I write southern historical fiction, local history, and I've written a devotional book. The two novels I'm writing are set in Virginia and the Carolinas in the 1760s. My weekly blog started out to follow my journey as a writer and a reader, but in 2025 it has been greatly expanded to include current events and politics in the United States as I see our democracy under attack from within. The political science major in me cannot sit idly by and remain silent.
I’ve had a net loss of three of my 1,297 blog subscribers in the last two weeks. I don’t know why, but I have a hunch it is because I have either stepped on some toes with my criticisms of Trump, or perhaps the individuals who hit the “unsubscribe” button just did not want to read about Trump anymore.
I understand, if they left for either reason. If I thought Donald Trump hung the moon and the stars and was sent by God to save the United States, I wouldn’t want to read my blog either.
Photo by Kaitlyn Baker on Unsplash
If I’m on the verge of a nervous breakdown because of the rapid dismantling of democracy in the United States, I wouldn’t want to read my blog either.
I get it.
I don’t want to write about the Trump Administration every day. That’s why I took a break from it last week. I only blogged twice.
That break freed up time for me to work on the companion journal/diary I’m creating to go along with my I Need The Light! devotional book.
I Need The Light! 26 Weekly Devotionals to Help You Through Winter, by Janet Morrison
It gave me time to edit most of the historical short stories I plan to publish as a collection later this year.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
I needed to take time to do those things for my mental and physical well-being. I hope to have more weeks in which I only blog a couple of times.
When I started blogging more than a decade ago, I was encouraged over every subscriber milestone. The numbers are not that important to me now, but I noticed I was on the verge of having 1,400 subscribers. Then, my numbers started going down. I needed to evaluate the situation and determine if I was doing something wrong.
I concluded that after a decade I have started fearlessly speaking my mind. Perhaps some of my subscribers liked the old me – the me who just blogged once-a-week about the craft of writing or the books I read. The old me struggled to think of something to blog about once-a-week.
But that’s not me anymore. I’m older, but not necessarily wiser. I’m in a place in my life’s journey where I am no longer afraid that I will offend someone who sees politics or other major issues differently than I do.
I am no longer afraid that if I blog about politics I will alienate someone who would have otherwise purchased one of my books.
I blog because it has become part of my identity. I blog because I am deeply concerned about what is happening to and in the government of the United States. I cannot turn my back on my political science degrees and my sense of patriotism.
But most of all, I blog because I thoroughly enjoy forming online relationships with other bloggers and subscribers. Readers and subscribers will come and go. Perhaps I’m finally finding my voice and my niche, and I no longer attempt to reach the masses.
What I write about will not and cannot appeal to everyone. That is a good lesson for me to remember when I publish a book!
Photo by Luis Morera on Unsplash
In conclusion, it’s not really about the numbers. It’s about the relationships I have made and will continue to make through my blog. If my subscribers dwindle down to 100, it won’t bother me now because I have come to understand that it’s just about the relationships and exchange of ideas.
I was caught off-guard on June 14 when I read Sarah Johnson’s Reading the Past blog post and learned that the decade of the 1960s is now the hottest thing in historical fiction.
Yikes!
I remember the 1960s well. In fact, I remember some of the 1950s. I admit that I had not thought of the 1960s as fodder for historical fiction yet. Wasn’t it yesterday that I was still reading World War II fiction? Why did we leap right over the 1950s?
Photo by History in HD on Unsplash
Calling books set in the 1960s “historical fiction” just doesn’t seem right. I’m not ready to read it, and I’m certainly not ready to try to write it. I like to write about the 1760s and 1770s, so I must be in a 200-year-old time warp.
When I finish my novel-in-progress, I just hope I’m not the only person out there who likes to read about life in the 1760s.
My blog is all over the place!
The first 11 years or more that I wrote a blog, I concentrated on my life as a struggling writer and a reader. (Make that “struggling reader,” too, in light of my memory problems. Many times I get to the bottom of a page in a book and I have no idea what I just read, but I digress.)
I have also written history pieces, often on the anniversary date of an event. Some of them are well-known dates and events in history, while others were little-known events that I stumbled upon.
Over the years I toyed with how often to blog. I eventually settled on just once-a-week. That seemed to be all I could handle. I settled on posting my blog every Monday. That worked very well for me.
Then came Donald Trump’s reelection, and my comfortable blogging routine went out the window.
After blogging as many as six posts a week since January 20, I think I’m probably “preaching to the choir.” My readers are probably keeping up with politics as much as I am.
Since I don’t want to bore you with our new normal in the United States, I hope to add some variety to my blog posts. I certainly don’t want to write about politics every day! It’s not good for my mental health or yours. I miss writing fiction, and I desperately want to get back to a place emotionally where I can turn off the politics in my head and switch gears to colonial America.
