Cavanaugh.