Authors Helping Authors discussion

It just dawned on me that we're all here working together to help one another out, but there's really nowhere to get to know one another. Of course, we can always check out one another's profiles and author pages, but why not have just a general "getting to know you" style discussion board. This is the place to talk about stuff other than the basic "I wrote this book and this is what it's about and here's what I tell every book blog/review/interview/etc." Here, we can talk about everything from our hopes and fears to what color socks we are wearing today. (Mine are a pretty multi-colored stripes in very bright colors!)

So who's gonna start us off? Ask a random question. Tell us a random fact. Tell us what you hope to accomplish out of this group. Just talk!! :)

-Ash

Hi, some days I am frustrated that I cannot find the time to write, other days I wonder if I am wasting time writing.

My socks today are white and fluffy with a pink A - don't know why they have an A on them !!!
Jenni

To quote a great movie, "A is for Awesome." Well, that could really come from anywhere, it's not really all that original, but she says it in Easy A. :)

Nice to meet ya, Jenni!

First off, let me just say that while I can't speak for every other author out there, I can speak for me, and I too will get frustrated at writing and doubt myself. I'll wonder why I'm bothering when my books aren't selling. I'll whine and complain and belittle my own work. Then, a moment of pure genius will hit me, and I'm off and running again. There are so many ugly lows and exhilarating highs that I'm pretty sure at one point I got whiplash.

The important thing for me is to surround myself with people who won't just sit there and let me whine the whole time (a little venting is okay!) but they'll kick my rear until I get out of my funk. They help me. One of my author friends is really good at that, and trust me, it's been a blessing! If you don't have someone in real life that can give you a kick in the rear, though, I'm betting if you come on here and voice your worries, one of us will take care of that for you. The problem is that you are your most critical critic, and your work will never be good enough for you. Ever. And it shouldn't because you should always be improving. But that doesn't mean your work is poor. I'll help. I know a few others here would be willing to help too-heck, that's why we're here!!



So, today's question, for those willing to play the game, is: Where is your favorite vacation spot? And...GO!!

Hey all,

To formally introduce myself my name is Ian, from the UK; just outside of London. Seems we all feel the same here; confidence ebbs and flows. To those fledgling authors/writers like myself I would say one thing. You can't expect to be great overnight but we can dream of it.

I have been writing for four years now as a hobby but I am yet to publish. This is a concious decision as I decided a while ago that when I do I want to publish four or so books at the same time. I am over half way through that goal with one edited and ready for launch button.

Favourite vacation spot would besSnowy, with a bar at the top of the mountain. My beer glass frosted on the outside while the sun beats down and the air tastes crisp.

Ian wrote: "Hey all,

To formally introduce myself my name is Ian, from the UK; just outside of London. Seems we all feel the same here; confidence ebbs and flows. To those fledgling authors/writers like myse..."

Hi Ian
you are right we can and should dream !!
Wow and well done , four books in one go, are they a series? What genre?
Any chance of a preview of first chapter?
I have posted my first chapter on the site and would love opinions if you have time.

I have snow and cold mountain air at the moment as I live in the French Jura, with sunshine, but sadly am lacking the bar and beer :(

Ashley wrote: "To quote a great movie, "A is for Awesome." Well, that could really come from anywhere, it's not really all that original, but she says it in Easy A. :)

Nice to meet ya, Jenni!

First off, let me..."

Thanks for your post, good to know others feel the same, I am a bit isolated where I live so this chance to voice worries and happy times will be great.

I have posted my first chapter , would appreciate any comments you may have if you have time.

Going to have fish fingers to eat soon - yum

Hey everyone!

I'm Sharon and I'm from Scotland.

The day job keeps me busier than I'd like and I'm always trying to figure out how to squeeze more writing time into my week!

Ian - that's a great plan. When people like one of your books they can go straight on and grab the rest!

Jenni - where's the chapter posted? I'll take a look :)

My favourite vacation spot is... the fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada! (Star Trek experience - need I say more?)

My name is Lee from North Carolina (USA). I've been writing for 20 years but can't seem to find an agent or sell a book. I love writing, but I also wonder if it is a waste of time sometimes. I write mostly mystery stories with some dark humor, but I've tried some other genres, too. Currently about 60% complete with a young adult novel.