I have written 90,000 words of an historical novel, but I put it on the back burner a couple of years ago when I realized the protagonist’s backstory deserved its own novel. I’ve done a ton of research and I wrote 35,000 words before I let myself get derailed. I think about my protagonist every day and I yearn to finish writing her story.
Her story lets me travel back to The Great Wagon Road in the 1760s to the backcountry of Virginia, North Carolina, and into The Waxhaws in South Carolina. I look forward to sharing her story with you, but first I must get my devotional book published.
I have had success in the past week in turning my attention back to the devotional book I’m writing. I have been doing what I hope will be my read aloud proofread. It is tedious. It is time-consuming. It is 186 pages.
I took a big step yesterday. I have published my other books and two short stories through Kindle Direct Publishing, but I would like for my devotional book to be available for bookstores to sell. I have researched IngramSpark and yesterday I set up an account with that company.
That decision had been weighing on my mind for several weeks. After reading the lengthy agreement and reviewing the company’s User Guide, I settled on IngramSpark and created my account last night.
I will explain in an upcoming blog what the book is about and the double importance of the title: I Need The Light. My goal is to publish it in August.
What happened to the historical short stories I mentioned last year?
Sadly, those stories are exactly where they were the last time I mentioned them in a blog post. They are on paper and in my computer. Some are complete. Some are almost complete. Some are just story titles on a list.
I want to get back to that project!
Here I am.
If you have wondered what happened to all my grandiose writing projects, now you know.
Please don’t give up on me. I have stories to share with you.
Hurricane Helene Update
As of last Friday, June 20, 2025, 59 roads in North Carolina were closed due to Hurricane Helene. That count included five US highways, nine state highways, and 45 state roads.
That is an increase of six state highways and four state roads since the report issued on Friday, June 17. I don’t know why the numbers went up. It could be a typographical error in the online table I check every week. It will be interesting to see what the next weekly NCDOT report will indicate.
The North Carolina General Assembly voted unanimously yesterday to allocated another $500 million for Hurricane Helene relief. That brings the state’s total to around $2 billion so far.
Due to a micro-burst rainstorm and flood on June 19, section of I-40 in Tennessee and North Carolina in the remote Pigeon River Gorge had to be closed again. The closure is approximately 50 miles long. It is the same portion of the interstate that was closed for five months after Hurricane Helene… and until Thursday of last week was finally open to one lane in each direction.
Tennessee Department of Transportation reports on Wednesday sounded doubtful but said they are still working toward possibly getting the highway reopened by July 4. Detour information can be found at https://drivenc.gov/.
I’m beginning to think the Pigeon River Gorge does not want an interstate highway. It keeps revolting!
Until my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read.
If you live in Europe or on the east coast of the United States, I hope you get some relief from the heatwave this weekend. After a week, I have gotten used to the triple-digit heat index numbers, although anything above 105 degrees F. is still a little extreme.
Remember the people of Ukraine and western North Carolina.
When I started Janet’s Writing Blog more than a decade ago, I didn’t know what I was doing. I had not read many blogs, but I thought I was ready to jump in and write my own after being prompted by my niece’s husband. Craig is much more tech savvy than I. He designed my website as it served me well for 20 years. His interests, time, and business responsibilities changed over the years, so in January 2023 my website was redesigned by Carolina Custom Designs.
My blog floundered for several years in the beginning as I tried to find my niche. I played around with how often to blog and how long a blog post should be. Things have gone more smoothly since I settled on posting every Monday.
Photo by Kaitlyn Baker on Unsplash
I have slowly realized the potential my blog. In fact, I know I haven’t yet fully understood its potential.
It astounds me that people all over the world read my blog! In January 2024, for example, people in 36 countries read my blog.
I’m fortunate to live in the United States of America where I have freedom of speech and freedom to read anything I want.
I don’t want to run out of subject matter. I usually plan my blog post topics as much as a year in advance, but this year my editorial calendar just isn’t coming together like it has in the past.
Should I make some changes in my blog?
Last year was a busy year of getting my website redesigned; starting a newsletter in March; offering a free downloadable copy of my short story, “Slip Sliding Away” to everyone who subscribes to my newsletter; publishing a local history book, Harrisburg, Did You Know? Cabarrus History, Book 2; publishing my first ghost story, “Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story”; and, with my sister, Marie, published a cookbook, The Aunts in the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes.
With all I had going on, I failed to keep expanding my editorial calendar. Having Covid in December, a health scare of a different nature at the same time which lapped over into January, and intermittent internet and telephone service for two weeks after a January 9 storm, I was in a mental fog until the first week in March. I do have the next four weekly blog posts planned and partially written; however, some weeks in the rest of 2024 need to be fleshed out.
More than 1,100 “follow” my blog, but most of them probably don’t read it every week. I try to keep in mind that although I have some loyal readers every week, there is always the chance (and hope!) that this will be the week when someone reads my blog for the first time. What can I write this week that will please my regular readers but also grab the attention of a first-time reader so much that they become a subscriber?
