Following Blogs

In all my brainstorming, I wandered into another thought I've been meaning to get input on...

How do you see blogs you follow? I mean, I know I follow people and I (used) to try and visit anyone who commented on my blog, but I also know there are blog rolls and whatnot. Or at least I was thinking there are.

So, this post is a short one today. I'd like to be able to have a list that is right in my face of blogs I follow so that I can remember to go check them out every time there's a new post. Is there a way I can do that? Do you have some sort of system for making sure you check blogs you follow? Any pointers, ideas, links, sites, suggestions, anything at all, pass it to me if you will please.

Thanks for taking the time for this short and simple, yet possibly a little not so simple post. Have a great Monday and I'll see you Wednesday for the first Insecure Writer's Support Group post of the year. :)

So Busy...

I've been such a terrible blogger lately. I've skipped posts and slacked on visiting people and commenting. I also have a couple blog awards that I need to post about.

Unfortunately, today will not be the day for any of that. I'm not going to make up for lack of posting or visiting. I'm so sorry, I do appreciate each of my followers and the blogs I follow.

I'm so busy right now. It's crazy. Critiques, writing, revising, working on my query...Add that to regular non-writer stuff and I'm SO far behind. My plan is to get caught up on everything this weekend so I can get back on track.

Thank you for visiting me, even though I'm slacking. <3

I did post a TAG! this past Thursday if anyone missed it, go check it out. :)

Have a wonderful Saturday everyone. :D

A To Z Reflections

(I've decided to post this earlier than usual so I can put it in the Linky list before I forget ;)

I'm not exactly sure what to reflect on. I enjoyed the challenge, even when I had challenges in my personal life to push through.

I signed up for the A to Z Challenge because I wanted to meet new people and have fun, I did both. I don't have any recommendations for things that could have been done differently by the A to Z team.

Each team member:

Arlee Bird
Damyanti Biswas
Alex J Cavanaugh
Tina Downey
DL Hammons
Jeremy Hawkins
Shannon Lawrence
Matthew MacNish
Elizabeth Mueller
Jenny Pearson
Konstanz Silverbow
Stephen Tremp
Karen Jones Gowen

ALL did an excellent job with promoting, posting, and visiting blogs that were signed up. Thanks team :)

Some people that came by my blog and commented, many of which come back even though the challenge is over. These are awesome people and anyone who has not had a chance to visit them, please do.

• Alex J Cavanaugh was not only my A post, but visited often and always visits me. He's my most loyal follower, thanks Alex for being such an AWESOME Ninja Captain and person. You rock!
• Anna Smith visited during the challenge and she visit other days as well. Thanks for being a great follower :)
• John Teal visited a few times and I've been to his blog (make sure to check it out). Thanks!
• Jeremy visited during the challenge but he's also been around before the challenge. Thanks for following Jeremy, you are AWESOME :)
• Sarah Pearson is someone else who stopped by during the challenge but also came by before that. Thanks Sarah :)
• Tia Bach came by and I know I stopped by her blog a bit. Thanks Tia!
• Cassie Mae, someone who is absolutely AWESOME and so FUN. I'm linking to her blogger profile because she posts on three different blogs and you should check them all out. Thanks Cassie :)
• Jeremy H, one of the hosts of the challenge stopped by a bit, thanks Jeremy :)
• Sabrina came by my blog on challenge posts and non. Thanks Sabrina!
• Heather M Gardner with her awesome blog, btw, came by. Thanks :)
• Jemi came by during the challenge and she comes by other days. I linked to her profile because along with her personal awesome blog, she posts on the awesome From The Write Angle blog. Thanks Jemi!
• Cherie follows my blog, with or without the challenge. Thanks Cherie :)
• Michael Offutt came by and he's awesome too. Check him out. And Thanks Michael!
• Tyrean Martinson stopped by quite a bit. Thanks! :)
• Donna B McNicol came by a lot and commented a lot. Thanks so much Donna, you're awesome! :)
• sjp stopped by frequently and her blog is awesome (especially the challenge posts) check it out. And Thanks for visiting me sjp :)

Okay, I may have missed some people, in fact I know I did. I'm so sorry, you're not really forgotten, there's just so many.

A couple more people I want to talk about specifically:

Alex, who I've already mentioned-Donna B as well. Plus, Coach Teresa O'Neill, Tracy, Karen Walker, Christy. All of these people came by my blog and wished me well when I was sick. Thanks so much for the support. Y'all are AWESOME!!! :D

While I enjoyed many of the A to Z posts, pretty much all that I visited were great. I had two that still stick in my mind...

