Just a note to let you know that the shingles virus has transitioned into postherpetic neuralgia. My eye is healing beautifully, but the burning pain due to damaged nerves throughout the right side of my head is presenting quite a challenge and can last for months. I am still unable to read or do much at all, so my writing is almost at a standstill.
I hope to be able to resume blogging in a few weeks.
I have always wanted my historical novel, The Spanish Coin, to be published by a publishing house. That desire was based on my thinking that would be a stamp of approval for my writing skills. Being published by a publishing house would validate me as an author.
My thoughts have changed recently. The publishing business is changing so fast that self-publishing is becoming more acceptable. I’m not getting any younger, the road to securing the services of a literary agent and eventually (maybe) getting my manuscript picked up by a publisher, and something like 18 months later seeing the book in print make me rethink things.
My main reason for writing is not to make money; however, reaching the point where my income from writing escalates from the Internal Revenue Service categorizing it as a “hobby” to recognizing it as my profession would be rewarding. The royalties earned by self-publishing appear to far exceed those paid by publishing houses.
I write because I’m compelled to do so. As a child, I kept diaries. Diaries in the early 1960s only provided a space approximately one inch by three inches for each day’s comments. I quickly outgrew that format and took to using notebook paper. That way I could write as much as I wanted to each day. I kept such a journal during middle and high school, some during college, and sporadically throughout my adult life. It always surprises me when I hear someone say they don’t like to write. I can’t imagine!
The fact that the self-published author has to do his own marketing is often labeled a detriment when writers list the pros and cons of that route, but the other side of the coin is that the author has full control over getting the word out about his book. Although my vintage postcard book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, was published by a history book publisher, most of the marketing of the book fell on my shoulders.
The more I read about self-publishing, the more I think it just might be the way for me to go. Before I make that decision, though, I must do some research to determine how readers of historical fiction prefer their books. Do they prefer e-books or traditional books? If they prefer e-books, I must research all my self-publishing options — which already seems like comparing apples to oranges — so I can make an educated decision.
Like so many facets of the business of writing, sorting through all the options of publishing can feel overwhelming. For now, I need to concentrate on finishing The Spanish Coin and getting it professionally edited.
I plan to blog about my progress on my novel the end of every month.
Janet
King’s Mountain: A Ballad Novel, by Sharyn McCrumb was this month’s selection for discussion by Rocky River Readers Book Club. I looked forward to reading it. I even checked it out from the library, but I didn’t get it read. After sitting in on the discussion a couple of hours ago, though, I will definitely read it. After all, historical fiction is my first love, and I had ancestors who took part in the Battle of King’s Mountain on October 7, 1780. In fact, they lived within shouting distance of the battle.
Sharyn McCrumb is meticulous when it comes to doing the historical research to back up her novels. I had the pleasure of hearing her speak in Wilkesboro, North Carolina several years ago, and I was tremendously impressed with the depth of her research. She sets the bar high for would-be historical fiction writers like me.
The majority of King’s Mountain: A Ballad Novel gives the history of what led up to this battle of the American Revolution and personal stories of people who actually participated in the battle or supported those people. The Americans who took part in the battle were farmers who made up various companies of militia. They were up against Gen. Patrick Ferguson and his British troops under the command of General Cornwallis. Ferguson is remembered for his harsh treatment of American patriots.
Although the Redcoats took a position on the mountain, the militiamen won the battle and set things in motion for another Cornwallis defeat at Guilford Courthouse the following spring and the surrender of the British at Yorktown.
The discussion at the book club meeting really piqued my interest in the book for all the interesting personal stories about the participants in the Battle of King’s Mountain, such as Mary Patton making gunpowder; Ferguson having a chance to shoot George Washington but, thinking he would have a chance on the battlefield, deciding to wait; and Davy Crockett’s connection with Gov. John Sevier of Tennessee. The discussion also makes me want to visit the King’s Mountain National Battlefield again.
On another note, everything I read about blogging tells me that I need to do it on a schedule, as in at the same time on the same day(s) of the week. I’m making an effort to blog on Mondays and Fridays. Doing it at the same time? That will be a work in progress!