I don’t want to bore my loyal readers with references to my books, short stories, and website; however, I want that new reader to be aware of what I’ve written. It is a delicate balancing act.
What Ryan Lanz says a blogger should do
A list I keep in front of me as I plan my blog topics is Ryan Lanz’s “22 Ways to Impress a First-Time Blog Reader With Any Post.” Lanz sets the bar high! I don’t have Mr. Lanz’s permission to quote his list, but I’ll throw out several items on the list to give you an idea of what a blogger is challenged to do with every post:
“Tell them something they don’t know.”
“Tell them something they DO know.”
“Help them solve a problem.”
It only gets more challenging as you read the other 19 items on his list! The one that always trips me up is number 3. I have a feeling in my more than 13 years of blogging, I have probably never solved anyone’s problem! I just don’t see that as my responsibility.
My plan
The first months in a calendar year tend to prompt us into new beginnings and reflection. That’s what I will continue to do over the coming weeks, and I hope I’ll find enough topics of interest to keep blogging every Monday for the foreseeable future.
Stay tuned. Next week I will blog about the books I read in April.
Until my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read.
If you are a blogger, you can probably identify with today’s post.
Don’t forget the people of Ukraine.
Remember to subscribe to my e-newsletter before the May issue if you want to learn about an on-going archaeological dig in North Carolina! Just visit https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com and click on “Subscribe.” My thank-you gift to you is a downloadable copy of my historical short story, “Slip Sliding Away.”
A couple of months ago I found a free online headline improvement program. Have you noticed? The jury’s still out, though, as to how it’s working.
Funny thing is, “they” used to tell bloggers to never give a blog post a title containing more than five words. I’ve tried to follow that for years. Lo and behold, now we’re supposed to have seven- to 12-word titles. It’s hard to keep up with what’s acceptable. Who knew blogging would be so complicated and have so many rules?
This free program I’ve started using analyzes headlines and gives each one a numeric score. I’ve had some fun playing around with it and taking its “advice.” I don’t know that my higher-scoring blog post titles have attracted attention or not.
In fact, as my posts have turned more toward publicizing my writing and concentrating less on the art and craft of writing, my blog has lost some popularity. I continued to attract new followers at a slow but steady rate, but my posts are getting fewer “likes” from other bloggers.
My subtle change in direction was a decision I had to make. Was my purpose as a writer to attract the attention of other writers or was it to attract readers?
I hope to continue to attract the attention of other writers but, if I’m going to establish myself as a writer I must find and attract readers.
Headline Studio by Co-Schedule
This isn’t an ad for Headline Studio by Co-Schedule, and I’m getting no compensation for writing about the program in my blog. This is the program I’m using. It’s been a real eye opener.
The program analyzes the headlines or titles you enter and gives you a score from 0 to 100. Today’s blog post title rated a moderately good score of 67, whereas the blog post title I used on January 9, 2023 was my all-time high at 80.
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Things taken into consideration in rating title include strength of words, number of characters, number of words, use of emotional words, and readability. The readability aspect is the one that troubles me enough. Some blog post titles I’ve created receive low scores because I used words that someone reading on a fifth-grade level would not understand. How sad is that?
Even sadder is the rating I got when I plugged in today’s blog post title. Read it again. Do you find it difficult to understand? The Headline Studio program gave me the following analysis for this title: “Your headline reads at a 10th grade or higher reading level, which may make it difficult for many readers to comprehend. Switch out the complex words in your headline to improve readability.”
To that, I say, “You must be kidding!” If you can’t understand the title, you probably wouldn’t be able to read my blog. It’s a sad commentary on the state of education.
#OnThisDay: Operation Desert Storm Began in 1991
Since my last blog post
My book sales are going well on Amazon and at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC. Here’s a photo I took one day of my book on the shelf with books by other local authors.
I took the picture the only day I visited the store and it wasn’t sold out! Notice that my book was displayed next to Teachers are Amazing: The ABCs of Teachers, by Tierney Fairchild.
Harrisburg, Did You Know? Cabarrus History, Book 1 on the shelf at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC!
If you’re a teacher, know a teacher, or aspire to be a teacher, I recommend Tierney’s book to you. In addition to Second Look Books, her book is also available on Amazon. Tierney is a lifelong educator and is dedicated to the profession.
Harrisburg, Did You Know? Cabarrus History, Book 1, by Janet Morrison, next to Teachers are Amazing! The ABCs of Teachers, by Tierney Fairchild at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC!
I’ve been busy this week writing content for the “Home,” “Books,” and “History in Photographs” pages on my website that’s being redesigned. I continue to learn more technology. I created a folder on Google Drive to house the media kit for Harrisburg, Did You Know? Cabarrus History, Book 1. I know this sounds easy to many of you, but it was another milestone for me. I can’t wait to unveil the new website… soon!