Las Vegas is definitely cool, but my favorite vacation place is somewhere hot . . Cartagena, Colombia.

Hi All! My name is Jessica O'Gorek and I am getting ready to publish my first novel, Gemini Rising, Book I Ethereal Fury in a few months. It is a ya series and I'm working on book 4 right now. It's constantly evolving and I have no idea how long it will end up being.

Recently my life has changed drastically and I can't help but wonder where I'm going. In Oct. 2012, my dad died of lung cancer. This made me realize how short life is and what a waste of time worrying, criticizing and being angry with things I can't control really is.

However, I did find sometime to complain about my overbearing, egotistical and sometimes vastly inappropriate boss. I discovered that with university politics, men don't like opinionated confident women who are intelligent. (We threaten their dignity) I would come home and whine to family, "I just want to write."

In Dec. I lost my 60K a year job that carried my household. (I have a wonderful husband and a 13yr. old) My wonderful boss decided I just wasn't what he was looking for and offered to pay me unemployment which I took gratefully.

So somehow I was blessed with the time to write. So here I am, penniless and happy as a lark. Imagine that! This is a complete personality twist and I owe it all to my father. A couple of days ago I found out that his land he sold is being paid off but he people who owed him for it and I have a nice nest egg coming my way. My guardian angel daddy is looking out for me and he is giving me time to write and promote. It's funny, I always made him promise to haunt me and was angry when he didn't rattle chains and appear before me days after he passed. But in his bed, as he died, I kissed his bald head and whispered to him, "It's okay daddy, you're going to be my guardian angel now, aren't you?" I think he was listening even as he slipped away. Well now I'm crying, so I just want to say that everything is a blessing in disguise no matter how painful and merciless it may seem at the time, it's all part of the plan.

So, I'd love some new blog/twitter followers and some likes on my facebook page. Below I have pasted my links and synopsis of my book. The first three chapters are on my blog and site. Please have a look if you are interested in Mother earth, apocalyptic themes, possession, paranormal beings and dash of romance.

http://geminirising1.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/GeminiRising1
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessic...

Mother Earth, wounded by the human race and its disregard for her resources, will recruit human souls to serve Her and turn against humanity. A rising force festers; Gemini, a clan of paranormal beings will systematically possess and destroy towns, cities, and states. Amidst the chaos, a forbidden relationship between Onyx, a lead Gemini, and Violette, a human, begins. They will both find themselves in the middle of a revolutionary war that will either save, or destroy our world.

Jessica wrote: "Hi All! My name is Jessica O'Gorek and I am getting ready to publish my first novel, Gemini Rising, Book I Ethereal Fury in a few months. It is a ya series and I'm working on book 4 right now. It's..."

Goodness, Jessica, you've definitely had it rough lately! I'm so very sorry to hear of your loss, it's very difficult to lose someone close, but a parent really makes it hard. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

You are very right, though, things DO happen for a reason, and while we may not understand the journey, the end is always worth the means. (Well, aren't I a walking box of cliches today!) Thank you for sharing with us, and I for one will be certain to check out your sites. :)

Vegas, Columbia, and snow...haha, y'all are great fun! My personal favorite vacation spot is St. Kitts, in the West Indies. My father-in-law was a professor at the university there when he passed away a few years back, and my husband and I had to quickly get passports and fly down to handle his affairs with my sister-in-law. After a few days there, we decided that we would return the following year for our vacation and delayed honeymoon. Most beautiful place ever-but beware the sand fleas. Apparently, I taste yummy and was eaten alive my first evening out. (PS-insect repellant does NOTHING for these little bloodsuckers!) But despite the bugs, it's paradise in every way. I encourage everyone to visit there one day.

So, we're learning a lot about everyone, and it seems a common theme is that feeling of being not good enough, mixed with self-doubt and worry. All reasonable feelings that are simply part of being an independent author, from my experience. I mean, I'm not an expert, I don't get paid to sit around and analyze test groups of indie writers and their reactions to certain situations. (That would be boring, and I'd probably claw my eyes out.) But on a good note, these common themes mean we're not alone, this is a perfectly natural, perfectly normal thing. Almost nobody reaches bestseller status overnight, or even on their first book. So we're not doing anything wrong. Keep it up. And because of this, every day now I'm going to post something funny and/or motivational to keep the creativity flowing. So. My question for you all today is: Is anyone here planning to bring sexy back? I mean, Justin Timberlake brought it back a few years ago, but I think we need another comeback from sexy. Who's up for the challenge??

