Okay, I'm really going to try to stick to five things. You know how things like this go with me. But hey, it's my list so there.
1. I have failed at blogging this week. It has been one of "those" weeks, where you go to the dentist (twice), the post office, and entertain your family who brought you a new bed (which you haven't set up yet). In the same week.
I apologize. I will try to get to some blogs this weekend. But there is that whole new-bed thing, so yeah...
2. I am going to finish my first draft of Book 3 by September 30. I am, I am. Maybe. Hopefully. I've been drafting like crazy, and I still have a long way to go, but hey, I might make it. *checks Google cal*
Yeah, I might make it.
3. I booked my hotel for the tour in California! I'm a titch on the OCD side, and I've been looking for weeks. Finally, I just picked one, and I can't wait for October 17!
4. I have lost 20 pounds. Okay, 19.6, but if we were rounding, it would be 20. So take that, math geniuses. Turns out your body doesn't need 50,000 calories/day to stay alive...
5. I started reading LITTLE HOUSE IN THE BIG WOODS with my daughter last night. She's in first grade, so she can read for short spurts. I have such great memories of those books from my childhood, that I'm hoping this will be something fun for her.
What's on your Friday Five? Drafting? Blogging? Booking hotels? Eating healthier? Reading? Lay it on me.
Find Me Online
Showing posts with label blog reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blog reading. Show all posts
Friday, September 23, 2011
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Where to Spend Your Blogging Time
Ah, time. My fickle friend. I want you to slow when I sleep. And speed up when I'm at work. And pause when I write. But accelerate when I clean.
There is never enough of you.
Today, I'm going to opinionate on where you should spend your time to build your online presence. I'm going to do the author branding thing on Thursday.
I think you should have a goal for your social networking. What are you using Facebook for? Twitter? Your blog?
Once you know that, then you know how much time to devote to each one. Let me break it down. This is all for me, so you'll have to adjust your goals accordingly.
1. Facebook. Mine is a mish-mash of writing friends, family, publishing professionals and old friends from high school. Therefore, my goal is not to make every post about writing. This is the place I live my life.
I virtually farm. I virtually cook. I post about movies and going to dinner and yes, writing. It's the "real Elana." I don't update my status very often, but that doesn't bother me. It's not my main platform for networking. It's more for pleasure. More personalized.
Therefore, I probably spend about 15 minutes/day reading through status updates and liking and commented. That's it.
2. Twitter. This is all writing, all the time. I connect to writing pals here. I don't have friends on twitter. Well, I do, but not like real-life-I-went-to-high-school friends. I keep my posts about my WiP or my writing or reading life.
I don't spend much time on twitter because, well, I don't like it. (Remember that post?) I probably spend 15 - 30/minutes each night on twitter. When there are chats, I spend about an hour (Tuesday and Wednesday night).
The end. So I'm up to 45 minutes/day on social networking.
Which leads me to blogging.
3. Blogging. You have to decide where to spend your bloggy time. When I first entered the publishing world, I read literary agent and publishing blogs like they were crack. I couldn't get enough. I'd skip meals and arrive late to work, just soaking up everything I could from the pros.
Once I realized I'd read most of what they were saying, and knew most of it, I gravitated away from those blogs. And now? Dirty little secret... I don't read them at all anymore. Every once in a while, when big news breaks, like the eBook thing with Amazon. That's it.
That's not where I spend my time.
I spend it with other aspiring authors. Rarely do I read a blog of a published author. I know that sounds bad, but it's usually just about their signing schedule or if their novel sold in Spain. Which I like to hear, but yeah. Not really the best bang for my blogging minute, you know?
So I spend all of my time reading and commenting on the blogs of those who are like me. So I think you have to evaluate where you are in your progression, and spend your time in the right places.
Just starting out authors might spend more time on GLA and QT and Nathan Bransford. Further along, you might switch to agented/sold authors with books that aren't quite out (to make online connections), and book bloggers and craft blogs (like The Blood Red Pencil or QT or YA Highway).
Once you're agented/presold/sold, you might continue your friendships with other pre-agented, pre-pubbed authors, or you might move more into book bloggers (who will be reviewing your book--squee!), other debut authors, or get this: READERS.
So I think where you spend your time blogging depends on where you are in the publishing journey. Right now, I'm frequenting book blogs, aspiring authors both agented/sold-but-not-out, agented/pre-sold, and pre-agented.
Why?
To make friends, author connections, and bring like-minded people back to my blog. (And believe me when I say that I read and commented on 90+ blogs on Friday. And that's on the low end of what I do each weekday. I refuse to read and comment on blogs on the weekend. That's how I preserve my sanity.)