I want to offer a free e-novelette to people who sign up for my email list when the new website goes live. My next hurdle is learning how to do that!
Until my next blog post
I hope you’re reading a good book. I’m reading The Shadow Box, by Louanne Rice for Rocky River Readers this month. I’ve also started reading Raven Black, by Ann Cleeves.
Thank you to each and every one of you for supporting me and my new local history book!
I read a thought-provoking blog post on January 22, 2020 – yes, nearly two years ago! I made a note about it in case I wanted to write about it in a future blog post.
That blog post was written by Cristian Mihai for his Art of Blogging blog. The name of the post was “Blogging Mindset – You Are a Blogstar.”
Photo credit: Davide Cantelli on upsplash.com
In the blog post, Cristian Mihai compared the blogosphere to the number of stars in our galaxy. He recommended that I, as a blogger, try to be the sun so I won’t be overlooked like the other billions of stars.
Photo credit: Klemen Vrankar on unsplash.com
Instead of emphasizing the need to get more followers than other bloggers, in this particular post Mr. Mihai wrote: “And yes, it takes back-breaking amounts of work to stand out, to be relevant to your readers, but if you turn yourself into a sun, no matter how small your audience is, you’ll find out that the benefits of blogging are more numerous than you ever thought possible.”
Speaking for myself, I want to attract blog followers who will also want to purchase my novel when I get it published. The trick is to find a balance between my journey as a writer, my lifelong interest in American history, my love of reading, and my long-range goal of providing you with historical fiction you love to read.
It’s a winding path. The path has been fraught with detours and incidents that appeared to be deadends.
Experts in blogging tell us that a blogger needs to solve a problem for the reader. In his August 12, 2019 blog post, “Blogging is All About Problem Solving,” Christian Mihai stated, “Now, what problems are you solving by blogging? That’s a serious question, and you should think about it, because your success depends on what you answer.”
This question has buzzed around my head for more than two years. I’m just trying to write a good historical novel, so how will tales of my journey solve anyone’s problems?
The best answer I’ve been able to come up with is this:
While I try to write the best historical novel you’ve ever read that’s populated by unforgettable characters — each playing their part in a story that will linger in your head long after you’ve finished reading it – I must convey to you through my blog posts that I have writing skills that are worthy of your time and hard-earned money, and that I know the history of a time and place so well that I can transport you there with my words.
No pressure there!
My Conclusion
I appreciate each and every one of you who have stuck with me since I started my blog June 24, 2010. I have my nephew-in-law to thank for setting up the website (http://janetmorrisonbooks.com) through which my sister and I publicize and sell our three Morrison genealogy books. Shortly after designing our website, he told me I should blog. The idea had never occurred to me.
When I started my blog, I didn’t know what I was doing. Some days, I still feel like that, but this is my 548th blog post. My posts were erratic in the beginning. I tried many different schedules. I settled on posting every Monday morning beginning June 26, 2017. That has worked well for me, but I wonder if I need to adjust that schedule again.
I keep promising you a novel. Hold on tight. The road will continue to be bumpy, but I believe there is light (and a novel) at the end of the tunnel.
I’ve concluded that, in light of Christian Mihai’s blog post referenced in the beginning of this blog post, I’m a star and not a sun.
Every minute of every day, 4,000 blog posts are published. There are more than 570 million active blogs in the world today. I don’t know how many suns there are in that 570 million, but I don’t expect Janet’s Writing Blog to ever qualify as a sun. For the time being, I’m happy to just be a star in the blogosphere.
Since my last blog post
Since last Monday, I’ve read Three Sisters, by Heather Morris, and The City of Mist, a collection of 11 short stories by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. I’ve also read How to Write Winning Short Stories, by Nancy Sakaduski and How to Write a Series: A Guide to Series Types and Structure Plus Troubleshooting Tips and Marketing Tactics, by Sara Rosett.
I continue to work on my novel. Do I dare consider it might be the first book in a series? If that’s a possibility, it will influence some of the details and plot lines it. Part of me thinks it’s presumptuous of me to think in terms of a series when it has taken me more than a decade to write the first book and it’s still in the editing stage.
Until my next blog post
In case you want to check out Cristian Mihai’s blog, you can reach it through his website: https://cristianmihai.net/. He’s been a full-time blogger for nine years.
I hope you have a good book to read and find fulfillment in your activities.
For those of us who are Christians, this is the Advent Season. I wish you joy, hope, and peace in the days leading up to Christmas Day.
Let’s continue the conversation
What do you look for in a blog? What do you look for in MY blog? I really need to know. What do you like about my blog? Do you wish I’d write more posts about a particular topic? Do you want me to continue my occasional “#OnThisDay” posts? Are you sick and tired of hearing about the novel I’m writing?
On the heels of reading seven books in June, I took a step back in July and “only” read five books. I’d let the pressure of reading books so I could blog about them get too much of a hold on my life. That’s why I planned to not read as much in July. That didn’t work out very well, but I did start taking a closer look at the types of books I was reading and wanted or needed to read.
