Hello All!
Most of my time lately has been writing my novel and writing for other blog sites. Today I wanted to bring you a compilation of my last 6 months of posts being a monthly columnist with Writer's Fun Zone. Check out the links below! Hope you enjoy and happy writing! http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog/2015/11/26/dont-rush-your-writing-by-deanna-jackson/ November 2015 http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog/2015/12/24/vanity-publishers-and-how-to-identify-them-by-deanna-jackson/ December 2015 http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog/2016/01/21/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-unpublished-author/ January 2016 http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog/2016/02/25/self-publishing-vs-traditional-publishing-by-deanna-jackson/ February 2016 http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog/2016/03/24/genre-deanna-jackson/ March 2016
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I hate dieting! When I was in grade school I remember thinking how unfocused I became right before lunch because my stomach was making weird noises. I was hungry and that's all I could focus on. The past week I have felt like I am back in grade school waiting for the clock to strike noon so I could run to the lunchroom.
I started my diet last week and it has been grueling. Whenever I try to focus on my writing, my thoughts stray from my words and towards food. I am used to taking my coffee and snack up to my office and writing for hours. Because I am a creature of habit, I have found it difficult to do away with those things since that is my normal routine. Now that I am nearing the end of my week, I have had no choice but to incorporate a few things back into my life that help me stay focused and to keep in my rhythm. So....instead of not having any coffee I have found a creamer that is fat free and sugar free to make it a little healthier. Yes, I miss my chocolate and caramel latte but I can take black coffee and make them at home with slight tweaking of course! The best part is I have kept to my diet and I feel good about that. Snack wise, I have substituted my yummy Dorito's for smart pop with butter. Surprisingly, its pretty good. When it comes to my main meals of the day I have had to do some research on foods that keep me fuller longer. Mostly that's protein so there has been a lot of chicken in my diet. I also found some protein bars that are healthy and keep you full. Those have been my life savors for when my stomach starts making those weird noises. My main point of this post is to share how I have made a few changes to my diet but not starve myself. The first few days I am pretty sure that's what I was doing (even though I know how to diet and I know that's not right) Eating meal replacement bars and shakes are great when you are on the go but you need at least ONE substantial meal a day. Most diets will even say that if you research them.Its very difficult to stay focused when the only thing you can think of is the food you are not allowed to eat. My writing has definitely struggled this week because my energy and my mind wasn't well nourished. Below is a quote I thought of this week which prompted me to write this post. I hope everyone has a productive week AND make sure if you are on a diet you are nourishing your body and mind! "If you are hungry, eat. Its better to have the hunger to reach your dreams than the hunger that makes you lose focus" If you already love Lea Michele this book will make you love her even more. "You First" is a fabulous hands on read. The tagline of the book is "journaling your way to a better you" and this book definitely helps you do that. She touches on topics such as family, friends, health and so much more.She breaks down each category and asks questions which really gets you thinking about your own life.
I especially loved the beginning of each section where she tells you a little about her life and her journey through each topic. It really is nice to read about a famous person who goes through daily struggles like the rest of us and isn't scared to share that part of her. She isn't a robot and doesn't claim to be perfect and she wants her readers to know that. I did my journaling for each section and realized some interesting things about myself when I went back over them. For one, I hate exercising but I made myself get up and do it. It seemed easier to get through it because I couldn't wait to journal my progress. If I had a bad workout or was a little lazier that day, I couldn't sweep it under the rug because I had to answer questions about it and really think about how it made me feel to not live up to my full potential. This book is a great way to feel accountable for your daily actions with dieting and exercising. Overall, it was a very enjoyable read and I would give this book a 4 out of 5 stars. The reason for the 4 is because I did think some of the journaling questions were a bit lengthy and the font chosen for the book was a bit small and hard to read. As an aspiring writer, I had no idea how to gain followers on Twitter who were interested in the same things I am. This is where Katharine Grubbs, "Conquering Twitter In 10 Minutes A Day" hands on workbook came in handy. The book delivers everything you need to know about Twitter, from how to set up your Twitter to how to get involved and gain followers.
