June IWSG: Which Path is the Right One?

June is here, and a new month means it's time for another Insecure Writer's Support Group post!

Purpose: 

To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting:

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time.

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!

Our Twitter hashtag is #IWSG 

Thanks to Alex for organizing the IWSG, and June's awesome hosts. Every month, I come to appreciate this group more and more. I'm so appreciative it exists, and thankful for all the hard work you guys put into it! <3

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This month I'm wondering, Which Path is the Right One? Which is funny, since my last in-depth blog post was as part of Carrie Butler's How I Found the Right Path BlogHop.

And for one part of my writing journey, I have found the right path. In the realms of drafting and revising, I know where I'm going, and years have experience have taught me what works for me, and what doesn't.

But, I'm about to embark on uncharted territory. That fabled land after revisions.

My new-adult paranormal-romance/ urban-fantasy is in the safe hands of my critters (Man, I love that term for them! ^_^), and the feedback I've received so far has been positive.

So, what comes next? Do I start querying small presses and entering pitch contests? Do I start seeking an agent? Or do I pursue self-publishing?

I honestly don't know. All three options appeal to me for different reasons, all three having their own pros and cons.

I just wonder ... which will be right for me, my story and my writing career? I honestly don't know, and I'd love some feedback from people already published. So, if you're willing, please share your experiences with querying, pitching, and self-publishing. All comments are welcome.

And, if you're still unpublished like me, or don't feel like sharing, feel free to talk about your own insecurity. I'm happy to listen, and help anyway I can.

Have a great June, everyone, and good luck on your literary endeavors for the month!

April IWSG: Onward and Upwards

Wednesday 2nd April means it's time for April's Insecure Writer's Support Group! 

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! 

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time. 

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!

Our Twitter hashtag is #IWSG 

This month, I'm one of the IWSG co-hosts for the April 2 posting, along with Hart Johnson, Chemist Ken, Candilynn Fite, Terri Rochenski, Lilica Blake and of course Ninja Captain Alex! 

Make sure you head on over to each of the co-hosts' blogs and show them some love!

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I thought long and hard about my insecurity for April, and I'm happy to say, I just haven't got one ... I'm in a good place with my writing right now. 

I've managed to find a good balance between work and writing, which has allowed me to finish the first draft of my NA urban-fantasy, paranormal-romance The Order of the Ancile: Book One (I totes need an actual title!)

I'm now headed to revisions land, but I'm not as daunted by the prospect as I have been with previous projects.

The encouragement I got on my January IWSG post is still motivating me, along with the support of my hubby and beta readers. :)

So instead, I want to offer support and encouragement to those who are struggling this month, and I'll be trying to visit as many new blogs as possible.

If you've got something on your mind, please feel free to leave a comment or point me in the direction of your blog, and I'll come pay a visit, and bring some words of encouragement. 

I'll end this post with inspirational, motivational graphics.

Good luck to everyone in their writing endeavors this month! ^_^

March IWSG: Should We Change What We Write to Gain Success?

I'm in a good place writing wise at the moment. I just finished act two of my WiP, urban-fantasy/ paranormal-romance, The Order of the Ancile Book One, and I'm eager to get started on the final act and climax.

Being close to finishing (around 20k words is close, right?) I can't help but think of the future. Whether I decide to self-publish or query with the hope of traditional publication, one question keeps coming back to me ... is urban-fantasy still popular?

I feel confident that my story is original, interesting and well-written enough to stand against other titles in the genre. My worry is, am I writing in a dead genre?

I see a a lot of talk that urban-fantasy/ paranormal-romance is dead. That it's lost the popularity it had a few years ago. That agents and publishers aren't interested in it as a genre.

While I've grown past doing something just to be popular or jumping on a bandwagon, I do wonder if I'll have an up hill struggle getting noticed with a book in a genre a lot of people seem done with.

So what's the answer? Stop working on it, and start a new project in a more marketable genre?

I do really enjoy contemporary romance. I read it sometimes, and I have a few contemporary ideas, but whenever I try to write them, I feel like a spark is missing ... a paranormal spark. I like coupling my romantic storylines with a secondary storyline of something supernatural.

I'm the same with the TV shows I watch ... most of my favourite have a romantic element combined with a fantasy/ paranormal/ supernatural element.

For me, reading and writing are a form of escapism, and nothing helps me escape more than exploring new, unusual worlds.

So I'm left wondering, should I just say to hell with it, and write what makes me happy, or Should We Change What We Write to Gain Success?

Insecure Writer's Support Group: What do you do when you grow bored of a story?

Happy New Year, folks!

I know I haven't been around much since I started working for CQ, but I'm aiming to rectify that this year.

2013 was an awesome year for me - love and thanks to all that helped make that happen <3 - and I hope 2014 is even better. One of the ways I want to improve on last year is by creating a better work/ writing/ blogging balance.

I don't want to make promises I won't keep, but I am going to try my hardest to keep up with blogging, and find time to work on my novel, while continuing my CQ work.

To that end, I'll be back next week with a proper update about work and writing, but today, I wanted to take part in my first ever IWSG!

I'm a long-time lover of Alex J. Cavanaugh's IWSG, I think it's an amazing concept, and the things Alex and the IWSG team have done with the group in the last year awe me. You guys rock. I hope your success continues and you know where I am if you ever need any help! <3

As for my own insecurity about writing, over the holiday break, I got to wondering, what do you do when you grow bored of a story? 

For the past year, I've been working on a new-adult paranormal-romance. I've written about 40k, and had most of that critiqued by a few trusted writer friends, while I continue writing the rest, and making revisions as they suggested.

For the most part, it's being going okay. When I have time between work, I've enjoyed writing the story. But ever now and again, I have moments when I just don't want to continue. I think it's too hard to get over these mountains, and I want to create something new.

I worry I'm addicted to the buzz of creating characters and worlds.

I have countless stories I've started and never completed. Most of them have been written during NaNoWriMo, and many are in different states; from complete and needing revising, to an unfinished mess.

I wonder if part of the problem is editing. I hate the process and find it really difficult. And when I find it difficult, I get bored. I start telling myself if I start a new project, I'll prepare and plan better and it will need less editing. But that's not true. No amount of preparing will create a perfect first draft. Editing is part of the growing process.

Then I start wondering should I just write for fun, for myself. Not caring if it's perfect or not, and never showing it to anyone. But I think no, a story that is never read isn't a real story. I want my story to have life outside my computer. It deserves that much.

I feel like I can't turn my back on these characters. I owe it to them to finish their story.

So for now, I'm back in that world, and enjoying it once again.

But I wonder, what do I do the next time this feeling inevitably creeps back? Go through the motions of wanting to give up and write something new until it passes and I fall in love with my original story again, and keep repeating that process until the novel actually gets finished?

Or is there something else I can do to keep me focused and on track?

I'd love to hear your tips and advice if you have them.

I hope everyone has an excellent week, and I will try to pop in on some of you to read your IWSG posts, and see what you've been up to recently.