If you read my August blog posts, you know there wasn’t a fluffy beach read in the bunch. In fact, there wasn’t a novel in the five, and they were all about serious and sobering topics.
Photo credit: John Mark Smith on unsplash.com
September and October came along and most of my reading was dictated by the writing course I was taking. For two months, I read what I had to read or needed to read. It didn’t leave any time to read what I wanted to read, although I did start reading The Silk Roads: A New History of the World, by Peter Frankopan. It’s not a book that can be read quickly.
Reading is important for a writer; however, writing needs to be more of a focus for me now. I’ve procrastinated and let reading take too much of my time the last couple of years. I don’t regret reading any of the books I read, but I’ll never finish writing my novel at this rate!
What would make me happy?
About six weeks ago, I took time to discern what will make me happy. The things I came up with were (1) to work on my book; (2) to work on my genealogy; and (3) to get back to sewing and quilting. I haven’t sewn in going on two years now. I hope I can remember how to turn on the sewing machine. I have tubs of fabric that need to be turned into gifts or quilts and other household items.
The fourth item on my list is to get back to playing the mountain dulcimer. I should play it every day. I haven’t touched it in months. I hope my muscle memory kicks in when I take it out of its case today. I’m not very good at it. The reasons for that are (1) I’m not musically-talented and (2) I don’t put much time into it.
The Gifts of Imperfection, by Dr. Brene Brown
I recently reread The Gifts of Imperfection, by Brené Brown. It reminded me not to be so hard on myself and not to worry about what other people think of me. I listened to her book, Rising Strong, and it inspired me to be brave. That’s what finally prompted me to hire a professional editor to critique the first 50 pages of my novel. (See my July 12, 2021 blog post, 4 Other Books I Read in June 2021 and my July 26, 2021 blog post, How My First 50 Pages Stood up for Critique.)
Her post sort of dovetailed with what I was writing four months ago that ended up being postponed until today. She looked at her list of dreams from a view of practicality. I didn’t have to consciously do that when I made my list because it’s not my nature to dream about doing or having things I can’t afford or don’t have the health to do.
Taking stock on this milestone year
I graduated from high school 50 years ago. There. I’ve said it. Do the math. Yes, I’m 68 years old.
Photo credit: Zoltan Tasi on unsplash.com
There’s something jolting about admitting I graduated from high school 50 years ago. I don’t know what it is about those anniversary years that end in a zero. I was not prompted to take stock of my life last year, 49 years after my graduation.
Our 50-year high school reunion was planned for last month but had to be postponed until sometime next year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
I was in a class of 191. At least 33 of my classmates have died. Talk about a sobering thought! More than one of those were special, lifelong friends of mine.
Assessing my blog topics
Once in a while, I need to take a step back and evaluate my life – how I’m spending my time, what I’m accomplishing, what I’m doing to benefit others, and what I’m doing to improve myself. This is one of those times, so please bear with me.
This is supposed to be my writing blog. My reading is important and integral to my writing; however, since the Covid-19 pandemic started, I haven’t written much about my journey as a writer until this summer when I decided to get the first 50 pages of my novel manuscript critiqued by an editor.
A blog is supposed to serve a purpose. It’s supposed to benefit the reader. I hope my continued journey as a writer will serve as fodder for my future blog posts and those posts will enlighten or entertain you in some way. Otherwise, you don’t have any reason to keep reading my blog.
No pressure there!
Photo credit: Daniel Thomas on unsplash.com
There are many things I enjoy about blogging. Over the years, I’ve developed friendly relationships with a few readers. They live all around the world. Many of them have opened my eyes to things I didn’t know. They’ve helped me understand different perspectives. They have enriched my life. I will never meet them except via the internet.
People in 20 countries visited my blog the last week in October. Since I started my blog, people in 144 countries and territories have looked at it. That is surprising, gratifying, and a bit scary.
I never know what’s going to strike a chord with readers. When I have a reader from China or some countries in Africa, it especially catches my attention and I feel a heightened sense of responsibility.
I appreciate your taking time to read my blog. I’ll try not to let you down.
Since my last blog post
Here in North Carolina, we raced right through autumn last week and jumped into winter. There was snow in the higher mountains in the state and our county had a freeze warning. It just doesn’t seem quite right to have a freeze warning before having a frost warning, but that’s life in North Carolina.
Photo credit: Janet Morrison
I’m still decluttering my home in hopes of making space for more creativity and less stress.
Until my next blog post
Have you assessed your life lately? What would make you happy? What’s missing in your life? What are you waiting for?
Sign on US-441/Newfound Gap Road to alert visitors that they are entering the national park.
Several weeks ago I took a vacation from blogging, writing, and all social media. It was wonderful! I hope you can try it sometime.