The book features numerous exercises and I did each one of them. My Twitter has been complete for a few months but after reading the first section of the book entitled, "The Set Up", I changed a few things in my bio. Although I only changed a couple of words, my biography (Katharine refers to this as the initial handshake) was much better and seemed more appealing. The next section talks about your strategy to gain followers. Katharine talks about finding your market and targeting them. She describes how you can use Twitter hashtags to search other people who have used the same hashtag. The last section, Katharine explains how to maintain your following. One of my favorite parts about this section was her breaking down daily, weekly and monthly things you can do on Twitter to achieve that goal. The book offers so much more than what I am summarizing above. I would recommend this book to anyone who is new to Twitter and staring at the bio of the new person who just followed you, with thousands of followers, and thinking "how can I get that many followers"? This book will help you achieve that. Like I said above, I did all the exercises and I am happy to report I did gain many new followers. ***Check out my Q&A with Katharine Grubb*** Q. What brought you to write, "Conquering Twitter in 10 minutes a Day”? Katharine Grubb: "After writing my book, Write A Novel in 10 Minutes A Day I was thinking about marketing and how the next step after releasing a book is gaining readership. Twitter is one way to do that and a lot of writers get it wrong. I wanted a practical help book for writers who don’t know how to use Twitter well. This book was also an experiment. I have more ideas along the “in 10 Minutes A Day” concept and there may be more in the future. I wanted to see how this one worked." Q. The book has multiple exercises. How long did it take you to come up with them? How long did it take you to write the book? Katharine Grubb: "I collected notes on this book for a few weeks and then drafted it over a 4 week period this last spring. I am a homeschooling mother and I love to teach, so I looked at this book as if I had a class of Twitter students. The exercises were intended to be personal, encouraging and build on each others. They are also similar in style to the exercises in the Write A Novel in 10 Minutes A Day book". Q. Other than Twitter, do you have any other great marketing tools you use to gain readers? Katharine Grubb: "I’m a big believer in local marketing. If there’s going to be a next book in this series, it would be something like “How To Be Local Hot Shot in 10 Minutes A Day”. The exercises would revolve around your community resources, like your local library, local media and bookstores that would want to help you out". Q. You write both fiction and non fiction. Which do you find more challenging and why? Katharine Grubb: "Right now I find the fiction more challenging. I’ve been chasing story ideas around in my head for a couple of years and nothing has materialized. My Nanowrimo project may turn into something but I want it to sit for a couple of months. The non-fiction ideas seem to be endless. I’ve decided that 2016’s writing will be solely focused on non-fiction for my target market. I can’t wait to see what happens". Q. This is more of a fun question but I always hear people complaining about the 140 characters on Twitter and it is not enough. How do you feel about it? Katharine Grubb: "I have no complaints. I find the restrictions to be a chance for creativity and conciseness. Plus, I love writing one-liners. This is a good medium for me". Q. If you could give advice to new authors what would it be? Katharine Grubb: "Have low expectations. Write at least ten minutes everyday. Never compare yourself to others. Read and practice all you can about craft before you publish. Don’t quit your day job". Click on the link to purchase "Conquering Twitter In 10 Minutes A Day" http://www.amazon.com/Conquering-Twitter-10-Minutes-Day-ebook/dp/B016LDGVB6/ Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for a honest review. The holiday season is here! I thought this would be a good time to give some ideas on how to stay focused on your work and still have time to enjoy the festivities.