Janet
April 23, 2016 is World Book and Copyright Day. Thank goodness our creative work is protected by copyright laws! Some people will, of course, find ways to use another’s work and claim it as their own. The author does, however, have recourse through the court system when infractions are discovered. I’ve never had to go that route. I’m sure it’s a hassle. Expense is always involved when you have to sue someone.
The closest I’ve come to such a problem was after my sister and I published three genealogy books in 1996. A religious organization based in Utah asked us for permission to put all the information from our books online. We were floored! We had just sunk thousands of dollars into getting 500 hardcover copies of each book printed and knew it would take us years to recoup our money, so our answer was an unequivocal, “No!” We were just glad they asked us before they acted.
There was also a case a few years ago when I was asked to write an article for a genealogical society’s quarterly journal. I was flattered and thrilled to do so. After preparing the journal for printing, the editor was kind enough to send me a copy of my article to proofread. Imagine my shock when I discovered that she had added sentences here and there without indicating they were editor’s notes. It wouldn’t have been so bad if the information she had added had been true, but none of it was! When I called her on it, she said the content she had added had been assumptions. Since she did not see that she had done anything wrong, I pulled my article from her publication. It is a respected journal, so it saddens me now to know that nothing in it can be trusted. The editor was not claiming my work as her own, but my credibility as a writer and a historian would have been tarnished if the misinformation she inserted in my article had been published.
On April 5, 2016 Janice Wald of the blog, MostlyBlogging.com, shared a guest post by Kathleen Aherne. Ms. Ahearne’s website is called “The Blogger’s Lifestyle,” and her blog’s address is http://www.kathleenaherne.com/the-blog/. Her April 5 blog is a good source for the basics about copyright and plagiarism as those issues pertain to writing a blog. The post addresses images as well as the written word.
Unless an article or book is identified as fiction, we trust the author or editor. Once that trust is broken, it can never be completely restored.
Until next time,
Janet
A few months ago I started keeping a writer’s notebook of itms that could help me in my own writing. The notebook is divided into various sections, including “First Lines of Novels,” “Agents, Editors, etc.,” “Blog Post Ideas,” “Notes from Author Interviews I Saw or Read,” and “Lines I Like.” I’m doing my first writer’s notebook. My biggest challenge is guessing at how many pages to allot to each section.
First Lines of Novels
In the “First Lines of Novels” section I write down the opening sentence or paragraph from every book I read. Some of them make me think, I wish I’d thought of that!
Literary Agents, Editors, etc.
Occasionally, in the acknowledgements page, a novelist reveals the name of their literary agent or editor. I try to make a note of those names, especially if the book is historical fiction.
Notes from Author Interviews
When I hear an author being interviewed on National Public Radio (NPR) or see one being interviewed on TV (usually on PBS – the Public Broadcasting System) by Charlie Rose or Tavis Smiley, I grab a pen and paper so I’m ready to jot down a quote, an idea, a recommendation, or a book name that piques my interest. The University of North Carolina public TV system (UNC-TV) has a weekly program called “Bookwatch” that features interviews with North Carolina writers. I especially enjoyed Lee Smith’s February 25, 2016 appearance on that show and her comments about her new book, Dimestore: A Writer’s Life. I read the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. I could hear Ms. Smith’s lovely Southern accent in my head as I read it.
Blog Post Ideas
This section is self-explanatory, but I find my writer’s notebook is a good place to write down blog post ideas. If I don’t write down ideas immediately, chances are I won’t remember them later.
Lines I Like
When I happen upon an unusually beautiful, humorous, or well-written passage in a book, I write it down in this section of my notebook. These are phrases, sentences, or paragraphs I want to read over and over again. I note the author’s name and the name of the book, of course.
I’ll end this post with a selection from that portion of my notebook:
“Their recent conversations skipped like stones across the surface of their lives, never finding depth, never touching the trouble that had been visited upon Alexander.” ~ The Guise of Another, a novel by Allen Eskens.
Janet Morrison
It’s been an interesting four days since my last blog post. Today’s post is (as the title suggestions) an update on my adventures in sorting out social media. I’m a writer, not an IT person.
