Thursday, May 3, 2012

H. O. P. E.

At this moment I'm at 5,279 words on my novella. I hope to  write a little every day. Anyone interested can pop in and check my progress HERE.

Today I'm meeting friends who are driving in from Texas and other parts of Oklahoma to attend the Oklahoma Writers Federation Conference.  This year it isn't possible for me to attend. I'm disappointed. I'd really hoped to meet and talk with Chuck Sambuchino about my nonfiction book. I have so many questions. You might remember that I participated in Chuck's blog tour when his book, How To Survive a Garden Gnome Attack came out.

Sometimes I feel I have way too many irons in the fire. I get tired, run down and sometimes feel overwhelmed. If it wasn't for writer friends and writer groups, it would be easy to get interested in something other than writing--something that doesn't drain the emotions on a continuous basis. Yesterday I visited an online group called the Insecure Writer's Support Group. You can check it out HERE.  I read a few of the blogposts and actually felt myself getting a little depressed.  Some of these writer's were really reaching out, bearing their soul about their insecurities. That seemed to feed my own insecurities so I had to quit reading. The point of this group is for bloggers, on the first Wednesday of each month, to blog about some problem, or need or insecurity or question they have, and comments are left to encourage. One person blogged about hope. She said she knew her present novel wouldn't get her there and that her hope and belief are fading. Her post spoke to me and actually brought tears to my eyes. I've reached the point where I'm trying not to think about whether anything I write will get me there. In fact, I'm probably reaching the age that it's a little too late to get there. But, her post made me look hard at the word hope. That's when I saw a message to ME. 

H - Have
O - Options
P - Print
 (and/or)
E - Epub

We do have options: print publishing or Epublishing. There is always, always hope.


 Do you ever find yourself dragging emotionally and losing hope in some of your favorite writing projects? How do you keep yourself pumped and positive?

5 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

Too many irons in the fire. I know the feeling. I'm so glad summer is nearly here for me so I can focus on fewer irons.

Bethie said...

Great post!! I was going to visit Insecure Writers, but glad I'm forewarned before I do. Don't burn yourself out.

Jessica Ferguson said...

Thanks Karen, Charles and Bethie. And hey Beth, you should check out the Insecure Writers. I didn't mean to discourage anyone because it's a great group. Each member blogs differently; this particular post spoke to me and was heartfelt. Please don't on't stay away from them because of me. I'll probably join them too--just not today. :)

Sheila Siler said...

I fear I was one of those depressing posts this week, but I feel much better now. Thanks for following me, I'm following yours too. Writers groups make all the difference in the world - and I find a lot of encouragement in my blogger friends. Just do you best - and that's enough!

Lynn said...

I'd probably be like you and get depressed too! Don't all writers have insecurities?