.jpg)
Here we are again, at the first Wednesday in November; the date to post for the monthly INSECURE WRITERS SUPPORT GROUP (sometimes known as the I Was Seeking Gary bloghop). The IWSG was founded and is hosted by Ninja Captain Alex J Cavanaugh "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!" In your post Alex encourages authors to "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."
Each month our Ninja Captain generously allows a few members to co-host with him. November's co-hosts are LG Keltner, Lisa Buie-Collard, SL Hennesy, and myself.
I've been feeling kinda naked and undeveloped here. I miss my stuff I spent about five years collecting at the old site. I miss all the awards, the quotes, the links to my few published works. I miss my name, my blog fest writings, the guest posts and book reviews that comprised my writing life.
The last couple months I've been just hanging out at home. Its not easy for me to be without a day job (and might I add my son doesn't like me sitting home either) and it isn't just about the lack of money. I don't like being bored. I don't like domestic duties such as cooking, cleaning, doing yard work and sorting through junk.
I have time to write and blog, but am more interested in catching up on pleasure reading. I'm not so multi-talented to read a book (even beta for review), write, and critique for my writers group all at the same time. Plus, blogging and writing is what lost me my last day job. And since I'm still job hunting in the same field I have a hard time throwing all my energy into writing that I possibly can't submit if I want to keep the potential new day job.
I know this will all sort itself out and work out the way it is supposed to, but dang do I hate all this indecision. And waiting. And house cleaning.
Thats it for my insecurity this month: just feeling a bit naked and uninspired. Not a good thing during National Novel Writing Month. I hope everyone out there participating and supporting fellow authors is all revved up and excited. Good luck to y'all.
Be sure to visit as many IWSG participants on the linky as you can and brighten someone else's day.
* * *
As for the results of my Battle Of The Bands post on Nov 1 between Amos Lee and Art of Noise performing NOVEMBER RAIN:
of the 16 voters 13 voted for Amos; 1 voted for Art of Noise, and two voted for the original artists Guns and Roses, who were not in the running. A landslide in favor of Amos regardless.
See ya around the blogs :)
91 comments:
Ah I get it. I am also unemployed and looking for a day non writing job. You would think I would be more productive in my writing with the time, but not as much. I feel like I am going in circles sometimes.
Good luck with the job search and I hope you find the balance for regular life and the writing life. I am working on that one too. I know I wrote less, when I worked full time. Hopefully I will be working full time again soon, but writing more. Best of luck.
Juneta at Writer's Gambit
We do have moments like these. It's all right to feel this way.
Good luck with your job search.
And thanks for co-hosting. Virtual *hugs* to you!
Job hunting is the pits and that in itself can make you feel unfulfilled. Whereas you dislike mundane chores, thats where I thrive and think about my next story. Walking or even scrubbing the kitchen floor give me inspiration. And we all have times where it feels like theres nothing clicking up there, but it will happen soon. Good Luck finding new employment.
Not surprised Amos won.
Sorry you're caught in the middle between job hunting and writing right now. I think it will sort itself out.
Thanks again for co-hosting today!
And wow, look at all the IWSG badges in your sidebar...
Best of luck with the job search. It's never fun and feeling bored on top of that must be frustrating.
So sorry about your situation and hope it mends soon. It's hard to be motivated when you aren't happy. But perhaps taking that negative energy and writing short stories or something productive will change that for you. Or, using this time to write like crazy might make it unnecessary to even have a day job! Just throwing ideas around... I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you either way! Thanks for co-hosting with me today!
I'm sorry you lost your job due to blogging. And that you lost your other blog. The inspiration will return.
I wish I hadn't missed the Battle of the Bands. I love the song November Rain.
Sounds like a rough situation, but all can say is don't put so much pressure on yourself. Pleasure reading is fantastic, and ultimately makes us better writers. Once you're back in the groove, I'm sure things will fall into place.
Transitional periods are hard, and I hear you on housework! I've offered my spare bedroom many times in exchange for maid service. =)
I'm wishing you the best going forward, but enjoy this between stage, eh? They don't typically last long and then we look back and remember how good the time was.