I go to a very few publishing/agent blogs and even fewer already-published author blogs. It's just not where I am at the moment.
So you must decide first where you are, and what you need to learn. That will help you establish your goal, which will help you spend your bloggy minutes in the right places.
So you tell me: Where are you right now? What kind of blogs are you reading? Are you learning what you need to to advance to the next level? If not, maybe you should be reading different blogs...
Thoughts?
There is never enough of you.
Today, I'm going to opinionate on where you should spend your time to build your online presence. I'm going to do the author branding thing on Thursday.
I think you should have a goal for your social networking. What are you using Facebook for? Twitter? Your blog?
Once you know that, then you know how much time to devote to each one. Let me break it down. This is all for me, so you'll have to adjust your goals accordingly.
1. Facebook. Mine is a mish-mash of writing friends, family, publishing professionals and old friends from high school. Therefore, my goal is not to make every post about writing. This is the place I live my life.
I virtually farm. I virtually cook. I post about movies and going to dinner and yes, writing. It's the "real Elana." I don't update my status very often, but that doesn't bother me. It's not my main platform for networking. It's more for pleasure. More personalized.
Therefore, I probably spend about 15 minutes/day reading through status updates and liking and commented. That's it.
2. Twitter. This is all writing, all the time. I connect to writing pals here. I don't have friends on twitter. Well, I do, but not like real-life-I-went-to-high-school friends. I keep my posts about my WiP or my writing or reading life.
I don't spend much time on twitter because, well, I don't like it. (Remember that post?) I probably spend 15 - 30/minutes each night on twitter. When there are chats, I spend about an hour (Tuesday and Wednesday night).
The end. So I'm up to 45 minutes/day on social networking.
Which leads me to blogging.
3. Blogging. You have to decide where to spend your bloggy time. When I first entered the publishing world, I read literary agent and publishing blogs like they were crack. I couldn't get enough. I'd skip meals and arrive late to work, just soaking up everything I could from the pros.
Once I realized I'd read most of what they were saying, and knew most of it, I gravitated away from those blogs. And now? Dirty little secret... I don't read them at all anymore. Every once in a while, when big news breaks, like the eBook thing with Amazon. That's it.
That's not where I spend my time.
I spend it with other aspiring authors. Rarely do I read a blog of a published author. I know that sounds bad, but it's usually just about their signing schedule or if their novel sold in Spain. Which I like to hear, but yeah. Not really the best bang for my blogging minute, you know?
So I spend all of my time reading and commenting on the blogs of those who are like me. So I think you have to evaluate where you are in your progression, and spend your time in the right places.
Just starting out authors might spend more time on GLA and QT and Nathan Bransford. Further along, you might switch to agented/sold authors with books that aren't quite out (to make online connections), and book bloggers and craft blogs (like The Blood Red Pencil or QT or YA Highway).
Once you're agented/presold/sold, you might continue your friendships with other pre-agented, pre-pubbed authors, or you might move more into book bloggers (who will be reviewing your book--squee!), other debut authors, or get this: READERS.
So I think where you spend your time blogging depends on where you are in the publishing journey. Right now, I'm frequenting book blogs, aspiring authors both agented/sold-but-not-out, agented/pre-sold, and pre-agented.
Why?
To make friends, author connections, and bring like-minded people back to my blog. (And believe me when I say that I read and commented on 90+ blogs on Friday. And that's on the low end of what I do each weekday. I refuse to read and comment on blogs on the weekend. That's how I preserve my sanity.)
I go to a very few publishing/agent blogs and even fewer already-published author blogs. It's just not where I am at the moment.
So you must decide first where you are, and what you need to learn. That will help you establish your goal, which will help you spend your bloggy minutes in the right places.
So you tell me: Where are you right now? What kind of blogs are you reading? Are you learning what you need to to advance to the next level? If not, maybe you should be reading different blogs...
Thoughts?
Friday, January 22, 2010
How I Do It
Many of you have asked me how I do everything I do. You know, the farming and virtual cooking. The blogging. The blog reading. The query lettering. The reading. The working. The family stuff. Sleeping. And, oh yeah, don't forget the writing.
Well, strap yourselves in for a math lesson. Hey, I gotta put that math minor to use somehow. I'll be sprinkling in a few things I do along the way.
7 days a week x 24 hours in a day = 168 hours/week.
Sleep: 8 hours x 7 days = 56 hours.
