|
So many writers are interested in getting started freelance writing. They want to know if there is an easy way or how do they take their first steps. One of the places I will point every writing to is Make a Living Writing. Carol Tice, who earns six figures a year freelancing, started this site to help other freelancers. To me, this is the best place to get started. There are over 1200 articles to peruse for the beginner all the way up to the advanced writer. So if you're interested in taking the step toward freelancing, this should be your first stop.
0 Comments
And that change is brought about by a hard decision I decided to make regarding my writing. As much as I love writing books, my focus doesn't seem to be there anymore. I can get started, but then I lose steam halfway through and can't drum up the energy or desire to go back. But I'm always excited to write an an entertainment article, an essay, a writing article, or a short literary piece. So that tells me that, for now, I need to give my complete focus to that.
Mostly likely, I will be changing my website around to highlight this focus. Does this mean I'm totally abandoning my books that have been published? No. They will remain available for purchase, but there won't be any new releases unless they are novellas. There will be no book-length fiction in the foreseeable future. I don't know when or if that will change. But I'm happy where my writing is taking me right now, and that is more important than struggling to write something I have no interest in! For the past seven years I have tried to get my work accepted by a literary magazine or site. No joy. Most of the time, I didn't even receive a rejection, and the silence was deafening. Literary fiction isn't easy to write, and I know that's the reason why I hadn't succeeded yet. So I kept trying.
Finally, my determination paid off, and I sold a short piece of literary fiction to Short Edition, which calls itself a new kind of literary pulse. This description is taken directly from their website. Short Édition aims to raise literary awareness, encourage new and emerging writers, and highlight the importance and timelessness of literature. And if you click on the link above "a short piece," you can read my story for free. I hope you enjoy a part of my dream. Those of you who've been following this blog for a while know that I write every day whether it's a blog post, a page on my latest work-in-progress, an essay, or a post for Red Shirts Always Die. It's a goal I set for myself way back in 2012, and nine years in, I'm still writing every day. But what I write has changed so drastically.
When I set that goal, I was focusing on fiction mainly. Now, I don't write as much fiction as I do non-fiction, although I do keep a work-in-progress at all times. I try to write at least two different things a night like a few pages on a manuscript and a blog post. That doesn't always work out which is why I haven't updated this blog since December 7th. Ugh. I'm working on a schedule that will help me get things back in order. So hopefully, this blog won't be in dry dock for much longer! On a side note, I rewatched some of Dawson's Creek last night. It's been so long that I've forgotten most of the series, but Joshua Jackson has just gotten better looking with age!  s I said in my last post, I'm always interested in learning. I'm just as interested in trying. I'll try most things at least once to see if it's something I'll like. For instance, I rode in a roller coaster once. Didn't like it, and I wouldn't do it again. I tried sushi. Never again. I took a painting class, and one was enough. And the list goes on.
There are so many things I want to try in the coming year, and hopefully, it'll be a much safer and open year so I'll have the opportunities! I want to test-drive a Porsche. take a ride on the Orient Express. take a ride in a hot air balloon. go to an observatory sleep out under the stars go back to Las Vegas learn to shoot a bow & arrow go back to Biltmore House Will I do all of these things in 2021? Probably not, but it's fun thinking and planning. And there are plenty of other things on the list that I will, most likely, get to do. I'm always interested in learning new things. I don't think I'll ever get enough of learning. Sometimes, when I'm doing research for a book, I'll learn how to do something, and it's like an ah-ha moment for me. Like "that's how you do that!" I love it.
I take a lot of online classes and watch a lot of Youtube videos to teach myself new things. This year, I learned how to use a new graphics program, and I've been using it non-stop now. I've also continued my Spanish studies, and I started learning Danish because I'm fascinated by Danish culture. And I learned even more about building websites, SEO, and affiliate advertising. There's another graphics program I want to learn, and I've already found the class for it that I can start next year. I want to start a small garden on my back porch so I'll need to take a class on that. I want to learn more about the fascinating city I live in (Charleston, SC), and I've become fascinated even more with astronomy since I started writing for RedShirtsAlwaysDie.com. So I'll probably take a class on that, too. A beginner's class! Is there anything you're hoping to learn next year? Some of these might not be able to happen, depending on restrictions in different cities, but here goes anyway.
And we're off on another quick blogging challenge! I like doing these when I feel like I've been in a blogging rut. Today, the challenge is something I've accomplished that I'm proud of. This one is an easy one for me as I've recently had an essay published in the New York Times!  I can remember years ago when I first started writing, I dreamed of seeing my name in what I called "the big leagues." The New York Times is the big leagues to me, and I made it. I'm not kidding myself that I've "made it." But I am proud of this accomplishment as it's always better to be moving forward than backward!
 'm sure if you've been following me a while you've noticed that I'm bouncing around a lot with the things I write, especially in the past two years or so. Once upon a time, I focused solely on writing fiction, but I reached a point where I was having to force the words, and I wasn't enjoying it anymore. Writing was a chore.
Enter articles. I could write several of these a week and still my goal of writing every day. Along with those, I began to write essays and short stories, and I got more involved with writing posts about television and movies for sites like Movie Pilot (now defunct), Hidden Remote, and now Red Shirts Always Die. It was refreshing not to have to worry about plot holes and characterization. Recently, my first fiction novella in 2 1/2 years released, and I'm working on a second one now. I'm back in the groove of fiction writing, but I don't know when I'll return to full-length novels. Right now, I'm enjoying writing various things, and I don't have to force any of the words. Writers write, and that's what I'm doing. I wrote all of this to say, if you're a writer, write whatever you feel like writing. Don't push yourself to write what just isn't in you. I did that for too long, and I almost stepped away from writing altogether. I'm glad, instead, I decided to spread the words I write out over a multitude of avenues.  I shared the news a few months ago about my becoming a contributor to Red Shirts Always Die which is a division of Fansided.com that is dedicated to all things Star Trek. Well, I was recently invited to become a co-expert on the site as well as a contributor.
This will give me more opportunities to write for the site as well as giving me a say in the type of content that gets posted. I'm really excited about this because writing for this site has been nothing but a pleasure. It's a great creative outlet and has even spurred me on to writing science fiction short stories as well as novels. I hope you'll visit the site, especially if you're a Star Trek fan. We'll keep you up-to-date on the latest happenings with Star Trek, and we'll share trivia, opinions, blasts from the past, theories, and so much more. If you're like I am and can't get enough of this franchise, stop by! |
AuthorMy thoughts, experiences, challenges, and goals. Right here. At least once a week or so. Oh, and opinions, too. Those will definitely come in. Join me! Archives
March 2021
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed