IWSG: RX for the Weary Writer

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Wednesday, November 04, 2015

IWSG: RX for the Weary Writer


Anyone who thinks self-publishing is a simple matter of writing it, putting a title and your name on it, slapping it up on Amazon then sitting back to watch the cash roll in is self-deluding.

Even with 25 years of publishing experience and a phenomenal crew behind me it was a right down to a thin wire for my supposed to be August but now it's October book. Formating woes, setting up blog tours, writing endless posts, social media blitzs, computer troubles right up to the release date for UNLEASHED BY SHADOWS (10-26-15), and then relentless issues, tweaking, visiting posts, checking numbers, checking numbers again (even after looking at them just five minutes ago!). Can you say OCD overload?! After four weeks of up at 4:00 a.m. to write four hours, putting in an 8-hour day at my job, back to the computer in home office, eating crap food, too much coffee (if there is such a thing), can’t sleep (I guess there is!), I’m in a Groundhog’s Day hell of rapid cycling, but I have to stay on top of things.

Riding to a weekend writing retreat in a rambling rural farm house wasn’t what I wanted to do. It was what I NEEDED to do. No internet, poor cell service, eleven authors escaping life to sit at the keyboard. Paradise? I needed convincing. Eleven women under one roof with NO talking, just writing? Yeah right. Friday we talked, we cooked, we ate, we drank (but not too much), we wrote down goals and then we found our individual niches in the maze of rooms and sat down to produce. I can’t stop fretting over how the new book is doing . . . without me. Immediately another writer sits nearby, bursting at the seams to talk. Oh . . . hell. I ask the first question and her dam of frustration breaks. And in listening and giving advice, I can feel my own internal tension slipping away in a kindred osmosis. She started writing. I started writing . . . on a new project. And the words flowed as the world outside my new weekend window of creativity faded away.


Up earlier than the roosters to make paint-stripping coffee, I was back at my spot, now empty of all but ideas, almost unaware of the room slowly filling around me, falling into a relaxed pattern of sparse conversation and energized productivity. I snap up the offer of getting a shiatsu massage and knots the size of every one of my fears and frustrations are kneaded away (oh, look my neck is longer!). A gathering for serve yourself lunch, then supper, animated discussion and lots of laughs, telling ghost stories about the creaking boards around us then off to work again. Sleep, repeat, only on our last day, most writers retreat to their rooms with doors left invitingly open while they work out newly revealed plot points. By noon, an amazing amount of progress is shared. I’m well into Chapter Three. Then back to the real world . . .

I didn’t turn on my computer until that evening. And I didn’t check my numbers until the next morning. Shoulders relaxed . . .

Make time to take time for yourself, author friends! There’s no better RX than R&R!

Here’s a look at my difficult to birth new baby . . .



He feared no man, no foe, no obstacle or challenge . . .

Burdened by the weight of his secrets and his father’s sins, the need for redemption pulls Cale Terriot from his duty to his clan and the arms of his new mate into deadly intrigues in a rival territory. His dangerous masquerade in a high-stakes Shifter fight club is about to be exposed to those who would show no mercy – if he can survive in the ring.

How to protect a prince turned king made pawn?

Fearing she’ll lose her soulmate to the darkness he carries inside, Kendra Terriot, newly made queen in the Shape-shifter House of Terriot, must provide him with an heir in order to save his life . . . and his soul. But first she must risk all to coax him back from the edge of violence inherited with his crown.

Can her love tear him from an unbreakable vow that can only end in death?

“Every delicious word Nancy Gideon puts on the page exhilarates with a sensuous ferocity. Hopelessly addicted.” —Darynda Jones, NY Times Bestselling Author





Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time.

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!


Twitter hashtag is #IWSG 

IWSG awesome co-hosts for the November 4th posting will be Stephen Tremp, Karen Walker, Denise Covey, and Tyrean Martinson!

16 comments

  1. As a self-pubbed author, I know your pain of birthing a new book. But, hey, you did it!!! It sounds like the weekend was very productive. Wish I'd been there. Maybe next time. Best wishes for Unleashed by Shadows.

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  2. Sounds like the perfect prescription for rejuvenating one's mind, body, & soul. And from a peek out that window, it looks to be the perfect setting also!

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  3. Awesomeness on the book release, Nancy. I'm searching for some getaway writing time, but looks like bits and pieces here for a while. Best wishes for success to you and your book.

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    1. thanks, Dean! Bits and pieces is better than nothing!

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  4. Congratulations on your new release. I think you are amazing. You kept writing even though you didn't feel like it. I admire that. I want to be more like that, for sure. I don't think I would've been able to write with other ladies in the room with me. I always crave solitude to write. Again, proving you are awesome. Wishing you lots of success with the new book.

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    1. I love solitude, too, and wasn't sure how it would work out. I was really surprised by how much I got done. Peer pressure . . . maybe.

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  5. Already picked up your new baby for my keeper shelf. :) Sometimes the best medicine is to get away from all the stresses of life. Sounds like you had a wonderful time!!

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  6. Hi Nancy! Loved this post. Wow, even after all this time it doesn't get better. Not very comforting, but inspires me to press on. Loved the sound of the writers retreat. I'm going to create one in my downstairs apartment at the beach. I like the idea of the silence though. I don't like chatting and writing.

    Denise Covey November co-host IWSG

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    1. At. The. Beach. Oh, man, that's a retreat any day of the week! And yes, very difficult to get used to others in the room but AC/DC banging through my earphones put a damper on it.

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  7. You really know how to take care of yourself. Thanks for the inspiration.
    And with those yummy looking abs, no wonder he was difficult to birth. Smiles.
    Much success of your newest baby. Congratulations!

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    1. Yes, that was a difficult one to let leave the nest . . . sigh.

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  8. That retreat sounds like heaven! The masseuse was a stroke of genius. Perfect timing for you -- the first weeks after release are the absolute worst part of this whole writing thing for me.

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