Is that thunder? Aw, it’s an award!

(Thanks to scienceclarified.com for the thunderstorm image)

encouraging-thunder

Thanks to Anand (Vibrant) for nominating me for this award!  And congratulations to him for his own nomination!  If there is anyone in the blogging community that deserves this award, it’s Anand.  He has been tirelessly supportive to our recent Blogging 101 class and alumni group.  In fact, I know I’m not the only one who worries that he’s not getting enough sleep!  He answers questions, gives praise and  kindly gives advice, so that we can all succeed!  I’m privileged to be part of such a lovely community.

The award rules:

  • The nominee posts the Award on their blog and adds the logo
  • Pass it on by nominating others (five is recommended)
  • Thank the person who nominated you, adding their URL to your post for ping back
  • Mention your purpose for blogging

My nominees are a really fantastic group of people.  From giving meaningful comments, to answering questions and having a good laugh together, I’ve enjoyed meeting them all!

My nominees are:

  1. maidsdayoff
  2. Cathy Lynn Brooks
  3. Karen Hampton, writer
  4. J S Malpas, author
  5. Minister Is a Verb

My purpose for blogging:

I’ve always loved books, loved to read.  Growing up as an only child, I had no brothers or sisters to play with and thus learned to read rather early on.  Unfortunately, even though I showed an aptitude for writing when I was young, it was never encouraged as a career choice.  I kept a diary from the time I was eight years old right up to about age fourteen.  I still have some of the notebooks I filled with poetry when I was an angsty teenager.  I went to college, first for a degree in marketing.  I continued writing during this time and even got one of my poems published, way back when.  Anyway, life went on.  Chiropractic school, starting a practice, marriage, caring for elderly parents, etc.  It had been years since I thought about writing.

One day, I guess about two years ago, I was sitting in the stylist’s chair at the hair salon, waiting for the color to cure (you thought I was a natural blonde, didn’t you?), reading my book to pass the time.  My stylist said to me, “You’re always reading.  Did you ever want to write a book yourself?”  “Sure,”  I laughed.  “Doesn’t every reader want to be a writer?”  “You should do it,”  she said.  “Hmm,”  I thought.  Why not?  I stopped at the office supply store and bought myself a nice notebook and started jotting down ideas.  Another year went by, a couple more notebooks and finally I had the idea ready for my first novel.

Next, I joined social media sites like Twitter and Tumblr and followed authors and writing blogs.  I realized I needed to do this myself.  A friend of mine has a food blog here on WordPress, so I decided to investigate and wow am I glad I did!  The blog gives me access to a supportive community of other writers and creative people willing to share ideas, make suggestions and just give you a pep talk when you get down.  It also lets me post short stories and other mini projects that help me hone my skills while I work on the next novel.  It has been a real pleasure to join this fantastic group of people!  Cheers!

Celebrating just a little!

An awesome thing just happened and I thought I’d share.  I got an e-mail letting me know that the first royalties for the sale of my book were being deposited into my account!  Now, obviously I knew that I’d sold some books, there are reports that generate that information for you on a regular basis.  But here was the proof!  The actual amount is small, my book has only been out a short time and it hasn’t gained much attention, yet.  I have to say that even though it’s not much, it’s still the sweetest money I’ve ever earned!

So for all of you writing your first book, struggling with the editing, agonizing over the cover design, take heart.  It will be so worth the effort when it’s done and you earn your first dollar (or pound, or Euro, etc)  Now I’m going to open myself a beer!  And yes, I know it’s only 8:30 in the morning!

Weekly quote.  I’m calling it: I couldn’t have said it better.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.”  -Theodore Roosevelt

Isn’t that the stinking truth?  Do you compare yourelf to the people around you?  To celebrities?  To the people who excel in your field?  Stop it!  Right now! It’s self defeating.  Compare yourself to yourself.  Are you making progress?  How’s that project coming along?  You’re better at your craft than you were last year, right?  I know you are!  So take pride in your achievemnents and forget about everybody else.  Have some joy!  It’s free!