Unleashing the Dreamworld
the less links and pages you have at your blog the easier it is to open :)
Time and place: that's where we find ourselves and where we should place our attention. You are there, now, for a reason. Maybe not apparent just yet, but you will find your way. Reading is as important to good writing as writing is. Best wishes your journey comes around soon.
Good luck with the job search. Starting over is always tough but I know you'll find something eventually. And hopefully, it'll be something you love. I hope November turns out to be a great month for you. Good luck!
Job hunting is stressful. I never enjoy house cleaning but I like the yard work when it's warm out. Pleasure reading is good for writers so don't feel guilty about it.
"naked and uninspired" - i wonder if the venus de milo ever felt like that? I hope things start looking up for you soon, in the meantime enjoy the pleasure reading (what are you reading by the way?)
I still think it's terrible you lost your other job over writing. Good luck finding a new job.
Thanks for co-hosting!
You sound a bit down. Maybe try a new route, change something, or start a new project to get your excited again. Thanks for co-hosting the IWSG this month!
Play off the Page
Sorry you're on a downhill at the moment. I know housework isn't fun, but mundane jobs often provide the best times for thinking about plots and twists or just mentally sorting things out. Good luck with your job search and thanks for co-hosting IWSG!
Reading is extremely important for writing. I'd enjoy the phase and delve in why it's possible. That's terrible that writing cost you your day job. Hopefully, a new one will pop up soon. Hang in there!
Thank you for co-hosting, Donna (and for being my CP!!)
I totally get being bored, yet having much to do. It's a tough road to navigate when you're not employed and feel like you have all this "busy" work to do but not like doing it.
Best of luck on the job hunt!
Elsie
I'm sorry things are all in waiting mode for you.
It will get better.
Fingers crossed you find a job you love!
Thanks for co-hosting.
Heather
Oh my, you lost your job because of blogging and writing? :o Good luck on your job search! I've been there.
And thanks for co-hosting!
Good luck job hunting. I went without a job for about 2 years and it was rough. I had plenty of time to write, but the lack of money was too stressful.
Hi Dolorah! Thanks for co-hosting the IWSG. You are going through a challenging time for sure. Things will sort themselves out. It has been my experience that most times when we go through struggles, we end in a better place. I totally get your domestic chore woes! It's so much more fun to do creative things. I keep reminding myself that things go better for me when I'm on top of things at home. But I'm behind again ~ arrggghhhh! I hope hopping around to blogs as a guest host lifts you up and inspires you! Have a good one!
Donna, I'm officially unemployed and it could not have come at a better time. NaNo. I'm still searching for a new job but until then will enjoy and make the most of my time off.
Good luck with your job search!
The important thing, Dolorah, you got it off your chest. As you mentioned, all these issues with job hunting and domestic un-bliss will pass. Take care. And thanks for co-hosting!
I'm in between jobs at the moment and have had a few interviews and hoping to secure something soon. I work much better with a schedule. I think we are way too hard on ourselves and it's important to find the right fit. Good luck in your job search, I'm pulling for you!
I admire your heading forward with the new blog, but MAN, I can understand how hard it would be psychologically. As for reading and writing--I can read when I'm actually WRITING because those happen in different places, but when I am editing or beta reading, the books don't happen...
Everything will sort itself out at some point or another. I'd hate to lose my old blog too though.
Sorry you're feeling unmotivated, but you've certainly motivated me. I'm at home all day now too and if doing housework is the alternative to getting words down I'm going to have to be very productive!
Feeling unsettled does make it hard to write, I find. I hope the work situation is resolved soon and that once it is everything else falls into place.
Hard times do befall us, but that alone can't make us fall. Sorry about your old blog. I don't know what I'd do if I lost mine.
Keep moving forward. Better times lie ahead. I just read what I wrote - it sounds like a fortune cookie. But it's true :)
Good luck with your job search. I've been there and know what it's like. If you don't have time to write, at least jot down any ideas that come to mind so you don't lose them.
Thanks for co-hosting this month's IWSG!
It's a sucky feeling, like you're just drifting around, but something will come along to ground you eventually, I have faith. Good luck!
I'm sorry things aren't working out for you right now. I sure hope you can find inspiration soon. And good luck with your job hunt!
I also hate the house cleaning! I also feel like I'm not talented enough to do everything, but I still try to do what I can. Hang in there!