Contrary to popular belief, I sleep 8 hours every night. I'm nothing if not scheduled. And schedules are not broken.
Hours remaining: 112.
Work (including travel time): 6 hours x 4 days = 24 hours.
Special Note: I work a job in front of a computer. I check forums, blogs, etc. and get paid to do it. In fact, I only read blogs while at work. (I blogged about Speed Blogging here.) Thus blogging hours: <24.
And yes, I only work 4 days a week. Don't throw rotten fruit.
Hours remaining: 88.
Writing: 2 hours x 7 days = 14 hours.
I do 95% of my writing between 9 - 11 PM. That's a lot of time if you think about it. Even without my endless three-day weekends, and full summers without employment, I spend a lot of time writing. (And when I say "writing" I mean in all it's forms, i.e. revising.)
My youngest kidlet is 5. She's been potty trained for years. Goes to bed at 8:30 no. matter. what.
My oldest kidlet is 11. He can do almost everything adults can do. Goes to bed at 9:00 no. matter. what. (Take that, super nanny!)
Hours remaining: 74.
Blogging: Posts read at work (see above). I write all my blog posts on the weekend. Sure, I double check the night before, but it's a five-minute thing.
So 5 minutes x 5 days a week = 25 minutes.
Post writing on the weekend: 2 hours. Since I do the once-a-week method for blog writing, I only have to think about blogging once, instead of five separate times. This works for me.
Hours remaining: 71 hours, 35 minutes.
Other kewl facts: I can type 89 words a minute. That's 91.5% faster than everyone else on Facebook, just so you know. *wink*
Twitter/Facebook/Forums: maybe 1-2 hours x 6 days = 6 - 12 hours.
I only tweet at night (or while at work). Here, there, whenever. I try to update Facebook once a day. My FB is organized into "family" "publishing people" and "everyone else". I go through each list, liking and commenting. Time? About 20 minutes. Since FB is blocked by the firewall at work, I do this upon arriving home.
Hours remaining: 60+.
So there you have it. Some of the things I do in order to get it all done. And even then, I always feel helplessly behind.
What do you do? Schedule your blog reading time? Write while your kids are asleep? Duck into a writing forum during lunch? How do you fit it all in? Whatever "it" may be. Got any tips for me?
Well, strap yourselves in for a math lesson. Hey, I gotta put that math minor to use somehow. I'll be sprinkling in a few things I do along the way.
7 days a week x 24 hours in a day = 168 hours/week.
Sleep: 8 hours x 7 days = 56 hours.
Contrary to popular belief, I sleep 8 hours every night. I'm nothing if not scheduled. And schedules are not broken.
Hours remaining: 112.
Work (including travel time): 6 hours x 4 days = 24 hours.
Special Note: I work a job in front of a computer. I check forums, blogs, etc. and get paid to do it. In fact, I only read blogs while at work. (I blogged about Speed Blogging here.) Thus blogging hours: <24.
And yes, I only work 4 days a week. Don't throw rotten fruit.
Hours remaining: 88.
Writing: 2 hours x 7 days = 14 hours.
I do 95% of my writing between 9 - 11 PM. That's a lot of time if you think about it. Even without my endless three-day weekends, and full summers without employment, I spend a lot of time writing. (And when I say "writing" I mean in all it's forms, i.e. revising.)
My youngest kidlet is 5. She's been potty trained for years. Goes to bed at 8:30 no. matter. what.
My oldest kidlet is 11. He can do almost everything adults can do. Goes to bed at 9:00 no. matter. what. (Take that, super nanny!)
Hours remaining: 74.
Blogging: Posts read at work (see above). I write all my blog posts on the weekend. Sure, I double check the night before, but it's a five-minute thing.
So 5 minutes x 5 days a week = 25 minutes.
Post writing on the weekend: 2 hours. Since I do the once-a-week method for blog writing, I only have to think about blogging once, instead of five separate times. This works for me.
Hours remaining: 71 hours, 35 minutes.
Other kewl facts: I can type 89 words a minute. That's 91.5% faster than everyone else on Facebook, just so you know. *wink*
Twitter/Facebook/Forums: maybe 1-2 hours x 6 days = 6 - 12 hours.
I only tweet at night (or while at work). Here, there, whenever. I try to update Facebook once a day. My FB is organized into "family" "publishing people" and "everyone else". I go through each list, liking and commenting. Time? About 20 minutes. Since FB is blocked by the firewall at work, I do this upon arriving home.
Hours remaining: 60+.
So there you have it. Some of the things I do in order to get it all done. And even then, I always feel helplessly behind.
