witter (ˈwɪtə)
vb – (often foll by: on) to chatter or babble pointlessly or at unnecessary length
n – pointless chat; chatterCOLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY – COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED, 12TH EDITION 2014 © HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
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writing life updates
One of my lowest creative moments came the day I realized I couldn’t keep my promise to publish Blackbriar Cove. For the last (almost) ten years, this sequel has languished in production hell. At this point, it has become a labor of love. I revised and rewrote much of Silver Hollow in prep for the ultimate sequel, but ultimately, have been unable to deliver.
When you write, you tend to spend a lot of time in your head, and it’s easy to become discouraged and disheartened. It’s even easier to fall into a pit that doesn’t seem to have a way out.
Whenever I feel this way, the first person I go to is my writing partner and bestie, Mel. Mel is the big sister I never knew I needed and is amazing at pulling me out of my head. I do my best to help her with the same. So much of the time, when one of us begins to panic about something we’re writing or planning, the other is there to say, “Nope! This is just in your head. You’re being paranoid, I promise.” My fellow writers should be able to laugh and relate 😉
Sometimes, it helps to have that person you can trust to tell you, “No, this is not trash.”
For those of you still looking to begin making your writing dream a reality, take heart and remember to seek out your little niche in the community. Don’t give up, even when you “give up.”
It sounds so silly, in retrospect, when I think back on all the awful and frankly scary times the world endured in 2020. We had two hurricanes of varying intensity pass over our house this year, for example. That was maybe the wildest thing that happened in our corner of Texas. This isn’t counting the days and weeks we struggled with illness and watching the progress of COVID sweep the world. I waited on pins and needles as I sent my kid to preschool at our local Elementary, convinced they’d shut down before Christmas. And somehow, my family has come into 2021 relatively unscathed. I am so bloody thankful for that.
I think it’s because things didn’t completely fall apart that I’m able to even consider publishing Blackbriar Cove again. There are endless stories brimming in my mind, some to finish, and new adventures to tell. I’m not making wild promises just yet, but I have hope things will work out this time. I pushed aside my publishing plans last year, but that doesn’t mean I ever stopped writing. If anything, writing kept me sane.
I don’t know where you’re at in your journey today, but I hope you are well. I hope you are safe and happy. I hope you are looking forward to this new year, and no matter how bleak things have been, still dare to dream.
#beinspired
Goals for this week
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Quality time with my little guy.
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Write every day.
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Begin journaling again.
Helpful Links
Breath (A 30 Day Yoga Journey) – love Adrien’s 30 Day series! This one just started, so there’s plenty of time to join in and take care of yourself ❤
“Keeping the Writing Faith: 6 Ways to Keep Your Novel on Track With a Process Journal” – from Writer’s Digest
“Instagram for Writers & Authors” – by Dave Chesson from Kindlepreneur
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Jennifer Silverwood 
Hallo, Hallo,…
I feel like 2021 has finally begun for me because I’ve spent New Year’s Eve until just after 1am this morning finishing my End of the Year Survey which acted as a cathartic purge of the last year. I always have so much guilt about what I can’t do each year in regards to blogging or reading or reviewing and this year, I stopped myself short – re-took stock of what I did do and realised, I’m not the only book blogger who struggled to connect to stories and post their reviews. If anything, I am celebrating what I did read and which stories resonated with me the most – hence I brought back my Cuppa Book Love Awards and happily announced them on Twitter.
Its like you said – things can look quite depressing at times but that doesn’t mean things won’t turn round. I admit, sharing the latest books to go onto my backlogue at the end of the survey was an anxious moment for me but I’d rather remain transparent and honest than to hide the truth. Besides, I have a whole new year to enjoy reading again and I look forward to getting started!! I haven’t read anything in over a month – with Mum spending two full weeks taking emergency shifts at work (all of which were 12+ hours each, overnight) you could say our Christmas & New Year’s were quite a bit different this year! We’re making up for it by binge watching Christmas movies on NetFlix as well as seeing as our final film for 2020 “The Prom” which was wicked brilliant! Truly James Corden’s shining light of joy!! I can’t wait to share what I’ve been watching as it concluded a wicked year for tv and film whilst it began 2021 on good footing to continue the momentum!
I’m so happy your little guy is thriving!! I was hoping things turnt out… we lost touch awhile ago and I never knew if he found his wings at preschool or if he was being home-schooled. I tagged you on Twitter today as I wanted you to be one of the ones who saw my survey as it was a definite labour of love to account for the whole year’s worth of posts!! Ooh! Speaking of what you were saying – never give up the hope of what you dream happening – if that were true I would have given up years ago about half of mine as they didn’t get to launch yet. Sometimes life likes to challenge you and give you more trials than cheers but that should only strengthen our resolve not damper our will to dream and to accomplish what enriches our creative spirits.
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Hey Jorie! So sorry, I meant to reply to this much sooner ❤ Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and encouragement with me! It means so much to me, knowing I have you in my corner, friend 😀
I go through that same thing you mentioned, beating myself up about what I DIDN'T accomplish. But you're right to turn that around to what we DID accomplish. And just for the record, I think you did an amazing job juggling all you did. There's always room for us to improve, and that's part of setting good intention for each new year, I suppose 🙂
My little guy is doing amazing, thank you! He really has blossomed with school, and continually blows me away with all he has and continues to learn 😀 We started reading the first Harry Potter together (illustrated edition) and he always asks me specific questions or makes insightful comments on things I wouldn't think of.
I hope you continue to pursue your writing this coming year, Jorie! Just getting into the habit of writing every day can make a big difference in the long game 😀 Sending you big virtual hugs!
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