I hate that sort of feeling. I've always called it diffused anxiety- I feel out of sorts for many or no real reasons. Hope you find your equilibrium soon!
Sorry to hear things aren't working out right now. I hope reading some great books inspires you. Thank you for co-hosting!
Starting over can be scary but it can also be the chance to make a fresh start. I am sorry about the job, I hope the perfect position comes your way really soon.
Sorry, my computer is playing up tonight and seems to be leaving double comments - hence the deleted second one!
Now I need to hear more about how you lost your last job by blogging. Hmmm... One of the plot teasers.
My unsolicited advice: Read until you get sick of it. Then see what comes next. Maybe it'll be writing!
"Everything I'm not made me everything I am." You could spend hours of productive writing time just figuring out all of the meanings of that quote! I hope you find the job you're looking for, but as someone who just landed a job, it takes scads of patience finding the right fit!
When I was unemployed and wondering, I walked. A lot. It made me see things, opened my brain and eventually everything fell into place. Good luck! Thank you for hosting IWSG.
Good luck on the job hunt. Never easy. Consider your time spent reading as refilling your well. Sounds like you need that. Thanks for hosting IWSG this month.
Change is good but tiring sometimes. Hope you find a job soon. Happy writing and reading in the mean time, :)
Thanks for co-hosting! Good luck finding a new job soon. I'm with you on hating domestic duties. Blech....
It is tough when one has to look for a new job but you will find it. You will get your writing mo-jo back too. Housecleaning is not priority either so I do what I enjoy
I'm sorry to hear about your job loss situation; I hope you find a better one soon!
Thanks for co-hosting this month's IWSG.
I'm sorry things are so tough right now. It's hard to find inspiration when you're under such stress. I truly hope your job situation is sorted out soon. In the meantime, don't feel bad for not writing. We all have times when it's hard to write. Best of luck to you.
Man it's hard to do ANYTHING else when you're looking for a job. Even after I sent a ton of resumes and did research, I still felt weird doing anything else. I hear you. I hope you find one soon - and one that does allow you to write!!
Sorry to hear you lost your job. I can see that making it hard to focus on writing. It will work itself out. Hope you find something you love soon.
We all have these periods when we go into a slump and the job concerns can't be ignored. I hope you find another job soon and get your mojo back.
I feel you, I hate cleaning house too. I love the feel of a clean and organized house, I just wish I had a magic wand to get me there. =) I hope everything sorts itself out for you soon!
I don't blame you for feeling that way, but hopefully things will turn around soon!
oh Doll baby, I hope it all gets figured out! I bore easily, too. I can be writing and just get winded and want to move on to watching TV. lol. I hear ya. good luck! keep us in the loop on how it's going :D
Waiting is never fun...same with domestic duties. Ew. So I hope it does all sort out for you soon.
Hi Donna .. I feel for you - it was such a dreadful thing to have to lose the blog - and then find anyway you were without a job.
I guess .. keep notes of your feelings etc .. these will all come in handy for writing in the time ahead, when life has settled down again ...
I sincerely hope you can find a job soon ... and wish you all the best - with thoughts .. cheers Hilary
Everyone one is different and has different struggles. If I were at home in your situation I'd be thriving, aside from the lack of pay. I love domestic duties and write well when I can alternate between chores, reading, and writng. However, I understand that I'm not normal. Most people don't function well that way. You want a day job and I don't. I hope that at some point we both find a balance. It sucks to feel naked and uninspired and I hope a muse comes along to help you through this tough time.
I can only imagine how difficult it must be to start over with a new blog. I've thought of doing the same. You're doing a great job, just keep it up and soon this blog will be filled with things you love too.
Awww, I'm sure it will work itself out, Donna. A lot of us write, blog and work a day job. Just got to try to keep it all separate, I guess. Praying you'll find something that works <3
I'm sending you a heap of positive energy.
My husband and I went through a really hard year (unemployment) and are still struggling. Employment situation is rectified, but at a lot less $.
I hope you can work it all out and get your mojo back.
Life seems to be a constant juggling act. In order to write more, my blogging has taken something of a backseat. I think when we have multiple things requiring our time we have to be super organized. That doesn't come naturally for me... so, it's a struggle. I don't know if that would help you or not. I'm sure you will figure it all out soon!