What do you do? Schedule your blog reading time? Write while your kids are asleep? Duck into a writing forum during lunch? How do you fit it all in? Whatever "it" may be. Got any tips for me?
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Speed Blogging: Tips From a Blogaholic
Okay, so I posted on Facebook last week that I'd just read AND commented on 30 blogs. How long did it take? 30 minutes.
Scott provided the title of this post when he said, "Speed blogging!"
So I give you, Speed Blogging, Tips From A Blogoholic:
1. You need a blog list you can click from quickly. This is one of the many reasons why I created my Wicked Awesome Bloggers list. I go to that blog and viola! Every blog I care most about reading is there. In order of their last post.
2. Quickly click on every blog you wanna read. They'll open in a new window. This is good for you. Sometimes I have 40 windows open. This might freak some of you out. It's okay. Deep breaths.
3. And go! Read the post. Comment. Close window. Guess what? The next blog pops right up, where it was waiting in the background. No extra clicking. Read post. Comment. Close window. Rinse and repeat.
The end.
I can usually go through the morning's posts (up to 30-40 blogs) during my 35-minute lunch break. That includes heating up my lame leftovers and using the restroom.
I then do a nightly round of blog reading. This usually consists of making sure I go to the blogs of people who leave me comments, and anyone else who didn't post by 11:45 AM. I probably spend 60 minutes, TOPS, reading blogs. And I probably read and comment on 45 - 60 blogs every single day.
And that's it. Speed blogging. It's all in spending that 3 minutes to get the windows all open. Then it's click, read, comment. Done!
What tips do you have for reading a lot of blogs in a short amount of time? Lay it on me, I'm all about the speed blogging, baby.
Oh, and I just wanna say that I'm at 6800 words for NaNo. Hold the applause. Ha ha!
Scott provided the title of this post when he said, "Speed blogging!"
So I give you, Speed Blogging, Tips From A Blogoholic:
1. You need a blog list you can click from quickly. This is one of the many reasons why I created my Wicked Awesome Bloggers list. I go to that blog and viola! Every blog I care most about reading is there. In order of their last post.
2. Quickly click on every blog you wanna read. They'll open in a new window. This is good for you. Sometimes I have 40 windows open. This might freak some of you out. It's okay. Deep breaths.
3. And go! Read the post. Comment. Close window. Guess what? The next blog pops right up, where it was waiting in the background. No extra clicking. Read post. Comment. Close window. Rinse and repeat.
The end.
I can usually go through the morning's posts (up to 30-40 blogs) during my 35-minute lunch break. That includes heating up my lame leftovers and using the restroom.
I then do a nightly round of blog reading. This usually consists of making sure I go to the blogs of people who leave me comments, and anyone else who didn't post by 11:45 AM. I probably spend 60 minutes, TOPS, reading blogs. And I probably read and comment on 45 - 60 blogs every single day.
And that's it. Speed blogging. It's all in spending that 3 minutes to get the windows all open. Then it's click, read, comment. Done!
What tips do you have for reading a lot of blogs in a short amount of time? Lay it on me, I'm all about the speed blogging, baby.
Oh, and I just wanna say that I'm at 6800 words for NaNo. Hold the applause. Ha ha!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
So Sue Me
Oh, I know, I know. I said I was going to UnBlog. I did this post way last weekend, if that makes any of you feel better. All right! I cheated a bit and did some of it last night when I found out I had another award. Sheesh. It's just one day!
I received some blog awards, and I thought I'd post them this week. J.B. Chicoine gave me the Kreativ Blogger award. I also received this award from NWA at Chronicles of a Novice Writer. And she's going to the conference at UVU, so she can't remain anonymous forever! Woot! (And mwa, ha ha!) And I got it from Scott Mitchell at A Writer's Blog. And I got it from Katie Salidas at Step 1: Write, Edit and Revise. Then I got it from Lin Wang at Flames and Shadows. And then from Icy Roses at From Elysium. And from Amanda at Ramblings of a Drifting Mind. Thanks a million guys! I *heart* you!
Anyway, this one has rulez. Here they are:
Okay, so I've done or will do all of that. I know you're on the edges of your seats to find out 7 things about me. Here goes.
1. I attended 4 universities before graduating. This wasn't because I kept getting suspended for rowdy behavior or anything. It's just because, well, I like to complicate my own life. So yeah. 4 universities and then I earned my Bachelor's degree. Never let anyone tell you you can't do something.