Heather's 'Stormy the Weather Gnome' was freaking fantastic, I loved it!
Cassie's 'Fears' were AWESOME, hilarious, as well as for real-some of that stuff is on my list.

Heather and Cassie-Y'all are AWESOME!!! :D

(I visited many blogs, so if you're not mentioned, please don't feel left out. I follow quite a few blogs and read posts on my Google Reader, but I'm not always good with clicking to comment. No comment or mention doesn't mean I didn't enjoy your blog or that I don't appreciate you stopping by mine.)

My own posts: I liked them, they were fun, but I had one day when I posted about something that really means a lot to me. Thanks for everyone who came by and read my U post. Anyone who didn't, please if you can take a moment to, I would really appreciate it.

Anyone visiting my blog for the first time, thank you, it's nice to meet you :) And if someone is here and I haven't been to your blog (or even if you aren't sure if I have or not) leave a comment and I'll stop by yours.

I'll participate in the challenge next year and I'll encourage others to as well. It was a fun experience and I look forward to the next one. I think I will work out a theme next year, as long as it doesn't interfere with my schedule ;)

Thanks again to the A to Z team and thanks again to all of my visitors.

Happy Reflecting :)

Zzzzz

Zealous Zs Zing, Zig, (&) Zag

So, I named this post Zzzzz because it's the end. The challenge is over, now we can all take a breather and relax. No need to get the posts up on time or make sure we hop around to a few blogs everyday. While I will miss the challenge, it's still a bit of relief.

Okay, I'll still be making sure I have posts up on time(because this is my weird OCD and I have to post at a certain time just because) and I'll still be hopping around blogs. But...well, I don't know that there is a 'but' other than-it's over.

Are you happy it's over? Are you going to be in withdraw come tomorrow? Will you continue to find new blogs with the Linky list? Did you meet lots of new people? Find some awesome blogs? Find some blogs you thought were the weirdest thing out there? Boring blogs?

I had fun, and I met new people, and found some interesting blogs. Thanks to everyone for visiting me, hope you stick around after the challenge. :)

Happy Zzzzz-ing :)

The Versatile Blogger Award

I have to post twice today, but it's worth it...I got my first blog award, YAY!

I was just hanging out, working on revisions when all of the sudden I get a message on Twitter from @geekytendency. It said there was something for me on his blog. So, I go to it and what was there?

So, thanks Jeremy :) Everyone, go check out his blog. He talks about some pretty fun stuff over there.

I have a few instructions, they go like so:

1. Create a post for the Versatile Blogger Award.


2. In the same post, thank the blogger who gave you the award and put a link back to their blog.


3. Nominate 15 other people for this award and let them know.

4. Post seven random things about yourself.

5. Include these rules in your post.

So, here are my Seven Random Things:


1. I am a very, very loyal person. And I mean, LOYAL. If I care about someone or something in any kind of way, it takes a string of major things to break my loyalty to that person or thing.

2. I sing. I even had a group in middle and high school, but we never went anywhere. I rap a little too. And I can for real sing, not just that-I think I can, but I really sound like a sick howling dog. My passion is writing though, which is why I don't try to make anything of my singing.

3. In middle school, I pierced my own belly button (with a safety pin) it hurt. What hurt even worse though was when a 'friend' of mine ripped it out. Ouch.

4. When I was three, my next door neighbor's dog bit me on my nose and I had to go to the ER. When I was 5, a kid pushed me off the merry-go-round at school, busted my head open and I had to get 5 stitches. On my sixth birthday, I was riding my bike and crashed it. I knocked my front tooth out and had to have a false tooth for a year or so. When I was around 7 years old, my sister shut my finger in the sliding door on my moms' van. I broke my wrist when I was 9. I cracked my collar bone when I was 13. My neighbor gave me a black eye from a snowball when I was around 14...I'm just a tad bit accident prone.

5. From September to April/May I consume a total of about 3-4 pots of coffee. Strong coffee. In the other months I consume about 11/2-2 pots. But that's because I switch to tea and can't even count how much of that I drink-it's a lot though. And I still find room to fit at least 1/2 gallon of water a day.

6. I have long hair-like down to my butt long. And I am so attached to it that I cannot cut it. Even in the summer months when it gets so hot and sticky here in Oklahoma, I will not cut my hair. Not even a trim, though I know it needs it. When I do convince myself to trim it, I cry-yep, I cry for the loss of my hair.

