Hello, my friends! I’m so excited to share the cover for my new book, which will be coming out soon. Here it is!
Now, you may ask me WHEN it is coming out, and at this point, I can’t set an actual date, but it will be by Christmas unless something really goes wrong. But since things DO go wrong, and planning, thy name is Betsy, I can only say it will be soon. How soon is soon? Hmmmm…..
Some day I’ll get this whole timing thing under control. Some day…. Hope springeth eternal. (more…)
When last we left Betsy, she had just sent her most recent book off to the editor and first readers for editing and first reading, respectively. For those of you who care, this means Betsy’s scheduling and timing are for crap, since those tasks really should be done in order, as opposed to simultaneously. Which means Betsy will have a heck of a mess on her hands when she tries to sort it all out later. (more…)
I love writing. If I didn’t love it, I wouldn’t keep doing it. But as you know in your own lives, sometimes love isn’t all fairy sparkles and pixie dust—sometimes it’s something a lot more jagged.
It’s the same way with writing. People often expect that writing is easy. Most of us know how to write somewhat competently, we all tell stories, so writing a novel has to be like sunshine and moonbeams. Especially something as “simple” as a romance novel. You think of a story, and you write it down. Boom! (more…)
Hello, my dears! My, but it’s been a long time since I’ve posted, hasn’t it? Sorry about that. One reason I’ve been delayed is that I keep thinking I’ll write a funny little story-post with the Muse and Harry and Skipper and all the rest. Then time slips away and I don’t do it. This week I decided to give up on the grand schemes and just write something.
But don’t worry! Harry shall return. (more…)
I have trust issues.
I also usually have issues when I’m editing a book.
These two things are not unrelated.
I’ve realized that I always get hung up in the editing process of a book because I don’t trust myself, which in turn makes me doubt my work. In the past, this has meant I rewrite the same book over and over again just because I doubt that it’s good enough. (more…)
Every once in a while, something happens that pulls back the veil of the illusion of your life and shows you what’s really going on. You’re moving along, you’re comfortable, you think you’ve got it all under control, and then – boom. Life bitch slaps you.
You get the legs knocked right out from under you. Something changes with no warning and you’re left trying to figure out what to do. (more…)
As we join Betsy, she is sitting behind her desk in her office in her brain, waiting. She’s known that she needed to have this conversation for weeks, but she kept putting it off, hoping against hope she wouldn’t have to go there. After all, how can she friendzone someone she loves so very much? How can she walk away from him? How can she intentionally distance herself from him? Her heart feels heavy in her chest. (more…)
When last we heard from Betsy, she was sounding very determined. And then she vanished from the face of the earth for several weeks. If you know anything about Betsy, you know that this is definitely not a good sign. Why it’s almost as if she was trying to ignore flaws and cracks and crevices that were widening and becoming catastrophic and then it all exploded in her face! (more…)
As I’ve mentioned before, one can have a production schedule. One can have the best darned production schedule in the history of production schedules. One can have dreams and aspirations. One can have goals. (more…)
Once Upon A Time, not so very long ago (this afternoon, in fact), there was a girl named Betsy who was sitting in front of her computer desperately seeking a blog post.
Betsy strove mightily to put out a blog post at least once a week. But, alas, The Sickness had descended upon her and hit her and knocked her asunder for several weeks and so she flaileth.
And, lo, The Sickness had been a mighty and terrible foe, but Betsy had at last fought it into a corner and was now struggling to pick up her life again. Verily, she hath determined that she would in no way sink into a sea of snot and lethargy. (more…)
My friends, today I’d like to share a great secret with all of you.
You can have as many ideas and good intentions as you want. You can have goals and dreams and freaking aspirations. You can give yourself pep talks. You can have a production schedule. You can even actually write things down on a calendar. You can have a plan.
But if you get a head cold from hell, none of that matters. (more…)
Come here, my friends. Have a seat on this comfy sofa. Turn off the news. Disconnect from social media (well, after you read this blog post). Stop streaming Netflix. Just sit. Take a deep breath. In…Out…
Good.
Now, I have a question for you to think about. What are you aiming at? (more…)
Here’s another post discussing what I’m doing publishing-wise and why I’m doing it, for those who care. Which, granted, aren’t that many of you, but hey. (more…)
As we all know, Betsy is flailing around like a sock puppet trying to be a successful independent author / publisher. That’s not new. But now she has goals AND a production schedule. She seems to actually be interested in taking her game to the next level.
