Today we're pulling a lawn chair under the trees shading the corner of the yard. I invite you to kick off your shoes and let the cool grass temper the heat on the bottoms of your feet. A tall glass of water over crushed ice with a lemon wedge circling the top is as strong as I want on hot summer afternoons, but you can imagine any frosty thirst quencher you need.
As I posted on Wednesday, I've been blog touring this week to see what my comrades have to say. It's been a welcome change, reading for fun instead of stressing over my own blog. Found these fun, interesting, and inspiring posts.
If you stop by and like what you find, do the author a professional favor and "share" on your Facebook, Twitter, or email spaces. Also, sign up to "follow." I've been in two online classes this past month where the agents/publishers said if they get a query they're interested in, they check out the author's "spaces" or "places" to learn more about them, see their voice...and check out their following. If an author shows an impressive following and is receiving positive feedback from their visitors, it shows them the author already has "fans" who will likely buy their book and recommend them to others.
This is a wonderful, but brutal business and with all the publishing options, twists and setbacks, it makes breaking through the barriers as a new author, difficult. When I hit the "send" key and post my blog each week, a state of panic swamps me. Did I make it interesting or did I sound stupid? Is my blog entertaining? Will anyone comment? Or did I "die on the vine?" I check my blog several times the first day and I get excited when I find comments. That means someone actually read it! It also proves I'm not dangling alone out there in the great cyber vastness.
Even more exciting though, is finding my number of followers consistently growing. I do have fans...ones I don't have to "pay" for! Little pop-ups come on my email telling me so-and-so has mentioned me on Twitter, or now following me there (sorry, still fluttering in the nest), and also mentioned me on Facebook. All of these little things help boost an author's confidence. I know it's a personal puff of wind beneath my wings when you stop by.
Okay, so here's what I've found.
A. Patricia wants to know what the best piece of advice is you've ever received. Myself? I have two. 1. You only get one chance to make a good first impression. 2. You can only change the person you become. If I was to give you a piece of advice I would say "Believe in something...and let that something be yourself." Check out her blog: http://www.patriciayagerdelagrange.com/?p=224
B. A new cyberfriend, Deborah Dale, posted wonderful blog about Harry Potter.
http://deboradale.com/blog1/2011/07/15/the-harry-potter-generation/
C. Tiffany A. White's Ooo Factor. She posts Friday's FabOoolousness. This week deals with a subject that always catches my attention: real life crime stories/mysteries. This week it was the Kiss and Kill Murder in 1961 in Odessa, Texas. Tiffany has a personal connection to the ghostly story. Curious? Stop by:
http://tiffanyawhite.wordpress.com/author/tbrat216/
D. I'm drawn to real life mysteries - the "who-did-it-but-disappeared" or "WTF?" when a body is discovered unexpectedly. It's like playing an ongoing reality game of CLUE. Catie Rhodes posted about the possible mystery identity behind "Jack the Ripper." The story gave me the creeps, naturally, but moreso because I lived through the Ted Bundy slayings. In fact, his lone survivor and the girl who identified him, worked with me. My parents wouldn't let me even go to the grocery store without taking one of my brothers with me. An unsettling feeling to have police inside your workplace all day. They were protecting her, in case he escaped jail and during the hearing. So having had our own version of "Jack the Ripper" in our hometown, I identified with the fear the people in Texas were going through. Check it out:
E. Last, but not even close to "least" is a personal one to me. This is a dear writer friend who I met at conference last year and we just "clicked." She's recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and has undergone radical surgery and is now starting her Chemo. Her outlook on life is amazingly upbeat. She's ready to embrace "bald is beautiful" and if anyone could pull it off, it would be Jenn. The day she went in for surgery I had my own mammogram done (and yes...I want to invent the "penilgram" every time I go). My hooters slap my knees and I can read the paper through them now, but I passed another year. Please stop by her blog and show your support. All of us will be touched in some way by this horrible disease, so reach out when you can. I'm a firm (parts of me are anyway) believer in pay it forward...the good you do will come to you. Check out my friend at: http://cancerfreekearl.blogspot.com
I checked out the links to make sure they worked, but once you hit "post" cyber gremlins can attack. I'm crossing my fingers they all work. If you have one you'd like to brag about, please share. As always, thanks for stopping by.
Today's thought: There's no such thing as failure...only learning experiences.
8 comments:
Thank you so much, Joelene, for these blog sites. When I get back from my son's game I'm going to read all of them one by one. But I wanted to say thank you not only for mentioning me, but these all sound like great places to read goooooood stuff.
Thanks again.
Patti
I appreciated reading your post about our friend Jenny. It's good to know she plans to beat this and she has a good friend like you to support her.
I've read these blogs and I agree. Well worth your time.
Thanks for the post.
Jenn may argue that! I enjoyed doing this so much, I think I may make it a regular posting, at least every couple of weeks. That way, my followers can maybe find some new favorites. Thanks for stopping by.
Hey Joelene, I just finished reading those blogs and want to thank you for making my day. They were fantastic and a great way to get to know other people. I loved the way you wrote a little summation about each blog and a link at the end. SUPERB. And Jenny's story truly touched my heart.
Hi Joelene!
Thanks so much for your post. I know exactly how you feel. I write my weekly post and hope someone finds it interesting. And, I too get excited when I see how many people stop by for a visit.
I love your casual, informative and witty style. For me, your blog is a must read. I don't always get to it the day you post but I make certain I get there.
Thank you also for listing my blog on your Links and Blogs. I'm grateful for the support.
Have a great weekend.
... Ruth
Great picks! Feeling like a minnow in a huge ocean, I sometimes feel overwhelmed by all the blogs out there and the competition for comments. Knowing that editors/agents check on them to see a fan base doesn't help matters. :)
No it doesn't. It' intimidating as hell. Some weeks I'm full of ideas & save them for the dry spells. Sometimes, like this week, I just want to read everyone else's. I swear there's not enough hours in the day. Thanks for stopping by!
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