2. I like to play tennis, despite my whale-ish physique. I think "like" is too soft of a word. I adore tennis. I would play every day if I could. Tournaments and stuff. I'll watch any tennis, at any time, on any channel. I love it.
3. I got married 7 months after graduating from high school. And that came after a 7-week engagement. I don't think my parental units were thrilled. But hey, I'm coming up on 13 years of marital bliss, and neither of us have died. Yet.
4. I think some of my cells are made of potatoes. I love potatoes. Any way you slice, bake, mash, hashbrown or fry 'em. Sign me up.
5. I can play the recorder very well. I even played Jingle Bells at a family Christmas party once. Srsly. I have mad musical skillz.
6. I'm a restless soul. I'm going into my 10th year of teaching. The first three years were spent as an upper grade music specialist. (Toldja about the recorder. I wasn't joking about my abilitiez.) The next four years were in 3rd grade. And this is my third year in the computer lab. I'm already feeling itchy to get another assignment, like if I stay doing something for too long I'll, well, I'll... I don't know, but it makes me nervous. So maybe I'm not restless. Maybe a better word would be psychotic. The jury is still out on that one.
7. I have major food issues--the kind you need a doctor for. For example, I don't like onions, but I simply can't get enough onion rings. I eat tomatoes like apples, but absolutely cannot stomach a cooked tomato unless it's been made into a sauce. My food cannot touch. I will not eat mushrooms in any shape, form, consistency or cooked condition. Nada. I need therapy for my food issues. Or so some say... They know who they are and they don't read this blog. Thankfully.
And one final award. I received the Literary Blogger Award from my good pal, Ali Cross. She's in my critique group and really gets me. The hair, the horrible hyena laugh, all of it. Thanks Ali! Can't wait for Tuesday night! And you should go read what she said about me, cuz it brought a little tear to my eye. Shocking, I know. You guys didn't peg me for a crier, didja? I'm all about the surprise element. I'm kind of like a ninja in that regard.
Have a good one. I swear I'm not going to do any other blogging this week. I swear I swear I swear.
I received some blog awards, and I thought I'd post them this week. J.B. Chicoine gave me the Kreativ Blogger award. I also received this award from NWA at Chronicles of a Novice Writer. And she's going to the conference at UVU, so she can't remain anonymous forever! Woot! (And mwa, ha ha!) And I got it from Scott Mitchell at A Writer's Blog. And I got it from Katie Salidas at Step 1: Write, Edit and Revise. Then I got it from Lin Wang at Flames and Shadows. And then from Icy Roses at From Elysium. And from Amanda at Ramblings of a Drifting Mind. Thanks a million guys! I *heart* you!
Anyway, this one has rulez. Here they are:1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated.
Okay, so I've done or will do all of that. I know you're on the edges of your seats to find out 7 things about me. Here goes.
1. I attended 4 universities before graduating. This wasn't because I kept getting suspended for rowdy behavior or anything. It's just because, well, I like to complicate my own life. So yeah. 4 universities and then I earned my Bachelor's degree. Never let anyone tell you you can't do something.
2. I like to play tennis, despite my whale-ish physique. I think "like" is too soft of a word. I adore tennis. I would play every day if I could. Tournaments and stuff. I'll watch any tennis, at any time, on any channel. I love it.
3. I got married 7 months after graduating from high school. And that came after a 7-week engagement. I don't think my parental units were thrilled. But hey, I'm coming up on 13 years of marital bliss, and neither of us have died. Yet.
4. I think some of my cells are made of potatoes. I love potatoes. Any way you slice, bake, mash, hashbrown or fry 'em. Sign me up.
5. I can play the recorder very well. I even played Jingle Bells at a family Christmas party once. Srsly. I have mad musical skillz.
6. I'm a restless soul. I'm going into my 10th year of teaching. The first three years were spent as an upper grade music specialist. (Toldja about the recorder. I wasn't joking about my abilitiez.) The next four years were in 3rd grade. And this is my third year in the computer lab. I'm already feeling itchy to get another assignment, like if I stay doing something for too long I'll, well, I'll... I don't know, but it makes me nervous. So maybe I'm not restless. Maybe a better word would be psychotic. The jury is still out on that one.
7. I have major food issues--the kind you need a doctor for. For example, I don't like onions, but I simply can't get enough onion rings. I eat tomatoes like apples, but absolutely cannot stomach a cooked tomato unless it's been made into a sauce. My food cannot touch. I will not eat mushrooms in any shape, form, consistency or cooked condition. Nada. I need therapy for my food issues. Or so some say... They know who they are and they don't read this blog. Thankfully.