It's almost impossible to juggle working, writing, reading and critiquing. But if you get bored by one of those things, you can move on to another for awhile. I wish you a good job along with peace and happiness. You deserve it. :)
Good luck with the job hunting.
I'm with you on the housecleaning. Why bother? It just gets messy again.
Thanks for co hosting.
I do hope a job comes up soon. And you do sound like you miss your old blog. I hope you wake up one morning and are energized to write while you have the chance.
Yep, I'm doing NaNo. Couldn't not. Now i'll have 6 unfinished novels. :)
Holy moly, look at all those comments!
First - BOTB results. I am so glad to see that Amos Lee won. I really like that guy.
Next - IWSG - you know I've been having a hard time lately getting around and visiting some of my favorite sites. I also have been having a hard time posting anything but my BOTB posts. Life is just too crazy and I don't have half of the things going on in mine that you do in yours. BUT, last night when I couldn't sleep, I went and read through some of your previous blog posts (those that I missed since your last BOTB and I'm here to tell you that what you may lack in quantity you make for in quality. I love reading your blog posts, short stories and flash fiction. I may not make it around in a timely manner, but when I have the time, or insomnia I really enjoy coming here.
Hi Donna,
In actuality, my kind friend, your candid verbalisation, will inspire you as you have shared with such transparent candour.
Let's hope that you get some employment very soon. That way, you could blog about your adventures at work :)
Oh and thanks for being a co-host of MY support group. LOL
Take care and I'm outta' here...
Gary :)
Shows how little time I've had to read blogs this year. I didn't know you lost a blog or how, but I'd like to know. I just moved to keep Blogger from re-posting my content, but it feels like a loss. Maybe because WordPress is so freaking hard to learn in comparison. As for losing the job, I sympathize. Moving from one city to another did that for me. Made me feel naked and undeveloped too. I don't like that drudgery stuff either, but it's non-stop due to remodeling. With so little free time, my hubby suggested I get a day job. Grrr! I hope you read every free second until you can't!
Losing a job is so stressful. It is easy fall into a rut when that happens. I'm also wondering why you closed your other blog. Will have to move back through you post to sort that out. Good luck.
Leanne Ross
Nice to meet you, Donna!
I hope you find some inspiration and mental clothing. It gets a bit nippy this time of year, especially with the reduced daylight. Best of luck with job hunting and pleasure reading. :)
I hope everything works out soon, and you can feel less naked and uninspired!
Good luck with the job search and I hope you can still make time for blogging and writing.
www.modernworld4.blogspot.com
I think sometimes the more time we have the less we get done. Or maybe that's just me. Good luck on your job search. I hope you can figure out a way to write want you want without it costing you your job.
Hello everyone who commented. Thank you for stopping by, offering your encouragement, and your curiosity.
As for the blog costing me my day job my agency determined the blog and my writing content was inappropriate for a children's services social worker. The agency felt that if some of my client children were to see it they would be offended by my writing, and the personal info that was shared about myself. And then I was let go during my probationary period.
It still causes some distress for me, but I am hoping to put all this behind me (soon hopefully) and just enjoy my new site, as many of you have assured me I will.
Thanks for the kind words. I am still hopping around some blogs but will reciprocate the visits.
Have a good weekend.
Hey Donna...so sorry to read that the blog cost you your day job.
I hope that everything works out for you, and that you find another job soon!
I'm sure that you'll get your writing mojo back...soon!
Sending you a blast of positive vibes, all the way across the blogosphere----WHOOSH----
Take care.
And thank you for co-hosting the IWSG this month!
Life is like a roller coaster...a lot of ups and downs. Sorry to hear you are at the bottom, but I know you'll be climbing up very soon. Probably when you look back in a few more years at this season of your life, you'll understand better that this is why you are going through the down time. You'll come out on top! Hugs.
Writing and blogging cost you your day job? Eek. I always worried about that when I had a day job. My mom once worked with a romance novelist who wrote her novel all day and hardly worked. Finally she was laid off "due to cutbacks" and within a few months, she'd sold a book that ended up on the bestseller list. I always felt inspired by that!
