Living The Dream

Living the dream...well I guess I could say that I'm living the dream. After the dream of a wonderful husband, house, and 2 dogs (yes, I always pictured 2 dogs...I actually picture more, but we don't have the land to support them yet;). I had the dream of freelance writer. January 2006 I saw that dream through and so the dream must expand. I currently am a Marketing Assistant for a company and I've loved every moment of it. My boss has been supportive of my dream to write and has given me many opportunities expand my portfolio. I have been able to write copy for our company website as well as one of one of our trade journals. I tend to do a lot of editing in my job and was reminded that editing has its own category in the freelance market. I tend to get wrapped up in the thought that to "write" is the only way to freelance, however editing is another way in the door. I can build contacts and network while I edit and later on I may reap the benefits.

Another Month Goes By...

Well another month has gone by and I'm slowly trying to decide what I want to do with my story. The book I was reading said you shouldn't take time away from writing, but I almost felt like it was a good thing to do...I'm stalled and I'm wondering what direction to take it to. I did find some books that dealt with a similar genre that I intend to write and so it's been fun to read how another author handled situations. I'll keep you posted (whoever is reading this:) on how the story goes...

Writer's Block

I'm reading the book Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell. It's a great book and I'm learning a lot about not just plot and structure, but other aspects of writing as well. One of the topics they brought up was writier's block, a fitting topic seeing as the title of this blog is all about it. Bell writes that it's normal for writer's to get WB at about 30,000 words...Well, I'm at 15,000 words and WB is right in front of me...My husband laughed, but I was a little concerned. I think part of my issue is that I would like to have a bit more background on the topic I'm writing about. It's a fiction story, but I would love to include some historical insights. I am thinking about switching to a different project for a bit, maybe write about something I know a little more about and have more readily available information. We'll see what happens!

So It's Been Awhile...

So it’s been awhile since I wrote that last post. We had our Easter service and it rocked! We had over 700 people come to our services that Sunday. It was exciting to see people not only come to hear the service, but also to come and serve through our different ministries. My café had a huge turn-out and several people decided to continue to serve through the café in the future which makes me extremely happy!! It’ll be cool to see how God continues to use RSC to reach Canton, Ga.

And since this is the “Writer’s Block” I guess I should talk about my times writing for Around Canton magazine…Since I pulled down my previous posts I guess I could fill everyone (if anyone’s reading this) in…At the beginning of this year I met with the owner/editor of Around Canton to talk about writing some articles for him in this local magazine. I was very excited because in my efforts to become a full-time freelance writer, this was a huge break! It’s been four months and I’m still loving writing for them. It’s been hard though because I’ve not been very disciplined in scheduling my time. The hardest part of this job is finding the time to interview and meet up with people. I have a full-time job that is no where near Canton and I feel wrong calling and interviewing people while I’m at my other job. This leaves evenings and lunch breaks to call people...and email interviews...It's working, but it's slow.

I think the biggest factor, which I’m now trying to get under control is actually disciplining myself to set aside time in the evenings or mornings to write. This has been the #1 thing any writer I’ve met has told me that I will have to do in order to make it in the publishing business, at least as a writer. Unfortunately it’s something I’m terrible at!!

However, just because I’m terrible at it, doesn’t me I’m doomed to failure…I just need to get my priorities in gear and set aside some time for what I truly want to pursue…And in reality…If I can set aside time for Smallville, The O.C., and whatever other show I find time to watch, I think I can set aside some time to write…

I’ll keep you posted on how I’m doing:)

Changing Things Up

It's been quite some time since I posted last and so I thought I'd try it again...I kind-of get into it for awhile and then get distracted by life. Things have been good lately. In January I got a job writing for Around Canton magazine. It's been fun to write and see my articles (well one so far!) out in the community. Each year I've had "become a published writer" as a New Year's resolution. In 2006 I didn't have it on my list b/c I already had the job with AC!

I got in contact with a friend the other day who is truly living out her passion. She got her first big break a week ago and I am so proud of her! We met for coffee to chat and catch up and I told her that she was an inspiration to me. Seeing her live out her dream makes me want to strive harder to achieve mine!

Ridge Stone Church has been growing a ton and stepping up everywhere to improve even the smallest of areas. I run the cafe with a great group of ladies, but we definately have room to improve. I've been reading First Impressions by Mark L. Waltz and it's opened my eyes to see the area I lead and ways I can improve it. We had a training today by Judy Marshall from West Ridge Church and again, I saw more ways to take us to the next level. I'm excited to get to church tomorrow and start implementing some of the things I learned! This week I'm heading to a First Impressions conference and I know I'll learn even more...