And...that's more than you wanted to know, right?
Right.
Since I received this award seven times, I'm going to go all wonky on you and nominate whoever I want for the Kreativ Blogger award. These are some of the best bloggers out there.
1. Lisa and Laura Roecker
2. Katie Anderson and Sarah Frances (Plot This)
3. Shelli Johannes
4. Beth Revis
5. Abby Annis
6. Tess Hilmo
7. Suzanne Palmieri
8. Jamie Theler (Bookmom Musings)
9. Aaron Polson (The Other Aaron)
10. Amanda Bonilla
11. Marybeth Smith
12. Ryan (The Life of an Aspiring Writer)
13. Katie Ganshert
14. Jenn (Purple Clover)
15. Kate Karyus Quinn
16. Jenn Johansson
17. Natalie Whipple
18. Jeanette Schneider
19. Corey Schwartz
20. Katie Salidas
21. Scott Mitchell
22. Ben Watson
23. Carol Anne Strange
24. Jessica Nelson
25. Danyelle Leafty
26. Sara Tribble
27. Casey McCormick
So go check them out. Follow. Comment. You won't be sorry.
I also received the Silver Shoe of Sincerity Award, again from NWA. Thanks
Novice! No rules except one. The person you pass it on to has to show absolute sincerity in their comments. So many of you do this here on my blog, which I appreciate immensely.
But the one I picked?
Scott Mitchell. He deserves the sparkly shoe for his awesome, well-thought out comments and witty snark. Do witty and snark mean the same thing? *shrugs* I like it.
And Christine Fonseca. Ha! I can pick two if I want. Who's going to stop me? Ooh, blog police! We should totally form a squad or something. Anyway, she gets 'da shoe for always commenting, her unending reserves of patience, and for talking me off the ledge on a daily basis.
Thanks guys!
And one final award. I received the Literary Blogger Award from my good pal, Ali Cross. She's in my critique group and really gets me. The hair, the horrible hyena laugh, all of it. Thanks Ali! Can't wait for Tuesday night! And you should go read what she said about me, cuz it brought a little tear to my eye. Shocking, I know. You guys didn't peg me for a crier, didja? I'm all about the surprise element. I'm kind of like a ninja in that regard. I also received this award from Jenna at As the Plot Thickens. She had rules on hers. I guess I get to pass this one on to whoever I want.
Hmmm...
How about those 27 people up there? Yeah, let's go with them. Heck, let's throw all reason out the door (I'm the captain of the newly formed Blog Police Patrol. Hey! The BPP! You down with BPP? Yeah, you know me! Ahem.), and say that if your name or blog appears anywhere in this post, you get the Literary Blogger Award. Congrats! You guys know that I read blogs like I breathe air, so I really do nominate you all. The world would be a sad, dark place without blogs.
Have a good one. I swear I'm not going to do any other blogging this week. I swear I swear I swear.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Because One Is Not Enough
That's right. I made a blog for blogs. I didn't want all the live feeds to crash this blog again, which I really don't get cuz I've seen some blogs out there that have so much stuff on them you can't even find the post.
But whatev.
I made a new site called Wicked Awesome Bloggers. Check it out. It's how I get to the best blogs on the planet!!
I put this blog in my sidebar (it's been over there for a day or two), and really it's only one more click. There's a HUGE list of blogs I read everyday and then I read even more from my dashboard. Srsly. I need pills or something.
I'm not planning to post over there, like, ever, but you can leave me a comment if you want. Like maybe who you think should be on the list. Or whatever. The list is easily added to and it'll probably change from time to time, but that's it.
Enjoy!
But whatev.
I made a new site called Wicked Awesome Bloggers. Check it out. It's how I get to the best blogs on the planet!!
I put this blog in my sidebar (it's been over there for a day or two), and really it's only one more click. There's a HUGE list of blogs I read everyday and then I read even more from my dashboard. Srsly. I need pills or something.
I'm not planning to post over there, like, ever, but you can leave me a comment if you want. Like maybe who you think should be on the list. Or whatever. The list is easily added to and it'll probably change from time to time, but that's it.
Enjoy!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Teaser Tuesday
Okay, so it's no secret that I'm a serial blog reader. And I've seen some Teaser Tuesdays out there. So I decided, what the heck? What's one more bandwagon? I'm already on like, fifty, why not one more?So here goes. Teaser Tuesday is where you post a little snippet of your writing as a teaser...on Tuesday. Yeah, I love the alliteration thing. Also, I'm not saying I'm gonna do this every week, cuz frankly I'd run out of really teasy stuff to post, but I might give it a go for a little while.