"Life is not about how fast you run, or how high you climb, but how well you bounce."
- Unknown

Happy Wednesday, all!! (Wait, it IS Wednesday, right? Crap, I'm lost again. Returning to my happy place. We have brownies.)

Ashley wrote: "Jessica wrote: "Hi All! My name is Jessica O'Gorek and I am getting ready to publish my first novel, Gemini Rising, Book I Ethereal Fury in a few months. It is a ya series and I'm working on book 4..."
Thanks for the encouragement Ashley! We all need those cliches. I repeat them to myself often, as well as to my daughter, and yes, my husband too.

Welcome to all the new members. I hope to get a few more on board in the next few days. Please take some time to post here, after all it is not all about books! Well yes I suppose it is.....:)

Hi Tim,

Hope fractured is going well. Sorry I haven't been in touch for a couple of weeks. Feel free to send me some more as I will be tapping you up again soon!!

Hi everyone my name is Athena Brady and I will post my links below to my facebook page etc. I will return the favour to anyone who likes etc.
Blog http://athenabrady.co.uk
http://twitter.com/athenabrady
http://pinterest.com/athenabrady1/
http://www.facebook.com/athenabrady777
My book link http://amzn.to/VgvpOU
I also do monthly book reviews but June is my earliest slot availible.

Hello all! My name is Christopher and I write across several genres. Science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, steampunk. My second book, actually my first (it's complicated) is a steampunk story that's scheduled to be released in April. You can find more details on it here: http://www.thehawthornebooks.com You can also find me on twitter: https://twitter.com/Chris_C_Meeker and facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christopher.... I look forward to meeting and interacting with all of you in the future. Have a great day!

Hi Christopher, I have followed on facebook and twitter.

Athena wrote: "Hi Christopher, I have followed on facebook and twitter."

Thank you so much! I've done the same. Have a great day!

Hi Chris, Athena, Danielle. Feel free to post any topics here. No ego's just all out to help each other. I have checked my Twitter and we are already sorted. I will post a dedicated face book like feed tomorrow but a beer is open and my book beckons.Next in line is an amazon list to get those likes and buys going. Lets get those followers up and them book sales rolling.

Any suggestions? Mail Ashley or myself or just post...

Well, where to begin? Over 20 short stories and cnf pubbed. My website, www.thesandovalsisters.com has links to some of them on the about Sandra page. One novel, The Sandoval Sisters. Author page on Amazon, here, and blog: www.bloodmother.com. Grew up in Santa Fe, but live in L.A. now. Gardener, husband I love more now than when we married, dog, cat, parakeets. Drive a truck. Like to workout. Currently reading Vampires in the Lemon Grove and an AARP magazine.

who am I? well, I was born a small man in a smaller town to two large people (large to me at the time)....lol.

Work full time as a bill collector, part time as a fantasy/sci-fi/western/alternate universe writer. I have 6 50k novels waiting on me to edit them and send them off to an agent for publishing, so that is my final goal. I seem to come up with more ideas than I have time to write now, as I have several short stories and three novels in the works at various stages of completion.
Spare time: I am a runner; I am working towards my first half marathon in August. I love to cook. I have a blog at logananance.blogspot.com that I update when I finish a book or watch a movie and want to share what I thought about it. Currently working my way thru the Harry Potter series (on book 4) for the first time.

Favorite travel destination is Cozumel or Cancun. May have to retire there and just sit on the beach and read or write all day and drink lots and lots of alcohol.

Hi Robin Leigh Morgan here, I'm =
Retired NYC employee.
Married.
No children.
My debut novel, a YA Paranormal/Time Travel/First Kiss, entitled “I Kissed a Ghost,” got released on December 20, 2012.
The book is available on Amazon at
http://www.amazon.com/Kissed-Ghost-Ro...
It’s also available on Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.de Amazon.es Amazon.fr and Amazon.it

I’m on LinkedIn where I have to groups :
Authors/Writers Helping Authors/Writers http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=41...

Young Adult Book Authors
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=45...

You can content with me on Twitter and FaceBook
I’m also looking to do blog interviews.