7. I used to hate You Tube and still don't care much for it. BUT I am obsessed with Goopery. It's a vlog by a guy named Luke, and it's funny. I love it. He even has a side channel now-Gooperdom, and I love that one too.

I went through my reader and picked at random. I love all the blogs I follow, so I wasn't sure who to pick. Some of you may already have this award, sorry to repeat, but hey-nothing wrong with having the same award more than once, right? Anyway, here's my fifteen:

Joey F
E.M. Labonte
Dean C. Rich
Jacqueline Gardner
Jean Oram
Jemi Fraser
Alex Cavanaugh
C.K. Bryant
Michael Offutt
Cherie
DL Hammons
Tiffany M.
Riley Redgate
Jayne D
Bloggit Write


Happy Awarding! :)

To Do List: Blog

Oh I know, I know-not everyone blogs-right? Why?!?!

Blog:


I love to read writers blogs. I didn't used to. In fact it's only been about a year since I started reading blogs. I read them all the time now though. Blogging helps us connect with other writers, with other people like ourselves, other people who share our interests.

It's hard to find time to blog, but you should still do it. With all the scheduling options, it makes it even easier. For instance, I'm writing this post on March 4, but you are just now reading it today, March 12. I have a little time right now, so that's why I'm writing a few posts in advance. I do have other posts on my blog that I don't always schedule, or that I don't schedule very far in advance. The point is, blogging helps you gain an audience, so you should find a way to do it. I'm not telling you to, just suggesting. And the way you mark Blog of the to do, is find free time in your schedule to fit it in. Write some posts in advance and schedule them to post at different times. Also, make a blogging plan. Figure out what you want to talk about and how often you want to post. I post everyday because that's what I want to do. Some people post 3 days a week, some only once a week. Just decide what works best for you and do it.

Aren't these short posts nice :p

Happy Blogging :)

To Do List: Learn

We're still going strong and everyone is having an easier time checking things off their to do. So here's the next thing up, and this one doesn't always have to come daily.

LEARN:


Now, of course we all hope to learn something everyday (or at least several times a week). However, what I'm talking about here is learning in respect to your craft-writing. There are so many things we need to know and it never stops. The business, agents, publishers, how to's, and the list goes on and on. If you are a writer who writes with the desire that your books will be published for others to read-then you have to learn the business.

Websites, other writers, blogs, books, etc. are all tools for learning. We use them, we need them, and we must find the time to do it. Learning takes up a lot of time, and I know it's hard to check it off. We want to write, that's why we are writers. But if you want to go somewhere with your writing, you have to learn. You have to go to sites like Agent Query and learn about how the publishing business works, learn about what agents want, learn how to write that beautiful-agent grabbing query. Go to blogs like From The Write Angle and learn from people who have been there and done that-real, genuine people who were once in your shoes-writing with hopes that one day they will have published work for the world to read. Don't forget to go to writer communities like Agent Query Connect and learn from people just like you-what they do and don't do, what has worked and what hasn't. And you have to go to blogs by other writers, like Alex J Cavanaugh's blog and C.K. Bryant's blog who are both published authors that are also normal people, who have been there and understand what it's like. Their posts can be teaching posts without that being the original intent. It will help you learn something, without feeling like it's a "lesson". But make sure you go to blogs from writers who have not been published yet, they can teach you things too. (Like E.M LaBonte's Blog and Terri Bruce's Blog)

The point is-writers have to learn about the writing world. It is not always an easy thing to work into your day (or week), but it's important if you are planning on actually doing something with what you write. The fact that we can learn from various things, makes it easier to mark Learn off the to do. You can learn while you're connecting, or you can go somewhere looking for a specific topic, but however you do it-DO IT. Time to learn can vary, depending on what exactly you are learning, but work it in. There have been plenty of times I have learned something in less than 10 minutes or even in the time it took me to read a blog post. It can be done quickly if you don't have a lot of time to squeeze it in. But if you want writing to be more than a hobby, find the time to do it.

I know my posts are beginning to sound the same- Just find the time, because you need to-but that's really what each thing on your to do comes down to. You need to do these things, so do them.

Happy Learning :)

Something Sunday

Well, here's my first something Sunday. I love to talk about things I like. Books, blogs, websites, and more. Today I'm going to give a shout out to The Write Angle Blog. Their Twitter page is @WriteAngleBlog and you can email them: fromthewriteangle[at]gmail[dot]com.