My sister and I spent a week in and around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina.
For seven days, I didn’t check my blog for comments. I didn’t text. I didn’t call anyone. I didn’t Tweet. It was fabulous!
“The Great Smoky Mountains lay in the middle of the Cherokee Indians’ territory in the mid-1600s when Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto arrived.”
page 69, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, by Janet Morrison.
“Welcome to Cherokee Indian Reservation” sign in Cherokee and in English
The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, by Janet Morrison
Since the park was included in my vintage postcard book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, I enjoy visiting the park to see what has changed and what has remained the same since my childhood and since my book’s publication in 2014.
Today and next Monday, I’ll share some highlights from my trip, including a few of the pictures I took. I’ll also include photographs of some of the vintage postcards from my book, which is pictured to the right.
Elk!
Elk were reintroduced into the Great Smoky Mountains in 2001
and 2002. I’d never seen an elk until this recent trip! What a thrill it was to
see a herd of elk, including this buck, in the river that runs behind the
Oconoluftee Visitor Center near the main North Carolina entrance to Great Smoky
Mountains National Park just north of Cherokee, NC! This bull was a
jaw-dropping sight as he surveyed his herd of female elk (cows) cooling off in
this cool mountains stream. (It was late afternoon and in the mid-90s F.)
An elk bull in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
It is illegal to willingly get within 150 feet of an elk or
black bear in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Don’t worry, I was behind a
fence that was guarded by a park ranger, and I used the zoom feature on my cell
phone camera.
Sign reminding visitors that elk are back in the park.
For more information about the reintroduction of elk in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the safeguards people should take when seeing them, go to https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/nature/elk.htm.
The Loop/Helix
One of the most famous construction features on
US-441/Newfound Gap Road, which traverses Great Smoky Mountains National Park
from one side to the other is “The Loop.” The highway tunnels under itself to
form a helix.
Here are pictures of two of the three postcards of “The
Loop” in my vintage postcard book.
This is a photo of a 1936 “real photograph postcard” of “The Loop” on Newfound Gap Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
This is a photo of another 1936 “real photograph postcard” of “The Loop” on Newfound Gap Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
The next two paragraphs are quotes from the captions I wrote for the three postcards on pages 80-81 of my book:
“Newfound Gap Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
tunnels under itself, forming a helix. The design replaced two dangerous
switchbacks on the old Tennessee Highway 71, which was built in the 1920.”
Signage to alert drivers that they are approaching “The Loop” on Newfound Gap Road in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
“These black-and-white glossy real-photo postcards were made
in 1936. The Great Smoky National Park Roads & Bridges portion of the
Historic American Engineering Record of the National Park Service gives many
details about the Loop. Probably designed by Charles Peterson, the Loop was
constructed in 1935 by C.Y. Thomason Company of Greenwood, South Carolina, at a
cost of $77,644. Stone quarried nearby and reinforced concrete were used in the
construction of the bridge portion, which is 95 feet long, 42 feet wide, and 21
feet high in the center of the arch.”
Since its construction in 1935, trees and other natural vegetation has been allowed to grow and flourish. I appreciate that; however, it makes it almost impossible now to fully see and admire this engineering feat. It might still be possible to see the entire Loop from Chimney Tops Mountain nearby, but it’s impossible to get a satisfactory photograph of it from ground level due to the trees. Therefore, I had to settle for the above picture of The Loop signage.
The first time I rode through The Loop was at the age of nine. It’s still a thrill, 57 years later!
Babbling Brooks
A stream in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
One of my favorite features in Great Smoky Mountains
National Park is all the babbling brooks. Little River Road runs parallel to
the Little River for many miles in the park between Sugarlands Visitor Center
and Cades Cove. Little River and the other streams in the park are full of
bounders and rocks of all sizes, indicating the history of these mountains from
the Ice Age.
Another stream in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Since my last blog post
It took much patience and persistence (and some grinding of my teeth), but I eventually worked out a new way of inserting photographs in my blog posts last Tuesday. What a relief, to be able to present today’s post and next Monday’s the way I had envisioned! I hope you enjoy the photographs today.
I had the opportunity to watch and listen to another free webinar about the craft of writing on Monday. It was about Author Accelerator’s “Inside Outline” tool. It piqued my interest. Of course, to use the tool I’d have to pay a fee, so I haven’t made that commitment. If you, like I, are learning to write a book, you might want to look into this tool at https://www.authoraccelerator.com/. The tool was developed by Jennie Nash.
Until my next blog
post
I hope you have a good book to read. I’m reading The Ragged Edge of Night, by Olivia Hawker.
If you’re a writer, I hope you have productive writing time.
Thank you for reading my blog. You could have spent the last few minutes
doing something else, but you chose to read my blog.
Watch for my blog post next Monday. It is a continuation of today’s post and will feature black bears, the double-peaked mountain called Chimney Tops, damage from the late November 2016 wildfires, babbling brooks, white clouds down in a valley one morning, and why the Great Smoky Mountains have that moniker.