I'm such a bad group starter, lol! I've been a bit absent, super busy and all that jazz.

Just as an update, I recently joined up with FaeBooks.co.uk as an admin, so my network is definitely expanding. I'm really excited and ready for this new journey.

In other news, I am going to be revamping this group as much as possible, creating different folders to separate the work stuff from the play stuff, with different discussions within each folder to minimize on clutter. I have OCD. This happens. :P

With that, I leave you with a lovely quote that I think will strike home with all authors:

"Believe in yourself and in your own voice, because there will be times in this business when you will be the only one who does. Take heart from the knowledge that an author with a strong voice will often have trouble at the start of his or her career because strong, distinctive voices sometimes make editors nervous. But in the end, only the strong survive."

- Jayne Ann Krentz

Dear Folks,
I want to promote my book and help authors, but wonder how much is enough or too much?

1) https://www.twitter.com/errengreywolf
I can connect with you on Twitter easily and thought to try promoting other people's books there, but thought: if it is a bad idea to tell people to buy my book, is it also a bad idea to tell my followers to buy other people's books? I don't want to become just an advertisement that will eventually scare people away. Is following other authors enough? What else can I do for them on Twitter other than telling people, "Buy this book"?

2) http://www.facebook.com/pages/Beneath...
I have 3 facebook pages. Book, author, and personal. I cannot LIKE people from the first two and am reluctant to open up my personal one to authors for fear of being swamped and losing touch with my family and friends. I want to help other authors, but dare I open the floodgates and friend other authors? You can easily put a post on my facebook book page at least. Is that enough? Should I make the sacrifice and friend other authors' facebook pages?

I have suggestions. Promote on:
ManicReaders (free and pay),
LibraryThing (free), http://www.aldebaranpublications.com/ (free), http://askdavid.com/ (free), http://www.facebook.com/indiebookpromo (free), http://www.akgmag.com/ (free).

I have a blog on Goodreads that links to my website. If you wish, I could mention your books there. Contact me at errengreywolf@yahoo.ca with author name, title, a brief synopsis, and link, and I could blog it. It's not much, but could help.

I feel I'm getting swamped anyway. I tweet almost every hour. I have 6 emails to check and answer. I have the above to update. I feel I'm spending too much time on the internet and not enough time writing.

As I said, I want to promote my book and help other authors, but how much is enough or too much?

Erren, ultimately everyone here is promoting a book or blog or just learning, chill and glad to have you here. Any input is good and really hope it goes well for you.

Good morning!! Hope everyone is doing well on this lovely Friday. :)

We are all here to work together, learn, promote, and really the group is only limited by what we make it into.

With Twitter, I've found it's fine to promote your book and other people's books within reason, but you have to be active and say stuff people want to hear as well. And retweet other people's tweets.

You CAN like pages from author pages and book pages, but it doesn't count on the like-o-meter. You can also like from your personal page, without having to friend a lot of people you don't want to. And you can control what you see in your news feed, if you're worried about being inundated with a bunch of author stuff and losing touch with your friends. However, if you're hesitant to like/follow others simply because you don't care what they have to say, it's not likely that you'll receive many likes and follows in return. It's a give and take.

Moving forward, this topic should only be used to get to know one another, and any questions or concerns would be best put to use (and most helpful) under different topics. There are plenty of folders separating the types of discussions, so please let's make sure we use them properly.

Thanks!!

Ash

Oh, and inspirational quote of the day:

"If you've FINISHED writing a novel you are amongst the elite!!! You ARE NOT A FAILURE IF YOU CANNOT LIVE OFF YOUR BOOKS. You only fail by NOT TRYING."

- Nadia Cornier

Hi all,
And thank you to Ian for the invitation. I'm not sure how much time I'll be able to spend here - obviously most of my time is spent writing these days.

Anyway I'm Trace, an Australian writer. My first three novels were fantasy with a fantasy anthology of short stories. I'm almost finished my latest work which is a mystery/thriller and I have plans for a quintella series of paranormal novels in the works for this year and into next year. Then I'll head back to Kaynos, my fantasy world, and the place I most enjoy.

On the personal side I'm happily married with a dog and two cats we adore. I'm fortunate enough not to have to work a day job so I can now devote myself to writing.

Cheers,
Trace

Hi everyone! I'm excited to find this group I love meeting fellow authors and working together. I write YA Fantasy, and am releasing my debut on May 6th. Busy, but fun, times.