I love this blog, I frequent it, follow it, tweet and retweet about it. The people on there are awesome, and so are their tips and what not. Everything about that blog is great. Every writer should follow it, talk about it, read it, etc.

Contributors:

R.S. Mellette. You can find him on Twitter @RSMellette
Calista Taylor: She tweets @calistataylor and she blogs at A Steampunk Reverie.
Mindy McGinnis (AKA BBC or Big Black Cat): She meows @bigblackcat97.
R.C. Lewis: Find her on Twitter @RC_Lewis.
Jemi Fraser: She's on Twitter @jemifraser.
Matt Sinclair: Find him @Elephantguy68.
Darke Conteur: She tweets @Darke_Conteur.
Lucy Marsden: I don't have a blog or website for her, but she does tweet @LucyMarsden.
Robert Lewis: He tweets @robertklewis and he can be found over at Criminal Element too.
Pete Morin: On Tiwtter @petermorin.
J. Lea Lopez: She's also on Twitter @JLeaLopez.
Sophie Perinot: Find her on Twitter @Lit_Gal.
Brenda Carre: Twitter @brenda_carre. (I have her links although she hasn't been active on her website or Twitter in a while. You could still check her out though)
Jean Oram: Jean is the newest member to the blog. And she definitely knows how to keep busy. She's on Twitter @jeanoram for witerly things and @KidsPlay for kids stuff. She also has a site for her Kids Play stuff: It's All Kids Play.

Whew, that's a lot of names/links up there. Please check out all those wonderful people. They are truly fabulous. Don't forget to visit the Write Angle Blog PLUS each of the contributors blogs/sites/twitters or whatever. Many of those names up there also have books out, &/or books coming out very soon. Make sure you keep an eye out for their books.

Their writing his great, their tips are useful/helpful, they are nice people who take the time to write the tips they put up on the blog-so be nice and take the time to check 'em out. I know, I know, I just keep saying the same things, but really-I love their blog! I can't say it enough: Go, Go, GO It'll be worth your time. Because even if you don't need their writing expertise, you can still find plenty of useful things at their individual blogs. BUT Check out the Write Angle Blog and their individual blogs-don't leave one out because you think it doesn't pertain to you.

Okay, I'm done. CLICK THE LINKS NOW! I wasn't yelling, not really. It's more I'm just very enthusiastic about things that are worthy. :D

Happy Sunday! :)

Thursday TAG! - Blog Hopping Meme

Something happened yesterday tat gave me an idea for my Thursday slot. I will be coming up with questions for various people. The questions will not be the same for everyone and I will have to make sure they are willing to do it. Then each Thursday I will post them. It will be my Thursday TAG!

To kick it off, I'm doing this blog hopping meme. I was tagged by E.M. LaBonte, to do this, so, my answers are below and I've tagged some people also. And if you're reading this and you were not specifically tagged-you are tagged now. Just copy and paste the questions below to your blog, answer the questions, and tag seven (or more) people. If I didn't tag you by putting your blog at the bottom and you would like me to put you on my tagged list, leave a comment with your blog address and I will add it in. :)

Blog Hopping Meme


1. What is your dream vacation?
Hang on just a sec, let me go look up this word 'vacation' :p  For real though, I haven't been on a vacation in about seven years. However, since we are dreaming here, I would love to travel in general. Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Poland, Canada, various places throughout the U.S. and I'm sure if I really thought about it I could come up with a lot more places.

2. Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan ahead?
I consider myself to be both. Everyone is always joking about my To Do List that I write out everyday-sometimes several different ones in a day. So, obviously I do plan ahead. However, I also tend to do things that are not in my plans.

3. Tell us one thing you want to do but don't dare do it.
Only one? Because I'm sure I could think of a few things. But, if only one, I'd say mountain climbing. I think it would be so fun, but I am afraid of heights and I'm afraid to put myself into a position that could be so dangerous.

4. What's your biggest phobia?
There is a tie for this one. I'm always scared of losing my kids in any kind of way. And I'm scared of screwing up in raising them. I don't think I'm a bad mom, but I always worry if I'm doing everything right.

5. If you were stranded on a desert island-what three things would you want with you? (Not including laptop or family)
Logically, I would say a boat, and I don't know what else. But then I over analyze this question and think-if I'm stranded does that mean I couldn't save myself if I had a boat? So, I'll say, 1 package of pencils (:p), 1 box of paper (:p), and a pencil sharpener. I write, a lot, so I think I'd be good with that.

