Thought Provoking Thursday: Successes and failures as a writer

If you're a writer, I'm sure you feel you've failed at something more than once.  You've scrapped a piece of your work.  Revised to the point of it being something completely different.  Been rejected over and over again by agents and editors.  Gotten a harsh critique or review.

Here's the thing: it's hard to get over, I know this.  Been there done that to all of the above.  The key is to let it roll off.  Yes, first you can scream, shake your fists in the air at no one in particular, but don't lose your cool (which unfortunately I've done a couple times as well, though fleeting and I don't think there is any evidence *crosses fingers*)

It's easy to burn bridges.  Look at that poor author who posted a million times on that blog reviewer's review of her novel.  That is called self destruction.  Can you say it with me?  I knew that you could. (I'm totally dating myself with that reference, but some of you may chuckle)

I've learned to scream silently.  Or to do it in the privacy of my own home.  I've written letters and emails voicing my anger and I've promptly deleted them.  And okay, I've written a blog, posted it, then deleted it.  But THAT one was ridiculous.  Just ask anyone who looked at it.

You take your hits.  You suffer in silence.  Tell a couple really trustworthy friends, your mother, your journal, then you move on.  Take a step back and re-evaluate your rejection/critique/review and see if maybe there is some validity to it.  Even if you don't find that validity, you continue to work on your craft, you keep learning, keep growing as a writer. Surround yourself with people who will support you through your trials and travails. You never give up.  You keep writing, you keep querying, you keep submitting, because if you give up, you'll never get there, and you'll always be wondering what might have been.

Writing Wednesday: Poetry

I thought I would do something a little different and post one of my poems.  I call this one Abandoned.

Pen to paper

 Left unread

Only  ink,

Words,

the alabaster page.

Spoken words

Heard only

By the moon

and stars

and the blanket of night.

Arms reach out

Left unfilled

Grasp air

and wind

and empty spaces

Solitude

There’s only me

My breath

My beating heart

Nothing more.

Tooting the horn Tuesday: Celebrating Book Birthdays

I want to congratulate Amy Holder, author of The Lipstick Laws and Carole Dagg Estby, author of The Year We Were Famous for the releases of their debut novels yesterday.

Also, Gae Polisner, dear friend and author of The Pull of Gravity (releases May 10) has a blog tour happening right now.  Click here for info.

And please don't forget about the Write Hope auction to help Japan.  There are a variety of items that have been donated by writers and artists.  Please check it out.

And I'm eight followers away from giving away a gift card of your choice, amazon, barnes and noble, or itunes.  If you're my 100th, you win. (and if anyone referred you, they win too.  So spread the word.

Oh, yeah, and if I didn't already mention it, Never Eighteen is available for reviewers on NetGalley.com and for pre-order on Amazon.

Have a great Tuesday everyone.

Best,
~Megan

Monday Morning Blahg: Eternal Rain

How would you like to see this for 8 months straight?

Yes, I know I live in the state of Washington where it rains the majority of the time, but the last couple years the sky has been gray for eight months straight.  I don't remember it being like that.  I remember sunny warm Septembers, and hot March and Aprils.  I don't like Climate Change.  I like the idea of Global Warming instead.

We had a little sun on Saturday and instead of taking advantage of it and getting outside to work on my yard I wrote.  Which was good because I hadn't written in awhile and I wrote a lot.  But now we're back to rain.

I have decided this:  I WILL be taking a vacation every winter for at least a week to go someplace sunny.  Probably AZ.  And I will SERIOUSLY consider moving someplace sunny when my children have graduated from college, or at least become a snow bird. (of course I can only do this if actually make money being a writer and can quit the day job.  of course, it is possible I can do my day job from home, but I don't think they would like that all too much)

Did you know that our state has one of the highest rates of depression and suicide?  It's true and it's because the sky is gray.  We're probably the state with the highest rates of purchases of vitamin D.  It's also why we were the the most wired city.  Because we had to stay inside so much people took to the internet like flies to shit.

I cannot wait to see the sun again.  I am after all solar powered.

Happy Monday Peeps.  Until tomorrow.

Best,
~Megan

F³A: Rollercoastering

Life is full of ups and downs, and this week has been no different.  Of course is started out fab because I was in the sunny city of Scotsdale AZ with my mom and Thing One and Thing Two.  The last day of vacation however I started to crash.  I was missing someone important in my life and I was probably dreading coming home to the rain and gray that I knew awaited me in the wet but beautiful Pacific Northwest.

Yesterday  in itself was a rollercoaster.  I woke up to find out my novel, Never Eighteen, was available for pre-order on Amazon.  But was still crashing from being back in the rain, and having a few feelings of jealousy and "I suck" (it happens with us writers), and other icky feelings I needed to Shake off.   And my auction item on Write Hope only got two bids.  Not sure if it's because it's the second week and everyone who knows about the auction is tapped out (I know I am) or if no one is in need of a book trailer (it's the biggest part of my piece, also a signed arc and query critique.  It's still there if anyone is interested.)

Now it's Friday.  And I'm hoping today is better than yesterday because, well, it's Friday, I can look forward to a weekend of writing and planning a marketing strategy, work on video, which I love to do, and watch Things One and Two play soccer, which I love, win or lose.

So, until Monday I'm off the rollercoaster (fingers crossed) which is good because I was starting to get dizzy.

Until then Bloggy friends.

Truly,
~Megan

Oh, can't forget the weekly nibbles:

Random iPod shuffle song:  Bruno Mars, Grenade.  Many musicians I know have a musicians crush on Bruno because he's so talented.  I just have a regular old crush on him for other reasons.

Book of the week:  Deadline by Chris Crutcher.  I read this because it was similar to my own novel.  It was amazing.  Highly recommended.

Movie of the Week: Billy Elliot.  I had never seen this until the past weekend.  One word, Amazing.

Quote of the Week: Life is a roller coaster. Sometimes you're at the top of the hill feeling good. Other times your heading for the bottom feeling totally out of control. Life is full of things that are hard to handle, but you can get through them.

~ Reggie Dabbs