When I'm not writing I'm cooking or hanging out with my three kiddos. And reading, of course. Probably too much of that going on, though it never feels like enough. Also, I hate talking about myself like this, it's one of those awkward parts I dislike about being an author. Anyone else have this issue?

Look forward to seeing you all around!
Janeal

Jan of you need an insecurity workshop I'll be glad to host..... Bit only as a patient. It's not just you x

Hi Ashley!

Wine is for drinking, along with a lovely cheese or crisp biscoti. :D I don't allow myself to whine.

Every author's success is in our own hands.

Surround yourself with greatness - people with a great mindset who focus on moving forward with integrity - and you will rise to express all the awesomeness you ARE!

Follow your bliss!
Ronda Del Boccio
bestselling author, author mentor & speaker

Ashley wrote: "Oh, and inspirational quote of the day:

"If you've FINISHED writing a novel you are amongst the elite!!! You ARE NOT A FAILURE IF YOU CANNOT LIVE OFF YOUR BOOKS. You only fail by NOT TRYING."

- N..."

Nadia - here here!

If you sell 100 books or more, you are already amongst the elite, less than 2% of books sell more than 99.

The big thing is to connect with your ideal readers who will love and CRAVE more of you.

Follow your bliss!
Ronda Del Boccio, the Story Lady
bestselling author, author mentor and speaker

Hi everyone,

My name is R. Lynn and within the last three months I have published two eBooks, Trial of Marriage http://www.amazon.com/Trial-of-Marria... and Eternal Existence http://www.amazon.com/Eternal-Existen.... My books are different genres(paranormal, interracial, urban fantasy, but all contain that romance factor).

I'm not a morning person whatsoever, so I'm like the walking dead until about 11 a.m. lol. I started a blog http://rlynnarchie.wordpress.com/ and I have about ten posts so far. I also did a guest post for another author http://deedoanes.com/self-publishing-... and that was really cool for me (a newbe). In fact, if any of you bloggers would like to guest post on my blog send me a personal message, would love to have you:-)

I can easily relate to you Sharon because I work full time also and have to squeeze time in to write. That along with a husband and kids, I'm always busy doing something.

Jessica sorry to hear about your job, but it does seem that your guardian angel is watching over you:-)

Ronda, you can pass some of that wine and cheese my way, lol.

I could go on forever talking everyone's ears off, but I won't...hmmm, well at least not today, lol.
I won't get to it today, but I will visit everyone's blogs, twitters, etc. As I go down the list I will let you know.

Here's some of my stuff:

Twitter - https://twitter.com/rlynnarchie
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/EBooksByRLyn...
Website - http://www.rlynnarchie.com/
Amazon author page - http://www.amazon.com/R.-Lynn-Archie/...

If you're interested in reading a ten page short story I have one on my website that you can download (PDF format) for free called Treasured Haven.

Again, nice meeting everyone!

R. Lynn

Hello. My name is Shaun Adams. I write horror stories. I live and work on the Isle of Wight, a diamond shaped pimple on the backside of the British Isles.

Thanks for the invitation Ian.

I love reading. From Tom Robbins, through Stephen R. Donaldson, Terry Prachett to Stephen King and far too many others to mention here.

I’m forty seven years old now, so that’s a lot of reading over the years. I always wanted to be a writer but it’s taken me a lot longer to get the hang of that.

I've self-published two collections of short stories so far and I’m in the first stages of writing a novel.
I recently began a new blog to display my work.

http://shaunadamswriting.blogspot.co.uk/

Authors Helping Authors, count me in. If I can do something to help anyone I will. Please feel free to email me.
Kind regards,
Shaun

Greetings! My name is Michelle, and I'm from the US. I write a mixture of things, but my favorite genres are science fiction, children's, and contemporary.

Current goal: to continue writing and to keep putting my stuff out there. It is my hope that I can eventually go from a full time job to a part time job; I want to focus on what I love doing! It's a tough goal, but I want to at least try!

Random fact: I collect action figures.

Question for the next poster: what do you collect?

Erren wrote: "Dear Folks,
I want to promote my book and help authors, but wonder how much is enough or too much?

1) https://www.twitter.com/errengreywolf
I can connect with you on Twitter easily and thought to ..."