A few words about my book
I hate to “blow my own horn.” I’d be remiss, though, if I didn’t take this opportunity to tell you how you can have your own copy of my vintage postcard book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, published by Arcadia Publishing in 2014.
Don’t let the name of the book fool you, it covers all the mountainous counties in western North Carolina and the three counties in eastern Tennessee that are partially in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Electronic and paperback copies are available from Amazon.com at https://www.amazon.com. Paperback copies are available from the publisher at https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/, at quality bookstores, or from me personally.
Let’s continue the
conversation
Have you visited the Great Smoky Mountains? If so, what were your impressions of it? What was the highlight of your trip? Did you see any black bears? Did you see elk? Did you hike? Did you go camping? The recreational opportunities in the Great Smoky Mountains are unlimited! I’d love to hear about your experiences there.
Also, please let me know how you usually view my blog. Do you look at it on your desktop computer, on a tablet, or on your phone?
I’m trying to be more cognizant of the fact that a growing number of people are reading blogs on their phones. The layout of the blog translates differently on the various formats.
For instance, what looks good on a cell phone, doesn’t look quite as good on a desktop computer. Today’s blog post falls into that category. I’ve spent a lot of time on it, trying out “spacers” and “separators.” I’ve never used those tools before. Your patience is appreciated as I learn and experiment with some new blogging techniques.
Remember, I’m a writer — not a computer whiz. This is all part of my journey as a writer, which is what my blog is about.
Thank you for sharing my blog with your friends — in person and on social media!
I’ve blogged before about my love/hate relationship with social media. Most of the forms of social media take me out of my comfort zone. Actually, that is an understatement.
Blogging
I enjoy blogging and interacting with people who read
my posts. I follow a lot of blogs and have benefited from them. I learn from
them, I’m inspired by them, and I’m entertained by them.
Facebook
Facebook comes in a distant second place. I really
don’t need to see a picture of what you ate for breakfast. The most redeeming
qualities of Facebook are that it gives me an easy way to stay in touch with
friends in Europe and family around the United States, and it gives me a way to
know the political leanings of some of my Facebook friends so I’ll know what I
can or cannot say to them in order to keep them as friends.
The down side is that I’ve learned things I wish I
hadn’t about some of my friends. Suffice it to say, if the topic of politics is
going to come up at my next high school reunion or family gathering, I don’t
want to be there.
Pinterest
I like Pinterest, but I haven’t put enough time into
it to make it a productive platform for my writing. I spend more time on
Pinterest than I should, but not necessarily to promote my writing. I pin many
articles to my “The Writing Life” board, but I use it more for the hobbies I
enjoy.
Twitter
I’m sure this sounds blasphemous to the young adults
who might read this post, but I’m not much of a cell phone person. I could
really do without it. I refuse to be ruled by a phone. I don’t want to be tied
to a phone. I don’t want a phone to monopolize my time, energy, or attention. I
want a phone available for emergencies – and I mean the old-timey understanding
of what an emergency is.
Instagram
I set up an account a couple of years ago and never
took the next step. Again, it’s related to my cell phone and its built-in
camera. I’m sure it’s convenient for many people. I just don’t get it.
All
the Social Media I’ve not heard of
I guess that’s self-explanatory.
Since my last blog post
I’ve had a net gain of 4,550 words to my The Doubloon manuscript,
bringing my current word count to 55,400. I get to start on Chapter 14 today. I
can’t wait!
Until my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read. Nothing grabbed my attention last week.
I had to return The Irishman’s Daughter, by V.S. Alexander to the
public library without finishing it. I’m on the waitlist for it again so I can
finish reading it on my Kindle. Part of the problem is how tired my eyes get
reading regular size print. On my Kindle I can adjust the font size. This
historical novel is set in Ireland during the potato famine.
If you’re a writer, I hope you have productive writing time.
Look for my #TwoForTuesday blog post tomorrow: “Two Books that Encourage Change.” Thank you for providing the writing prompt, Rae, in “Rae’s Reads and Reviews” blog. Here’s a link to her April 1, 2019 blog post in which she listed all the #TwoForTuesday prompts for the month of April: https://educatednegra.blog/2019/04/. Thank you for reading my blog. You could have spent the last few minutes doing something else, but you chose to read my blog.
In my blog on Monday, April 29, 2019 I’ll explain what triggered today’s rant.
Let’s continue the conversation
What’s your favorite of all the social media? What’s your least favorite?
Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Sometimes I get carried away and forget my blog is for you. It’s not for me. You have a limited amount of time to read, so I’m flattered that you read my blog posts.
If my blog doesn’t fill a need of yours, then reading it is a waste of your time. The pressure is on me every week to inspired you, make you laugh, give you something to think about, or at least put a smile on your face.