1. Organize- I can not stress enough how important this one is. My main concern with being a author is I wont have time to write. I use writing as a escape from reality and all the hustle and bustle of life. Unfortunately, it seems lately every time I sit down to start I cant help but think of the trillion things I need to get done to prepare for 3 Thanksgivings and 2 Christmas celebrations (2 of those events being held at my house). You can use any type of calendar your want, paper or phone. I decided to use paper because I am old fashioned like that. I penciled in each and every event that I have going on and any day that doesn't have a activity I am going to write. Most of the time I am going to have will be in the evenings but hey its something. My main thought here is that even if I only have 5 minutes to spare, at least I will have more writing done than if I never started. 2. Shop Early- If you are like me and you wait until the last minute to do Christmas shopping DON'T! Its bad news and your going to stress yourself out. This year because I have been so busy I started Christmas shopping late October. I know that may seem crazy to some but its worked for me. If you haven't already started, quit reading this and get online or go to the nearest store. No but truthfully it does take away some of the stress and its one less thing you have to think about. I tackle my HUGE Christmas list with writing everyone name down and then next to their names ideas of what I am going to buy them or what I have already bought. Again, more organization! When someones gifts are all purchased I cross them out. Another idea here would be to just tell your family to draw names and you only buy for one person but we tried that in my family and grandma still came with multiple trash bags full of presents. *** Side Note*** Take gifts to your local mall and let them wrap it. I "kill two birds with one stone" here and drop them off, shop around for a few minutes and then go back and get my items. Most of the time its free so also a great way to save money! 3. Focus on one project- I currently blog for 2 sites and have just taken on another. I am also writing my novel and have a deadline date of Jan. 15 to send it to my editor. HUGE MISTAKE! At the time of setting the date for my editing I didn't really think about the holiday madness that was getting ready to enter my world. The worst part is, I set the date for editing. My editor is ready when I am so I only have myself to blame. If you must reach a deadline you have no control over just ask if you can move it back a week or even a day will give you a little more time. I have a deadline with one of the blog websites but the way I handle that is write them ahead of time! Again, take those 5 minutes and start working on whatever project you have. If you set a deadline date for yourself, get rid of it! I was stressing about something I did to myself. Not the brightest thing I have ever done. 4. Be Happy- This one is a little off the topic of writing but it works. I have a few negative people in my life and to be honest they bring me down. I am sure some of you know what I mean. Anytime I am around them I feel drained and have zero motivation to get anything done. All the complaining is exhausting. You can try to get to the root of their negativity but I tried that and there was no hope. All and all just walk away and deal with them on Jan 1 :) Good luck everyone and Happy Holidays! I've been thinking a lot lately about what keeps me motivated. I have always used music as a way to escape or used lyrics to describe the way I am feeling. Staying focused on my writing after a long vacation I have never needed music more.
I decided I needed a theme song to keep me motivated! I know it seems a little silly but people use music in all different situations to pump them up. How many times has a song come on the radio and you say "This song sums up my life." Someone close to me listens to the Rocky movie theme song anytime he is getting ready to go work out and I had a friend who listened to "Fighter" by Christina Aguilera on repeat for months while she was going through a divorce. I am not saying you need to do what my friend did and listen to it on repeat because lets be honest, radio stations do that all the time and we turn the station. The song needs to be something you can blare through your speakers anytime you are feeling down and out and it can lift you back up. The words have to mean something to you. My theme song is none other than "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten. This is my go to anytime I am having writers block or stuck on a scene in my novel. I have literally left my office and drove to the mini mart up the street to get a pack of gum just so I could blare the song in my car and sing my heart out. It made me feel better and the lyrics have meaning for me. The excerpt above is the beginning of the song and the words are powerful. To sum up the song it basically says stay strong and fight through whatever you are going through. You will succeed! I love that. It also helps that she is a phenomenal singer! Now stop reading this and find your Theme Song! :) Check out Rachel Platten below and buy "Fight Song" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TIYVEKE?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0 The quote above has never been more true for me! After a week and a half road trip and some time off writing, it has been hard to get back into the swing of things. Of course on this trip I took my laptop and was constantly thinking of plot points for my novel. Unfortunately, I didn't write and felt crummy about it. Still feeling down, I decided to make myself a list of things to get back on track. So far, I have been able to get my focus back and don't feel like I am procrastinating (as much). Below I have listed the few ideas that have worked for me. I hope they help anyone who is struggling to get back on track right now. Happy Writing! 1. Take a class- I registered for a Advanced Fiction Writing course. Although the course hasn't started, I feel better that I have taken the step and paid the money to complete this course. I really feel like it will get me mindset back into my novel. A few months ago I took The Five Day Writing Motivation Mini Course By Beth Barany. The course is free and when I first started writing I got discouraged quickly. The course really helped to keep me motivated. Beth is also a book coach so you can go that route too. http://www.ed2go.com/uc/online-courses/fiction-writing-advanced?tab=syllabus http://bethbarany.com/5daycourse.htm 2. Read- I am currently reading 2 non fiction novels right now. One being Chicken Soup for the Soul- Writers and the other for a book review. The quote below by Stephen King says it all 3. Start Small- When I started writing I made numerous outlines for characters and plots. As my novel progressed I stopped outlining. That was a mistake! I realized I was thinking up all of these ideas while on my trip but I wasn't writing them down and when I was they didn't make sense. When I get a idea I quickly jot it down on anything around you can write on but my thoughts needed structure. I went back to the good old fashioned web outline I learned in grade school. Everyone has a outlining process they prefer but for me it seems to work best. Outlining is a great way to get your thoughts back in order and relieve some of the MADNESS going on in your head.
