My Journey to Become a Writer 02/12/2024 Post #43

This post may contain affiliate links.

What Did I Accomplish Today to Be a Writer?

I did Day 43 of the 100 Words a Day Writing Challenge 2024 through LA Writer’s Lab.  

I didn’t write much other than a few pages this morning. My main focus right now is to get content ready to share, so I’m having to take time away from creating more.

What Am I Afraid of Doing Next in My Journey as a Writer?

The agent I plan to send my manuscript to responded to my email and said it’s preferable that a memoir be below 100,000 words. I’ve got to cut out a third of mine to make that cut. I’m afraid of facing that draft again.

Stuff I find myself saying:  (No words – just a sharp inhale at the thought of trying to make another outline, so I can shorten and sharpen my storyline).

– Jody Susan

How Am I Balancing the Different Aspects of Being a Writer?

My alarm clock has been keeping me in line today. I’ve broken my work into different categories like:

• Home Management
• Office Management
• Content Management
• Research & Development Management
• Distribution Management

I fully admit that I’m a total dork; but dividing my To-Do Lists into categories is helping tasks come together. When I don’t split them up, I find myself having feuds in my head about which jobs most need my attention. By disciplining myself to work in blocks of time, I feel a lot less tension, because that chunk in the day has a specific purpose.

It prevents the pressure to fulfill everything and anything under the sun at the same time.

What I’m Doing About Building a Body of Work as a Writer

I scheduled space in my week to work on content that I have been putting off completing. I’ve still got index cards about that Three Year Cruise taped to my living room wall. I want that project finished, so my space will look less cluttered.

My Dad Signed Up for Miray’s Life at Sea Three Year Cruise – JodySusanWrites

What I’m Doing to Complete My Manuscripts as a Writer

Getting a definitive answer on typical word count for a memoir was a big help. Today I unboxed books to give me ideas for covers and fonts I’d like to incorporate in my branding. Canva is another hurdle I’m working my way over, not all that gracefully.

What I’m Doing to Grow My Website as a Writer

I spent time recording stories and poems this afternoon, which I plan to post on my blog under a section called “Anthology” in the menu. I intend to post them on Social Media in hopes of drawing people to my site. I can’t say I’m super-confident in attracting a crowd; but I’ve been told I need to grow my platform, if I want to be published.

What I’m Doing to Build My Blog as a Writer

Today I put together “skeletons” of all these journey posts for the rest of February by creating drafts for each remaining day and adding:

• Titles
• Media
• Publishing Time & Date
• Making them Sticky & Pending Review
• Adding a Tag
• Checking the Proper Categories

Doing these tasks by batches makes things run a bit more smoothly, and to be honest, I enjoy almost anything that feels like an assembly line.

Random Fact About Me:  I love efficiency.

What I’m Doing About Networking as a Writer

Today I met with my memoir group. Our moderator has been sick for a few weeks, and the person who offered to sub was running late, so she asked for volunteers to lead the discussion and keep time for each person’s turn to read and receive reviews.

I took a risk and said I would be the moderator. This was out of my comfort zone; but I’m determined to get past some of my shyness.

What I’m Doing About Monetization as a Writer

Uh – next question, please.

I did start QuickBooks today; but it’s going to be a while before I can be an organized bookkeeper – I still have a lot of boxes to go through.

Trivia Question: What do you do when you find out you have a jury duty summons in fourteen days in a state you no longer live in?

(Actually, maybe I’m just looking for advice).

What I’m Doing About Social Media as a Writer

I recorded two poems today and a story (about the time I got second place in a look-a-like dog show). I’m editing the audio as I go and hope to prepare them for posting in the next few days. My intention is to have a stockpile of content, so I can schedule things and keep adding to my feeds on a consistent basis.

I’m not actually sure if I used to word “feed” right. This is all so new to me.

What I’m Doing About Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a Writer

I don’t have a good grasp on how to use tags; but I did realize I probably ought to include my name in every post, so that if someone searches for me, my content will come up.

What I’m Doing to Stay Organized as a Writer

My living room looks like a chimpanzee took over the school supply section at Walmart.

Whenever I organize, I usually have to make a mess at first; but I believe this chaos will be worth it very soon.

Looking Back at My Writing Journey

I started writing “About Trees” in 2019. The thought of going back and chopping it partway down feels a little painful; but I do want to have a book that people can put in a beach bag and not have to go to the chiropractor after carrying it from their car to the sea shore.

Setbacks like these can be pretty discouraging; but hopefully I can rally some fortitude and face a rewrite.

Any Other Thoughts on Becoming a Writer, Random Rants, Tales, or Trials…

Hearing other people’s stories in my memoir group today was another reminder of how amazing it is that we all have unique lives, and yet still have commonalities we can find.

It seems logical that as others share experiences totally foreign to me, I’d feel a greater distance between us; but somehow our common humanity only serves to strengthen a feeling of closeness and empathy.

I’m supposed to share my writing next week. Hopefully I can hack a hunk down from “About Trees” and whittle it into something worth sharing.

Thanks for reading what I’m writing,

Jody Susan

My circumstances have changes so drastically from what they were last year:

She’s Nursing Again