However, Skipper, a chipmunk who is a Habit Implementation Specialist sent by the Muse Council to help Betsy develop and meet her goals, has asked Betsy to come see her in her office in Betsy’s brain. Whatever can she want? Isn’t she satisfied with the progress Betsy’s making? (more…)
As I mentioned in a prior blog post, I’ve had a number of people ask me about independent / self publishing. I decided to write more posts about what I’m doing regarding said publishing, why I’m doing it, and what I’m doing wrong in the hopes it may help others. This is one of those posts.
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If you’ve read the last blog post, you know that Betsy was recently wracked with doubt, uncertainty and fear – helped along by the Dark Voice that whispers through her brain. She did manage to vanquish her foe, but it was a near thing.
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As we rejoin Betsy’s blog, winds are whispering through Betsy’s brain. These are the winds of fear. Of doubt. Of unbelief. They are the winds of the Dark Voice, awakened from its slumber. They blow through the corridors, seep under doors, bang through windows, coat everything they touch with black fog.
Although the Dark Voice never really leaves, it often lies dormant, waiting. Betsy didn’t realize it was awake again, not right away. Not until the winds blew her off balance and the whispers started hitting her like bird-shot – little pellets that sting and rip. Little pellets that can shred her fledgling confidence, if she lets it.
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If you’ve been reading Betsy’s Blog, you know that Betsy is on a Quest to become a successful independent author. And, as is true of all Quests, she has a Guide. His name is Harry, and he was sent by the Muse Council to help Betsy stay on her path. Harry has taken up residence in Betsy’s brain, which is fine because there’s a lot of vacancy in there.
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Although I love the holiday season, I’m a HUGE fan of January 1st. That’s when the new year stretches out before us unsullied by our footsteps. What will happen in 2017? What will we accomplish? Anything is possible.
But, as with everything else, possibilities only become realities if we actually do the work to make them happen.
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2016 has gone now, and it took a lot of famous people along with it. David Bowie. Alan Rickman. Gene Wilder. Prince. Garry Shandling. Florence Henderson. Doris Roberts. Glenn Frey. Muhammad Ali. George Michael. Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds only one day apart. And those are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head.
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The holiday season is all about gifts. Whether you get gifts under the Christmas tree, or during the eight nights of Hanukkah, or the seven days of Kwanzaa, or celebrate the gift of light at the solstice, most of the holidays happening in December include gifts.
This year I received a wondrous gift a little early – he came to live at the Palatial Horvath Estate at the end of September. Here is the thrilling tale of our adventure thus far. It’s filled with pathos, roundworms, and a whole lot of love…
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Setting – Christmas evening, inside Betsy’s brain
Our Cast of Characters –
Betsy – your humble author
Skipper – a chipmunk and Habit Implementation Specialist sent by the Muse Council to help Betsy develop good habits.
Coffee – the beverage of champions. He is always with Betsy in one form or another.
Muse – She is, well, the Muse. Mysterious. Elusive. Creative.
Harry – Betsy’s Guide for her Quest to become a successful author / publisher. Although in folklore most Guides for Quests are white hares or white stags, Harry is a white gerbil. But he has ambitions, oh yes he does.
And now…..a poem…
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One of the first things you hear when you start going the independent author route is that you need to get professional covers for your books. You hear things like: “Don’t try to do it yourself!” and “A bad cover can kill a book!”
So, of course, I tried to do my book covers myself.
And it was a mistake.
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As I mentioned in last week’s blog post, I’ve become quite introspective here at the end of the year regarding my author business. Or lack thereof.
This introspection has led me to think about my reasons for doing this writing thing (again) and to identify a primary objective for what I want to achieve with it (again). Basically, my primary objective is to be a midlist, professional independent author, producing work regularly and being paid for that work because readers buy it.
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Hello, dear readers, and welcome to December. Soon it’s going to be 2017! Yeesh.
I always get somewhat introspective at the end of the year, thinking about where I’ve been and where I’m going. Because of who I am, I also beat myself up for not making as much progress as I think I should have made. Then, after weeping softly into my pillow, I pick myself up, look ahead to the new year and determine that the next 12 months will be different and better than the last. They will! *shakes fists at sky*
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