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I don’t know how dilligent I will be about this, but for the time being I am very excited. While what I plan to write is not a novel per se, I am still going to challenge myself to do some writing every day and refrain from editing any of what I write until December. I’m curious to see what I can do when I have some support from fellow writers in a creative capacity.
Is anyone else going to participate? Let me know and we can keep each other on track and share tips, progress, etc.
If anyone needs more info, here’s the link.
Here’s my predicament: I need to write for a living. I need to earn my money to pay my bills by writing. There is no other way that is satisfactory for me. Everything else is a waste of talent and I feel as if I am not making any strides to move to where I want to be in my full time job. If I was somehow able to move to an editorial position where I work that I would be both challenged enough and using my brain at the same time. A lot of freelance writers produce content for sites like Suite101, Bella, about, Lest Out and seem to make enough money doing that that they don’t need to have a 9-5 job. So let me know if you write for any of these aforementioned sites and what you think of them. Most of all, would you be willing to give away the safety of your 9 to 5 in order to write things that matter to you and to others instead of doing something that you really have no interest in. When do you know that it’s time to let go and throw yourself in 100% into your freelance writing?
Proceed reading this with the most extreme caution…it is a rant.
I think this “what-do-I-want-to-do-with-the-rest-of-my-life” question has been weighing pretty heavily on me for the past few months (more so than usual). It’s a mix of financial fear (debt! the economy! no savings! oh my!!) and the desire for fulfilling professional accomplishment. If I can somehow manage to be completely honest with myself: I want to do two things right now. First is to somehow make enough money to pay my bills by writing about things that interest me. This freelance-capactity (or even staff-writing) position would ideally be 3 full days a week or 5 part time days a week. This would free up the rest of my time so I can finish my education. I don’t mean knock out my BA in the easiest way possible either. I’m talking, finish my BA and get my MA in English or Creative Writing or Editing/Publishing (NYU$$!!) or go to law school. I want to make the most of my gifts and talents. I am most afraid of sitting here where I am another 10 years from now and kicking myself for not chasing down my dreams head-first. This may be the last time in my life that I get to do this before life gets any more constricting and I need to ride it out and see where I end up. Is that so wrong?
What are your life/career goals? Are there things you’ve always wanted to do career/education wise that you keep putting off? Why? Would you chase your dreams if you knew this was your last chance?
Now that jury duty is over, it’s time to get back into the swing of things here. Truthfully, my other blogs are being eliminated since I just don’t have the time to devote as much of myself to them as I had initially hoped. For now, I’ll be blogging here as it pertains to writing and on my personal blog for all else.
No more Elance for me either. With school a month away, the only real writing I plan on doing will be for Suite101 and perhaps some querying.
What’s on your writing agenda? What have you been working on?
Working on a series of articles about 9/11 and its impact on literature and came across this profoundly fitting quote:
“There is a necessity for remembering the horror, but of course there’s a necessity for remembering it in a manner in which it can be digested, in a manner in which the memory is not destructive. The act of writing the book, in a way, is a way of confronting it and making it possible to remember.”
– Toni Morrison on Beloved
1. The two interviews I did were in relation to the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. First was with this year’s winner (and fellow Suite101 writer) Garrison Spik. The second was with the founder of the contest, Professor Scott Rice. Both interviews were informative and really interesting. I cannot wait for my next interview!
2. Decided to drop down to a free account on Elance. It still maintains my profile and client feedback, but since I haven’t been using them much, there is no fee associated with this membership level.
3. Decided to go back to school and finish my BA in English. Have applied and will let you guys know the outcome as it happens.
4. I just got an Editor’s Choice Award on Suite for my article on Back-to-School Books for Adults.
Any questions?
As a side note, I apologize for lack of posts. Been serving Grand Jury Duty (had to previously postpone it) and I am so enthralled with the workings of the legal system. Seriously considering attending law school in future.
I’m also finding myself reading a lot of the books I would have read when preparing my senior thesis. While I hadn’t clearly settled on a theme, I had them narrowed down to: Ernest Hemingway, The Link Between Creativity and Depression (Why Writers are Generally More Depressed and Suicidal), or Writers Who Wrote Under the Influence. I am hoping to still indulge my curiosity in these subjects and write about them for Suite.
Sorry readers, postings will be sporadic this week. My Mom is in the hospital (nothing serious, but because of her health history they want to make sure she leaves will a 100% clean bill of health), and I’ve been running back from the hospital, to my parents house to do things for my dad, then back to my house to sleep and start all over the next day. The good news, besides my Mom’s good news, is that I’ve gotten some good jumping off places for some creative writing I’d like to play around with soon as I have some time.
I’ll post when I have a chance, other wise visit my blog links, you won’t be disappointed!
Lately while working at my desk, my cats have become a bit eager to “help”. This translates to eight paws walking all over the desk including keyboard. Then it dawned on me, I need this:
Ok, I wouldn’t actually spend money on this but it is an interesting idea. I especially like how it attaches to the side of the desk and swivels outward, what a space-saver!
Do any of you have a similar problem with pets while trying to work?
Summer and reading goes together like, well peanut butter and jelly! So have you read anything good this summer so far, or is there a book that you are particularly excited to read this summer? As you can see, I like to read, spend a lot of time reading and spend a lot of money on books:
That (above) is my 5 shelf bookcase which is literally about to fall apart because I don’t think it was made to withstand such use.
This one is my smaller 3-shelf bookcase, which has already collapsed more times than I can count.
And here is my corner bookshelf that is next to my desk. As you can see it holds just a sampling of my writing-centric books.
