Monday, January 16, 2012

Spring cleaning (on the blog)

Well, that blogcation was a bit longer than expected. This weekend I cleaned up a little around here. I added blogs I've recently started following to my sidebar.  I deleted some blogs that haven't been updated in over a year. However, I spent most of my time going through the blogs I link to on my sidebar and moving those who've been published in the past year from the 'aspiring authors' category to the 'author' category.  I went from having five or so blogs under the 'author' heading to over twenty.  There were also a few who signed with agents and I'm sure they'll be making the move from 'aspiring' to 'author'very soon as well.  It was amazing and inspiring to see how many of my blogger friends have made such huge progress in their writing journey over the past twelve months.

As I went through all the blogs I follow, I saw a lot of other happy news besides agent signings or publication deals.  It was great to read all of that as well.  I also came across quite a few blogs that have gone dark. Some gave reasons for ending their blogs.  Some just stopped posting.  Some gave up on their dream.  It was these that stayed with me.  I just kept thinking about them, so much that I actually got depressed.  I think I understand why they did.  Heaven knows I've been close to taking the same step myself especially over the last couple months. It was tough for me to see people who actually did.  I hope that at some point down the road, they'll rediscover their dream and decide this time to really go for it.  And I hope when I feel like giving up, remembering them will give me the oomph to keep going.

How about you guys?  What are your tricks to keep pushing through when it all seems hopeless?

6 comments:

Old Kitty said...

Oh Angie! You mustn't leave blogworld!! It'll be duller place if you go! seriously!!

When things feel hopeless I go into a funk and do a Garbo and want to be alone. In the dark. Silence!

Then I don't know. Something inside of me snaps and I hear my inner voice say "this is stupid, snap out of it you big baby!" Then I do!

I think decluttering helps too. I remember faithfully buying this mag - I kept sending my stories in, entering their writerly competitions and being such a loyal costumer and after my millionth rejection, I stopped buying it. I know it seems silly and the mag was probably (most definitely) right to turn my stories down - but just by cutting the mag out of my life did I get a little of my confidence back. Silly of me really, but it worked!

Take care Angie!! May you always be full of hope and positive energy! x

Laura S. said...

This is a great day for this kind of post because it's MLK Day! Remember Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream? He didn't live to see it, unfortunately, but his dream came true! Dreams do come true, they really truly do. Just not as quickly as we'd like them to. Persistence and patience!

When things seem hopeless, I read something that'll cheer me up. Calvin & Hobbes comics does the trick! Also reading childhood favorites like the Anne of Green Gables series. Stepping back and taking a breather helps too. And always, chocolate!! :)

prerna pickett said...

I take a step back and see what really matters to me: writing,or getting published. And, even though I would love to be published someday, writing is what matters. No matter what the future holds with a possibility of a career.

Talli Roland said...

That's a great question! When it all seems too much, I remind myself why I write - because I love it. Anything else is a bonus.

Unknown said...

I'm with Talli, I remind myself why I write. I have papers and journals that show each time I was down and out, writing is what held me together. I consider the blog, my own personal glue. It's what holds me and my writing together.

I'm starting the adoption process and writing is the one thing that's holding me together. Reminding me that the world is one we must be patient in, and that our life's patience will be rewarded.

Anne Gallagher said...

Funnily enough I did the same thing over the weekend and went through my blog roll. It is sad to see a lot of people who I used to know, not be there anymore.

I almost gave up my blog too, not because I didn't love it anymore, but just because it got to be too much. I started it out with the intention of one thing, becoming published and now that I am, the blog sort of became a moot point.

However, I know I'd miss all my friends which is why I kept it.
So, not much of an answer but the only one I have.