Visiting blogs is a great way to get yourself out there...but I mean writing about other things besides your book and your stuff. LOL I normally have my authors on author spotlight do a guest post about something other than themselves and their book so my viewers can connect with them. This helps some.
Cheers,
Michala
www.bitemybook.com

Hey all,

I'm Helen and I write urban fantasy. I have one novel out there and am working on the second.

Random facts: My hair is currently three different colors. I have my Ph.D. in Biology but I much prefer to write fiction than scientific papers (though I did publish a non-fiction book with a small press, but it's so obscure no one can find it). :)

Nice to be part of the group!

Welcome Helen!
Cheers,
Michala
www.bitemybook.com

I guess I'll jump in and introduce myself. My name is Michelle. I'm currently living in Kent.

I love reading all genres of fiction.

I've always enjoyed writing for fun and decided to try my hand at writing a contemporary romance novel. I'm 3/4's of the way through my first draft and hope to self publish it later this year.

I'll jump in! I'm Kaitlyn. I'm a freshman in college in Indiana and studying wildlife biology and conservation. The summer after my senior year of high school, I decided that I finally wanted to write something. Since then, I've written four complete books, I'm halfway through two other books, have self-published the first book in one of my series, and am editing the others.

Random facts: I love Josh Groban and his music. I watch a ton of TV shows and movies from the fifties. I could eat pretzels all the time and my favorite color is green.

Does having a ton of books count as a collection? :)

Hey Guys,
I just found this group. Really pleased to be here.

I write fiction under Eden Crowne (http://www.edencrowne.com) but my other identity is an international journalist. I am based in Tokyo but just flew into Cali for a couple of months Stateside. It's funny having to promote two different people and styles of work.

Just did a piece on the Tsunami's second year anniversary in Japan. Things have not changed that much, as I said in my article,'It's a tidy devastation now'.

People always ask me 'what do you read' but since all I do is write, I really love to go to the movies and HEAR words!!!!

Thank you for the invite to join! It's great to meet you all. I'm a recent graduate of the University of Arizona. I self-published my first novel last summer (I'll post the link elsewhere) and am about halfway through book #2. I work part time herding cashiers at a hardware store. I subsist on coffee, Mexican candy and metal music. :)

Thanks for the invite, Ian.

I was a "good girl" and went through all the previous posts and liked/followed where possible.

I've been writing for newspapers, magazines, the interweb and have published more than a dozen non-fiction books since I was graduated from college. Now, I am finally turning to my first love--fiction--and have published my first novel, Redemption. And, have finished my second.

My links are:
https://twitter.com/VictoriaSLogue
https://www.facebook.com/VictoriaStee...
AND my blogs:
http://www.victorialogue.com/blog/
http://thewildernessroad.wordpress.com/

And since we haven't had a question in a while: Your favorite book(s)? I've always loved "The Little Prince" and "The Count of Monte Cristo," among many others.

Hi. I suppose I have been a writer for twenty years. Writing was once a part of my job and I wrote non-fiction books about electronics for schools and colleges. I have been writing novels since I retired and discovered how much more difficult it is to, find a publisher and sell a novel.

I have managed to complete two novels in the last five years. Satan's Whiskers.

UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_n...

USA.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_sab...

And weekend in Amsterdam.

UK.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_n...

USA.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_sab...

You can read my blog at http://authorblogroyahiggins.blogspot...

Gosh, this group is growing so fast, I can't even keep up!!

First off, a big hearty welcome to the newcomers, of which there are many! It's so great to meet and collaborate with people from so many different walks of life. Welcome welcome welcome, and please, feel free to reach out to one another for questions, help, or anything you need. There are plenty of different discussions in this group, so I'm sure everyone can find something to help them out!

Secondly, I haven't posted a random question lately, but I saw a few posts earlier where M.L. asked what we collect. I personally collect old and foreign money, books (obviously!), and blankets/throws. The money thing my hubby got me hooked on, and we've gotten a good little collection going. We have old German currency from when Hitler was in power, we have old American money from the early 1900s, Caribbean money of varying values, Pesos from Mexico, all kinds of goodies! The blankets/throws are a bit of an obsession for me. I love blankets and throws, I have four on my couch right now, several in my ottoman, a few locked in a chest, and one on my bed. I get cold often, so I started collecting them to keep with me at all times. I have one in each car, too!