For those of you who follow me on Facebook, you already know I’ve made no progress there. I’m finding it a challenge to share articles I find online on my Janet Morrison, Writer Facebook page. It is secondary to my personal page. Sometimes I’m given the option of sharing on either page, but usually my only choice is to share on my personal page. Also, when I try to install a Facebook button on my blog, it takes you to my personal page. I don’t want to merge my two pages, but that might be my only option.
I’ve made a point to pin to several of my Pinterest boards every day. Instead of being satisfied to just pin quotes about writing to my “The Writing Life” board, I’m making a concerted effort to find more substantive and helpful articles about the craft of writing. Since April 4 my Pinterest followers have increased from 32 to 40. That’s not a huge number, but it’s 25% — which sounds better. I wrote a nonfiction vintage postcard book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina in 2014. I hope my “Blue Ridge Mountains” and “Great Smoky Mountains” boards will result in some book sales. I invite you to follow me or my boards you find of interest at http://www.pinterest.com/janet5049.
I’ve had a Twitter account for longer than I care to remember, but I’ve hesitated to use it. There! I’ve said it! I have retweeted 14 tweets and sent five original tweets all in the last eight days. I’m still a little in the dark about hashtags. I’m following 51 people and 14 are following me. I’m resisting the temptation to check out Twitter for Dummies from the library after my less than stellar experience with I-Phones for Dummies.
Blogger Networking
One encouraging thing that has resulted from my plunging deeper into social media this week is that I was contacted by a fellow blogger who is also writing a book and dealing with some of the same social media issues I’m struggling with. #MyNameIsJamie @Sonni_quick gave me some wisdom from her experience and we commiserated about our mutual shortcomings when it comes to building our platforms online. It was reassuring to find out I’m not the only person feeling my way through the maze of social media of tweets, Facebook, blogs, etc.; however, Sonni is ahead of me on the learning curve.
Summary
It felt good to make some progress this week after a couple of nonproductive months, I have also found encouragement and inspiration in the poetry, prose, and articles shared by the bloggers I follow.
My Next Blog
In my next blog on April 18, I plan to write about the writer’s notebook I keep. See you then!
Janet Morrison
In my blog post a couple of days ago, I wrote about being nominated for the Liebster Award. One of the requirements was that I post 10 random facts about myself. I put that off until today, for reasons that will become more clear when you read my list. I have tried to keep my limited energy a secret from my readers, but it is time to “come clean.”
1. I have what is called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) in the United States but is known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) in the rest of the world. My energy and stamina are limited, and my memory problems and mental fog make my research and writing tedious and time consuming. I often feel as if I live in a vat of molasses. Nothing comes easily.
2. I started working on the manuscript of my proposed historical novel, The Spanish Coin, in 2005. I am still tweaking it.
3. As a young adult, I was a “fiction snob.” I thought there was nothing to learn or gain by reading fiction. You can imagine how shocked my sister was when, at the age of 48 in 2001, I told her that I had registered for a fiction writing class! That’s when I started learning to write fiction.
4. Although my appearance, manner, and personality give the impression that I am conservative, I am a liberal when it comes to politics.
5. After wanting to play the Appalachian lap dulcimer since first being introduced to the instrument as a college freshman, I finally purchased one and attended a four-day dulcimer workshop in 2010. Due to random fact #1, I still don’t play well and probably never will; however, I do play for my own enjoyment. I often listen to dulcimer music while I write. (I’m listening to some as I write this blog post.)
6. I live on land that has been in my family since the 1760s.
7. I sleep in a bed that my father made of pine from our land in the 1940s.
8. I wish I could sing.
9. I could drive a tractor before I was old enough to drive a car.
10. Taking the fiction writing course and attending the dulcimer workshop were life-changing experiences for me, and I will forever be grateful that I got out of my comfort zone and took advantage of both opportunities.
No matter your age, stretch yourself and follow your dreams. What do you have to lose?
Thank you, philipcraddock.wordpress.com for nominating me for the Liebster Award! Please take a look at the Philip Craddock Writing Portfolio blog. Philip writes short stories, poetry, and songs.
If you are unfamiliar with the Liebster Award, you can read all about it at theglobalaussie.com. In a nutshell, the purpose of the award is to connect with bloggers and discover new blogs, particularly those of us with fewer than 200 followers.