Although
I’ve been blogging for almost nine years, I’m still learning. If there is
something on my blog page that isn’t of benefit to my readers, I need to delete
it.
Deleted national flags widget
In an effort
to declutter my blog on February 4, I deleted the widget that showed the flags
of all the countries in which my blog readers reside. I realized that showing
those 93 flags was for my own edification, not yours. That widget was providing
information that you probably didn’t care about. I’m a geography nerd, so I
found it very interesting.
Actually, I
found it shocking and a bit frightening to know that people in that many
countries had looked at my blog at least once. The biggest surprise was when
the flag of the People’s Republic of China first appeared.
My most popular posts
In place of
the national flags widget, I added a widget that lists my 10 most popular blog
posts. This should help my new reader find some of my best posts, and it will help
me see at a glance the topics that garner the most interest.
An unexpected source
I knew my
blog was for my readers, but it wasn’t until I started reading Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen,
by Donald Miller that I was prompted to try to view my website and my blog
through the eyes of a first-time visitor.
Everywhere Building a StoryBrand says, “customer,” I mentally substitute “reader.” Sometimes it works better than others. Although Mr. Miller’s book targets business owners, it made me ask myself how my website and blog portray me as a writer. I’ll continue to make changes that help first-time visitors become loyal readers.
Mr. Miller says a person should be able to look at my blog or my website and know within five seconds what I’m about.
That book prompted me to ask myself, “What does my reader need?” and “What is my reader hoping to gain by reading my words?” Mr. Miller’s book dovetails into Mr. Alda’s book and reinforces what Mr. Alda said about communication.
The purpose of my website and blog
Mr. Miller’s
book prompted me to state the purpose of my website and blog in one sentence.
When I got to the heart of what I’m trying to accomplish, this is what I
concluded:
The purpose
of my website and blog is to show you that I write with authority and skill
and, therefore, you can trust that my writing is worthy of your time.
If it sounds
like I’m boasting, that’s not my intent. I’m setting the bar high for myself,
and will read that purpose every day when I sit down at the keyboard.
Until my next blog post
I hope you
have a good book to read. I just finished listening to The Midwife’s Confession, by Diane Chamberlain. (Audio books come
in handy when a reader has vertigo.)
If you’re a
writer, I hope you have productive writing time.
Thank you for reading my blog.
You could have spent the last few minutes doing something else, but you chose
to read my blog.
What are you hoping to find in my blog? A smile? Humor? Something to ponder? Inspiration? My take on a book I’ve read? Samples of my fiction writing? A variety of these?
I try to plan most of my blog posts in advance. My ideas for my blog post yesterday included my thoughts about finding time to write during the holidays and just taking the easy way out and posting a photograph. The caption was going to be optional.
Did you notice I said, “My ideas for my blog post yesterday….?” There was no blog post yesterday. Not only have I squandered time for writing in December, I forgot to post a blog yesterday. No rambling thoughts about writing. No photograph. No caption. No blog post.
Who, me?
For those of you who hang on my every word and look forward to Monday mornings just because you know you’ll have a Janet Morrison blog post to read, I apologize. To the rest of you (and you know who you are) I join you in asking, “Who knew Janet blogged on Mondays?”
I forgot to blog, and the world continued to turn on its axis and revolve around the sun. Time did not stand still.
Next Monday is another holiday, but I’ll try to get back on track. On January 1, 2018, I plan to blog about how successful I was in meeting my 2017 personal reading challenge. There are holes like in Swiss cheese in my reading accomplishments this year. I could fill some of those holes by reading the rest of this week. I want to read, but I also want to sew. I also want to get my dulcimer out of its case and see if I still know how to play it.
I decided to take a few minutes today to reflect on the pros and cons of participating in a reading challenge.
The pros:
(1) A reading challenge can prompt you to read something you might not otherwise read. Hence, the word “challenge.” For instance, one item on my personal reading challenge this year was to read a science fiction book. I’m not a fan of sci-fi. Sorry, I’m just not. I thought putting it on my challenge would force me to read a sci-fi book. It did not. I procrastinated for 12 months. It didn’t happen.
(2) A reading challenge nudges you to read a variety of books.
The cons:
(1) I can only think of one. You can get so wrapped up in meeting your reading challenge that you miss the chance to read books you’d rather be reading. If you are a competitive person, you might let the challenge become more important than the reading. If that happens, the purpose of the challenge has been hijacked.
Your thoughts
Where do you stand when it comes to participating in a reading challenge? Do you find them helpful? Do you think they’re fun? Do you find them to be freeing or restraining? I invite you to comment about your reading challenge experiences below.
Until my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read.
If you’re a writer, I hope you have quality writing time.
On this day after Christmas, I hope all my Christian readers had an Advent season filled with blessings and a Christmas day overflowing with joy as you remembered the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
May the love, compassion, and joy of the season continue in our lives in the coming year.
Janet's Writing Blog 