4. Join a writing group or participate in National Novel Writing Month- There is nothing better than connecting with fellow writers who are having the same problems you are and gaining inspiration from them! 5. Last but not least WRITE!- Anything will do. If your writing your outline technically you are writing and preparing your story. If you decide to take a few courses in writing you most definitely will be writing. If you have a blog write a post about the last book you read or something as simple as how your day has been. Just write something! Stories of paranormal encounters...yes please! This book visits each of the 50 states and recounts paranormal events from the people who have experienced them. The book was a fun read, just in time for Halloween. I loved how each story was different and some of them were just down right spooky! I will say some of the stories didn't seem believable but the author states that at the beginning, she has no evidence these encounters actually happened. It is one of those books you just have to take peoples word for it. I enjoyed that they were short stories and I thought the author summed up the peoples experiences nicely. Some of them were a little too short (1 page) but you can only write what is disclosed in the interviews. All and all, I would definitely recommend this book if you are interested in all things paranormal! Check out the link below to purchase on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Megan-Moxon/e/B00FWFQHFK/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2?qid=1444966615&sr=1-2 I am working on finishing my novel and just had to share this part in my book. It really hit home for me and may do the same for so many other woman dealing with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. If the conversation below has ever happened to you, just know you are not alone. My main purpose of writing my novel is to shed light on some of the ups and downs a woman with PCOS struggles with and of course there is nothing wrong with adding in some sexy, romantic drama to tie it all together! Enjoy! “Hey.” His voice was quiet and somber. “Hey.” “I went to see you at the office but they said you came home. I knocked but you didn’t answer. I know you may not want to talk but we need too.” “We can talk.” I took a deep breath, preparing myself for the fall down. “I love you, more than I thought I could ever love someone.” “I know. I love you too.” Water filled my eyes and I felt like I was going to lose it. I wanted to keep this short and sweet and him confessing his love for me wasn’t helping me stay strong and to my plan. “But I can’t give you want you want. When you told me about your disease, you seemed like you had come to terms with it all. I was dumb not to ask.” “Yes you were. And I was dumb to not ask you about what you wanted for your future when you told me you’re past. I figured you would want a second chance to do it right.” “I decided a long time ago to never take that chance.” “And even though you’re in love with me you still feel that way?” “Yes.” Nick rested his arms on his knees and cupped his face in his hands. “I want a family and yes it may be difficult to conceive but I want a man who wants to fight that battle with me. I’m sorry that won’t be you.” I looked at him and tried to hold back the tears but felt one slide down my cheek. I continued, “I’ll see you around.” I walked inside and shut the door behind me, locking it. Nick was still sitting on my patio but I didn’t care. I wouldn’t go back out there and plead for him to change his mind. He had made his decision years ago and although it was difficult, I had to make mine today. I was heartbroken but I had to stay strong. If he wouldn’t bend for me, I wouldn’t do the same for him. If you love a good erotic book then you definitely need to get "Got Mad... Got Even", by Elizabeth Red.
It is a short read but well worth it! Elizabeth uses great detail so the reader feels like they are with Maggie through the entire book. The words will suck you in and make you feel sad, hurt, angry, and turned on all at the same time. It takes a great imagination to come up with how this woman gets back at her cheating husband and Elizabeth does a fantastic job at pulling the reader in. I felt like I was looking through a window, watching it play out. For sure, a 5 out of 5 rating! Click on the link below to buy the book today! http://www.amazon.com/Got-Mad-Even-Elizabeth-Red-ebook/dp/B010Y4NITQ |