My favorite blog
In keeping with the rules of the Liebster Award, I want to tell you a little about my favorite blog, https://journeywithsarah.wordpress.com/. In this blog, Sarah’s mother chronicles her teenage daughter’s journey as she battles cancer.
Sarah and her mother show remarkable courage and positivity even as they know the teen’s time is limited. Sarah has fearlessly tried every treatment her oncologists have recommended. Some have worked for a short while. Others have been less successful. In the midst of all her pain and physical weakness, though, Sarah has persevered and lived each day to the fullest.
Sarah’s mother shows that same upbeat attitude and faith in God. I can’t imagine how difficult it is for a parent to hear that his or her child has cancer and then remain positive throughout the child’s battle.
What an example Sarah and her mother set for us! I only hope if the day comes that I am faced with an adversary as cruel as cancer, that I will live life as graciously as Sarah.
Random facts about me
Liebster Award nominees are asked to list 10 random facts about themselves in their post about the award. I’m working on that and plan to share those facts in my next blog post in a few days.
Blogs I follow
Another requirement of the Liebster Award is that nominees must nominate five or as many as 10 other bloggers for the award. Taking a look at the blogs I follow, I see that I don’t know how many followers most of them have, but I imagine they all exceed the 200 followers limit. In my next blog post, you will learn why I simply don’t have enough energy to contact each one of them to determine how many followers they have. I regret that I cannot fulfill this element of the award rules. I will simply list my favorite blogs and invite you to check them out. They are as follows:
Questions presented to me by Philip Craddock:
1. What is your favourite poem? “If,” by Rudyard Kipling
2. What is your biggest regret? That I waited until middle age to start writing.
3. Which country would you most like to visit/visit again? Scotland!
4. What is your favourite dessert? plain cheesecake
5. If you could travel back in time to any point in history, what time period would you visit? The 1770s.
6. If you were a superhero, what would your superhero name & your superpower be? This is way out of my usual consideration, so answering this question is a real challenge. Let’s see…. Janet the Superbird. My superpower would be that I could fly.
7. Do you have any phobias? Snakes!
8. What are your goals for 2016? Publish my historical novel, The Spanish Coin.
9. Not including your own blog, which blog would you most like other people to Follow? https://journeywithsarah.wordpress.com/
10. What motivated you to start blogging? I wanted to share my journey as an author-wannabe, and ultimately build a platform to promote my published books.
11. What is the strangest fact about yourself that you’re willing to admit to? My illness has my circadian clock off by about six hours, which means I’m always out of sync with the rest of my local world.
As required, I am listing the 2016 rules for the Liebster Award as found at http://theglobalaussie.com/.
“Back in 2011 the rules were a simple case of acknowledgement of the nominator and to nominate 5 more. Now in 2016 it is a little more involved!
“If you have been nominated for The Liebster Award AND YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT, write a blog post about the Liebster award in which you:
My energy wanes and it is now the wee hours of the morning here in North Carolina. I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s post as much as I enjoyed writing it. It took me a little out of my comfort zone, which was a good exercise.
Watch for my next blog post in which I will list 10 random facts about myself.
Janet Morrison
It was my privilege in 2001 to take a fiction writing course through the Continuing Education Department at Queens University in Charlotte. The instructor was Judith H. Simpson. Judy was a jewel and a natural-born teacher. She always had time for each of her students, and she organized and moderated the Queens Writers Group — a group that any of her former students were eligible to join.
When I get stuck, bogged down, confused, or just need a little encouragement in my writing life, I can turn to the words Judy left behind in her book (Foundations of Fiction), my notes from her class, e-mails from her that I printed and kept, or postings she made on our yahoo group’s site.
Judy had a way of explaining things in a nutshell and giving examples that clearly illustrated the points she was making. She delighted in seeing her students improve and succeed. I wish Judy were still here to nudge me along to get a literary agent and get my historical novel, The Spanish Coin, published.
It has been my experience that most writers are happy to share what they have learned with those of us who are still just beginning our journeys as writers. If you aspire to be a writer, I hope you will find a writing instructor/mentor like Judy Simpson. Through her class and caring, Judy helped me to take my first steps as a writer. She gave me the confidence to keep putting one foot in front of the other and to keep writing after she was gone. Come to think of it, is that not the true definition of a teacher?
Janet's Writing Blog 