Wasn't NaNoWriMo invented for the unemployed? I'm without a job 3 months of the year, and you'd think I would write the most during that time period. Not so much. I seem to do better when I have to cram my creativity into an hour or two every night.
When other anxieties are chewing at us, we tend to lose our creativity. I write the most when I'm most busy too. It'll come back. Good luck in your job search.
I'm sorry about your slump, but I'm sure things will pick up. I always tell myself that when I'm at my lowest, a high is on the horizon.
DONNA ~
I don't know if you're interested in this or not, but...
If you want to retrieve your old blog and all its content - comments and all - it might not be too late.
I think a Blogspot blogger can retrieve and make active again all of an old blog that's been deleted within 90 days of the deletion date. (I'm not sure how long ago you deleted your last blog.)
If you go to your Dashboard and look around (I think it's on the left-hand side, near the top, in your Dashboard) You should find a link to "Deleted Blogs" or something worded similar to that. If you click on the link, you can retrieve EVERYTHING you previously deleted and make the blog fully active again.
If you don't find that statement (or something similar) and a link in your Dashboard, then it probably means that the 90-day period has elapsed and Blogspot has deleted all the old content for good.
Just a thought you might want to consider.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
As a full time writer, I hate the domestic duties too. Nothing worse than thinking, "Well, I'd like to blog, but I have to vacuum first." Agh!
Thanks Stephen :)
That is so unfair that your line of work prevents you from submitting your work -- even with a penname?
I was feeling unmotivated to write, as well---kept coming up with different things that I "had" to do instead, and I've found that self-imposing 90 minutes of unplugged time a day---in which the only thing I let myself do is write---has already gotten me back into my groove. Had to push myself through the first few days, but I got there. Maybe something like that would work for you too. What's also nice about this arrangement with myself, is that if I've done my 90 minutes or have that time scheduled for later in the day, I don't beat myself up all day long for not writing, which is what I'd been doing.
I always say I write as therapy - focusing my mind on something other than the day-to-day - and you are such a talented writer that I think it's important for you to find your way back to your groove too.
Sorry to hear there's so much uncertainty for you at the moment. But I'm glad you decided to start a new blog and keep us all updated on your progress. Hopefully new opportunities are around the corner, where all the elements of your life can co-exist. You can see here that there's a lot of people rooting for you - good luck!
I myself have a case of the blahs. :/ My first short story is complete, ready to go and I just feel blah. :/ Hopefully things will start to look up for you soon!!! BTW I too miss your old blog! :)
Sorry, but I totally missed your BOTB post!! I've been really lax in blogging of late so I been missing a lot of posts only to find them way after the fact.
I'm an Art of Noise fan so I might have given them one more vote, but alas...
Lee
Tossing It Out
Ah... we are so careful not offend anyone these days.
I'm seriously thinking about devoting more of my blog to just outright being offensive.
Seriously.
Tuesday, November 25th, 2014
Dear Dolorah (Donna),
I 'm so glad I found your new blog!! Thank you so much for visiting my November post for IWSG. You were first commenter and have received an extra link back here.
I can really sympathise with you about two things: 1- Having to move to a new blog and losing everything you have collected on the old blog (that happened to me a couple of years ago and I lost all of my 187 followers/friends, because of a virus attack on my blog); 2 - Being out-of-work, paying work in your living and breathing offline-life.
I have recently sent off four applications to different kinds of jobs that I am not really suited for and probably will not get. The competition is fierce and I am a little too old. (I m definitely too old to work at McDonald's turning hamburgers.)
But my daughter has a school friend who is Chinese and speaks Mandarin. This girl's parents are really wonderful people who speak amazingly good Swedish. The girl's mother works as an interpreter and thinks that I should apply to be an interpreter in English. She's really sweet and gave me the address where she gets her assignments. So I have promised her to check it out. (The lesson here being to not leave any stones unturned.)
I don't think I will get a job as an interpreter -- everybody here thinks they know English. It would be different if I knew Mandarin or Arabic or even Finnish (which is our closest neighboring language, but does not belong to the family of Indo-European languages) or Urdu or Spanish.
My heart goes out to Donna. You are such a talented writer. But we all need to pay bills. So good luck on your job-hunting. (Keep your fingers crossed for me, too.)
Best wishes,
Anna
Post a Comment