Here goes. This is from Control Issues.
I exited to muddy ground. My sneakers absorbed a lot of water and gunk, making my feet heavy and running difficult. I slogged through the swampy area to the street, which was deserted. The sky lay silent and silver, peaceful in the early morning.
After a few turns down narrow alleys, I stopped and pulled my shoes off. Running barefoot would be faster than trying to run with muddy bricks on my feet.
The farther away from the Institute we got, the softer the alarm became. Then it stopped completely. I dodged behind Jag in the shadows of buildings, expecting the hum of a hovercopter, an electronic voice or a beam of red light to freeze me in place.
Nothing happened.
Jag wove north toward the Centrals. By the time we reached the border of the Southern Rim, my breath came in gasps and my back hurt. I mean, I’m a water girl, not an athlete.
The air pressed silently around me. Surely they wouldn’t just let us run away. Would they? I ran my finger along my wrist bone, and the tiny knot jutted out like a boulder.
A guard station and a fifteen-foot fence separated us from the field in the Centrals, and only Jag had an ID card. We approached cautiously, Jag holding me back with his arm. Slightly annoyed that he felt like he needed to protect me when I was the one who busted us out, I pushed up close to him.
“Do you have a death wish?” he whispered.
“Do you? Stop pushing me or I’ll kill you.”
“Vi.” He turned toward me. “You’re impossible.” His eyes danced with that sexy amusement again.
My irritation flared. “Thanks.” I stepped in front of him and peeked around the corner of the building next to the guard station. I prayed it was empty and we’d be able to walk through undetected. He joined me, chuckling.
“Stop laughing at me,” I said. “It’s annoying.”
That only made him laugh harder, and though he was quiet, his whole body shook next to mine. Our shoulders touched and after a minute, he put his arm around my waist.
If we weren’t on the run for our lives, if I wasn’t Tagged and worried about how we were going to trek all the way across the Goodgrounds to the Badlands, I might have been terrified at the thought of kissing him. His body heat penetrated the thin prison clothes, and I placed one hand on his chest.
So there you have it. Teaser Tuesday. Maybe you should post one of your own...then leave me a comment here so I can read it. You'd really be helping me out today. It's my Spring Break and I have oodles of time to read major bloggage.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
WiP Wednesday and...A Writing Throwdown Challenge!
Okay, so this past week I decided I really, really needed to buckle down and get some writing done on the ole NaNo novel (Elemental Hunger, hereafter referred to as EH). I deleted 27,000 words from the monster last week. That was about 95 pages.Yeouch.
So I needed some lovelies to fill the now-blank pages. One day I wrote 1200 words and I was so proud! I hadn't written anything new in about two weeks. But I didn't write anything else for a few days. I needed some motivation. #wordathon came up on twitter. So I joined for the weekend with random strangers all over the world who were going to write.
And I wrote 9868 words!
Wow, it's amazing what I can do when there's a focus, a competition or someone else I have to report to. Or I can justify twittering...ahem.
But...there's always a downside with me. I haven't written a single word since 6 PM Sunday night. I'm one of those all-or-nothing girls. Or something.
So here's my (maybe not-so-) brilliant idea. Who out there wants to commit to writing with me? I'm thinking along the lines of Bobby Flay's Throwdown, where he claims he can out-do anyone's recipe. Sorta like that, where we claim we can write right alongside the best of them. We could be accountable to each other, report in on what we're doing, rally around to support, that kind of thing. I'm thinking of something I did with a group of people way back in the fall of last year. The challenge was to write 1000 words a day. We reported to each other (nearly) every day in a forum on Rally Storm (which is free and easy to join).
Now, 1000 words a day might be a little steep for me at the moment. Heck, anything over zero seems steep at the moment. But I'm thinking more like 500. Even people who aren't currently writing could join the fun. If you're editing, maybe your goal is to edit 10 pages a day. Or whatever. And maybe we can commit to this for the next 30 days.
The point is to get my own butt in gear and finish this darn thing up. I'm sitting at about 60 K and heading into the climax. Maybe if I have some of you to report to, I'll feel the pressure more. Cuz right now there's no pressure. I can read blogs all day without consequences, sit and wait for someone to post on my forums and then pounce, or read another 50 ABNA entries.
And we all know that's got to change. *snarf* No, really. It does.
So leave me a comment if you're interested. If the crickets show up today, I'll back away slowly to my safe place inside my head, 'kay? But maybe, just maybe, I'll create a forum on Rally where we can offer support and encouragement. And do some actual writing. ("Writing Throwdown" is sounding like a really kewl forum name...)