To answer Victoria's question, I read a book when I was really young that stuck with me my whole life, Invitation to the Game, by Monica Hughes. I love that book, and I literally read the cover off of it. I haven't read it in years, since I lost my copy somewhere around high school, but if I ever get it back, I'll probably read the cover off of it again. <3

My question to you all now is this: What scary movie character scares you the most? For me, it would be a tie between Pennywise the Clown (IT) and Pinhead (Hellraiser). Two people I would never wanna meet!!

I am a writer who is frustrated and confused with my destiny as one.

Natalie wrote: "I am a writer who is frustrated and confused with my destiny as one."

Welcome to the club. You didn't think you were alone in feeling that way did you?

Hi! I'm a Canadian mom to three boys and wife to my soulmate :) I'm in the process of writing my first book. I have no experience other than my intense love for reading. My book is untitled, and only about 9 short chapters in, so still pretty skeletal, but I have an entire plot layout and I think my idea is good. I'm definitely looking for tips, and encouragement. If anyone is interested in reading what I have, and giving feedback, that would be great! My book is a romance/mystery.

Thanks!

Rebecca

Hi everyone, My name is Ali and I hail from the great state of Texas!

Is it bad that I have to be half drunk on my favorite Ghost Pines Cabernet to write my villains story? Ugh it's so true! I can't even think of my current villain without being encased in silk and sipping my juice. I love to write. the creative engine I envision is a sleek Purple V12...vroom...vroom!!! pedal to the metal thats how I write. Of course that only happens after 8 pm every night, and even then it only lasts two hours. I have to give mad props for me time!

I'm a SAHM of two adorable kids ages 12, and one year. My day goes, write, read, write, read, cook, feed, bath, cook again, feed again, bath again, write, write, cuddle then bed. And the occasional diaper change thrown in. I love being a mom! My wonderful Husband has supported me for years in my writing endeavors and I thank him daily for his encouragement. He spoils me so!

I have penned several stories in ten years and not published a single one. I am not computer savvy, and no where near as polished as I should be, but I have all these(apple)toys so I am learning how to capitalize on my assets? Is that right?
My grammar sucks(thats the beauty of editing), my typing is atrocious, and I need a new desk because writing from my bed is giving me horrible posture.

I love to write poetry and short stories of erotic and paranormal variety. But my dream is to finish a fantasy romance series(shocking I know) I started about a year ago called "Arin in the city" lame title and I will change it before its all said and done.

The characters we create are so much apart of who we are. They are plucked from our souls and given a sliver of our desires and feelings, then blossoming into a well rounded hero or heroine, or both worthy of our friendship and respect. Before what were they? We can leave that to scientists and philosophers alike.

I once watched a TED talk about creativity and in it the author said, (and I am paraphrasing here) once she sees a idea in our landscape it looks like a tiny thread floating in the sky, riding the wind and about to pass us by. Through the window and around the arm of the couch floating into the kitchen and gliding through the running faucet just to feel the water beed down on its delicate fibers, finally brushing my fingers as I reach into the air, caressing my palm and daring me to catch it. Catch it before it floats away to another.

Ok that last bit was mine, and I grab the thread every time.

I have so many questions on how to progress and wonder if I am even good enough to have someone respond. Do I fit in this group? Will people think I am just another Indie trying to be cool. Like everyone else I just want a chance.

Reading all of your posts gives me hope, hope to become more that just an aspiring anything. Look forward to sharing with you all! happy writing and remember that we have so much to give, and so much to receive.


Oh, and as far as questions answered, my favorite book is "Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte

"If you ever looked at me once with what I know is in you, I would be your slave." Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights.


My first poetry post to goodreads is on my page. I don't know how to post the link here, but if your willing to hunt for it, I'd be honored if you read it. the second will be along tomorrow at the latest. I am also on watt pad.com
oh just kidding here is the link! i think..

http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/3...

http://wattpad.com/ALIREED

Thanks for your time :) Good luck to everyone!

Rebecca wrote: "Hi! I'm a Canadian mom to three boys and wife to my soulmate :) I'm in the process of writing my first book. I have no experience other than my intense love for reading. My book is untitled, and o..."

I would love to read your chapters, just let me know how!

Sincerely,
Ali