6. Name three blessings in your life.
My family, being alive in general, Faith. It's really hard to only name three, I have many blessings that I'm very thankful for.

7. What was your nickname in high school?
I didn't have a nickname that every single person used. But, Kandi or Kandi Kane was a nickname majority of my friends called me. It came from a boyfriend in middle school, and then it just stuck after we broke up.

8. If you could meet the President of the United States, what would you say to him?
I don't think y'all want to spend that much time on my blog....LOL no, for real. One thing I would say is-why don't we have a biracial/multiracial option on forms? I mean, some places put it on forms, but not many and no government forms I've ever filled out have it as an option. My kids are Black, White, and Indian and I never mark only one race. Even places that want me to, I tell them no-I won't do it. They are all three, and I will not just pick one because that's how the forms are written. There should be an option for what race they are-or some way to input each race they are. Just saying...

9. If you could be any literary character for a day, who would you be?
There are so many great ones, I couldn't pick. I don't think I would want to anyway. My life may be crazy, but even one day away from the madness and my kids would be sad.

10. What is your favorite quote?
Being the quote-aholic that I am, I don't have one favorite. I like this one: "I can resist everything expect for temptation." and this one: "I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word I am saying." These are both by Oscar Wilde I do believe.

Okay here's my list:

Caterina Torres
Kristen H Davis
Jacqueline Gardner
Ali Cross
Jean Oram(She also has a great site for people who have kids, nieces/nephews, grand kids or any kids in their lives Kids Play you should check that one out as well. Though I am not tagging her kids play blog :)
Jeremy
Joey Francisco
Alex J Cavanaugh
Angie Sandro

Yeah, I know, I tagged more than seven people, but honestly I had to make myself stop here or I would've tagged about twenty or more. So, there's my list, check 'em out. And for those tagged, go post your meme-can't wait to read what everyone has to say :) Don't forget, just because your name isn't on my list, doesn't mean you can't participate.

Just copy and paste these questions to your blog and don't forget to tag seven other people :):

1. What is your dream vacation?
2. Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan ahead?
3. Tell us one thing you want to do but don't dare do it.
4. What's your biggest phobia?
5. If you were stranded on a desert island-what three things would you want with you? (Not including your laptop or family)
6. Name three blessings in your life.
7. What was your nickname in High School?
8. If you could meet the President of the United States, what would you say to him?
9. If you could be any literary character, who would you be?
10. What is your favorite quote?

Happy Hopping :D

Something Sunday

I wrote my first book review Sunday Feb. 5 on Calista Taylor's Viridis. It was exciting to talk about a book I read, and how much I loved it; to recommend a book to others; and most of all, to promote a fellow writer. I decided then, that the first Sunday of every month I will post a book review. My next review will be on  Sunday, March 4 over Ashfall by Mike Mullin. I have not finished the book just yet, but so far I'm enjoying it and can't wait to write that review as well.

This morning, I was thinking about my blog. Right now, I have a blog series happening every Monday and Wednesday where I focus on conquering the To Dos of a Writer's busy life. Every Tuesday and Friday is when I post my poetry (although I am thinking about opening it up to other writers as well. Where they could post a very short story or a poem-something like that). And as I stated above, the first Sunday of every month will be a book review. But that leaves the rest of the Sundays of the month, as well as Thursdays and Saturdays. I know I don't have to post every single day, but I want to, so.

I'm throwing around some ideas for Thursdays to be guest post day. Get some other writers and non writers to write up a post of their choice for my blog. I haven't gotten my idea for it all the way set, so it's not happening yet, but that's what I really would like. And for Saturday, I think I'm going to make a recap of my week sort of thing.

Now-what about Sundays that have nothing, right? Yes, that's right, those poor singled out all alone Sundays. Well, those days will be for recommending and promoting. I will talk about books, blogs, websites, and everything inbetween. I have tons of ideas for what I want to post. If you have anything you want me to recommend/promote or whatever: A book, blog, site-ANYTHING; leave a comment on this post, email me, Tweet me, find me however you want-Here's My Contact Info. (FYI if you have a book you'd like me to review, you can contact me for my book review Sunday as well)

My Something Sunday will kick off on Sunday, Feb 26. Come back and check it out. And don't forget to let me know if you have something specific you want me to talk about :)

Happy Sunday!