Yes?
Friday, March 27, 2009
A Blog Holiday - Can You Do It?
Okay, so I'm a self-proclaimed addict to the Internet. Facebook. Rallystorm. Querytracker Forum. Blogger. I love it all.
Especially blogger. So I made myself a deal. Go one day without opening blogger, without reading a single blog post, no commentary. Nada. Cold turkey. Step away from the computer and no one gets hurt.
I didn't think I could do it. You see, I have to read what all of you are doing. I follow, I don't know, like a billion people. What if something happened and I needed to comment?
You see my dilemma.
But I did it. Chose a date. Vowed not to open blogger or read any blogs. No. Matter. What.
I chose a bad date, and I'm just now seeing that any date is a bad date. But I chose Wednesday, March 18. The day after ABNA results came out. Yeah, well, so what, right? Right.
I went dark. No blogger. I made sure my Wednesday post was ready to go up and I moderated the comments. You may have noticed (because I know you all take notes on what I do, *snarf*) that I didn't respond to any commenters on Wednesday. I really wanted to. Couldn't.
Didn't read any blogs.
I did it. I didn't die or anything. There was only that one time I felt shaky and then I realized I hadn't eaten yet and I'd been on QTF for like an hour. So yeah.
It can be done. But you know what I did the next day? Spent like, f-o-r-e-v-e-r trying to get caught up on my blog reading! *snarf, snarf, snarf*
But you tell me. What would be hard for you to give up for one day? (Family is a given, peeps.) For me, chocolate, blogging and music top the list. What would you struggle with?
Especially blogger. So I made myself a deal. Go one day without opening blogger, without reading a single blog post, no commentary. Nada. Cold turkey. Step away from the computer and no one gets hurt.
I didn't think I could do it. You see, I have to read what all of you are doing. I follow, I don't know, like a billion people. What if something happened and I needed to comment?
You see my dilemma.
But I did it. Chose a date. Vowed not to open blogger or read any blogs. No. Matter. What.
I chose a bad date, and I'm just now seeing that any date is a bad date. But I chose Wednesday, March 18. The day after ABNA results came out. Yeah, well, so what, right? Right.
I went dark. No blogger. I made sure my Wednesday post was ready to go up and I moderated the comments. You may have noticed (because I know you all take notes on what I do, *snarf*) that I didn't respond to any commenters on Wednesday. I really wanted to. Couldn't.
Didn't read any blogs.
I did it. I didn't die or anything. There was only that one time I felt shaky and then I realized I hadn't eaten yet and I'd been on QTF for like an hour. So yeah.
It can be done. But you know what I did the next day? Spent like, f-o-r-e-v-e-r trying to get caught up on my blog reading! *snarf, snarf, snarf*
But you tell me. What would be hard for you to give up for one day? (Family is a given, peeps.) For me, chocolate, blogging and music top the list. What would you struggle with?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Cool New Blog
Status of my Life: I've been writing like crazy. The sequel to Shadows is coming along great. I'm at 55 K now. It's amazing how much you can write when you don't do anything else... ha, ha!
I've stayed away from most of the blogs for almost 5 weeks now. I have to say, I feel freed up by this. I don't feel like I have to know every little thing that's going on in the publishing world. (Well, I've been checking The Buried Editor for a few days now. Stalking is more like it. :) ) I've been able to focus on just writing and critiquing. And I got sucked into another forum, but that would require an entire post of it's own, and sadly, we don't have time for that purging today.
*sigh*
But today, a friend of mine let me know about a first page contest on this blog, Miss Snark's First Victim. I was so impressed with it, it's going on my sidebar of cool blogs to visit. In honor of Miss Snark.
Reading: Critiques. Sadly, I haven't read a published book for about a week now.
I've stayed away from most of the blogs for almost 5 weeks now. I have to say, I feel freed up by this. I don't feel like I have to know every little thing that's going on in the publishing world. (Well, I've been checking The Buried Editor for a few days now. Stalking is more like it. :) ) I've been able to focus on just writing and critiquing. And I got sucked into another forum, but that would require an entire post of it's own, and sadly, we don't have time for that purging today.
*sigh*
But today, a friend of mine let me know about a first page contest on this blog, Miss Snark's First Victim. I was so impressed with it, it's going on my sidebar of cool blogs to visit. In honor of Miss Snark.
Reading: Critiques. Sadly, I haven't read a published book for about a week now.
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