Turning The Page To A New Life Chapter

It's official!

As of today, I'll be freelancing full-time as copywriter and virtual assistant.

My current mood swings back and forth between excited elation and knee-jellying terror. It goes something like this:


Squeeee! I'm free! I will make a living with my writing and VAing! I can work from home! I can work from anywhere! Except...

Yikes! What if I don't earn enough? What if I can't pay my bills or health insurance? What if my clients drop me? What if I fuck up? What if I'm just not good/organized/disciplined enough? And yet...

Squeeee! I can start novel-writing again! I can set up a passive source of income! I can work on my balcony! I can get a dog!


I'm going to make an educated guess that everyone who takes the leap from employment to freelancing also takes the same or a similar ride on the emotional rollercoaster. It's scary and exhilirating all in one.

It's probably also one of the most courageous things I've ever done, even though it doesn't feel that way (yet?).

Over the past year or so, things have kept falling into place in my life, things that I let happen and guide me, things that brought me here without me having to pull and push and shove and fight.

Yes, I worked hard to get here. I'm sleep-deprived, my to-do list is a mile long, and I can't remember the last time I had a proper work-out.

But I don't feel drained, or stressed, or like the ground might suddenly break away from under my feet. I don't have to fear that I'll die of hunger alone in a gutter somewhere if this doesn't pan out. I have several backup and contingency plans in place, in case something goes wrong.

I'm as prepared as I'll ever be, and I know it. I feel safe in taking this step now, at this point in my life. And I'm happy and immensely grateful to be able to start this new life chapter in such a positive way.

Dead Skin - Fourth Poem

Dead Skin

I am filled

with a void of nothing

Disoriented

at a crossroads

Which way to take

from here

So many options

none feel true

So many obstacles

all my own

Escape is paramount

yet here I stand

Immobile

Unable

To shed my skin

with the void inside

To leave it behind

This Is So Me

Remembrance - Third Poem

(Last one... for now. ;-) )

Remembrance

nugget of knowledge

whisper of wisdom

heard for the first time

invokes a tremor

not as if it’s a novel thought

but as if I’m reminded

of something lost

long ago

hidden treasure 

from deep within

to be discovered

recaptured
unearthed

set free

when time 

and my spirit 

call for its remembrance

How I Built My Own Workout Desk - My Write Bike

Sedentary Lifestyle - Not Ideal

For years now, I've been coming home after my day job, and sitting down at my desk, dining table or couch to write. What I write varies, but one thing doesn't: I'm sitting. I'm comfortable, and so are my flaccid muscles. 

Instead of using the time after work to exercise my body and straighten out the kinks in muscles, bones and joints that have accumulated over my desk-job day, I sit some more.

A healthy lifestyle this is not. But I'd rather sit and write than work out and not write. If only I could come up with a way to get some exercise while writing...


How to Get Moving

I'd heard of treadmill desks, obviously. But not only do they take up a lot of space, they are also rather expensive. 

Then I stumbled across the so called desk peddlers and thought maybe... They're smaller and cheaper than treadmill desks, to be sure. And that's when it hit me! I own an exercise-bike for home use, gathering dust in the corner behind my bedroom door!

Maybe I didn't have to spend a lot of money on something I already had, and could possibly assemble myself...? All I had to do was add a few parts to the bike, after all. What parts exactly was the variable in need of exploring. 


"Ingredients" for My Bike Desk

So I rummaged around my own inventory - what flat surface object did I own that I could somehow attach to the handle-bars of the bike? I got lucky almost immediately when I unearthed this old laptop lap-shelf thingy that I hadn't used for a while:

Suddenly, I was excited - its shape would make my rookie tinkering so much eaiser than expected. All I had to do was hook it over the bike's handle-bars, and presto! I had an easy, flat surface to put my laptop on, without too much danger of the entire contraption sliding off, or my laptop slipping off the desk. It was almost too good to be true.

Of course, it was, if only a little. The angle this left the laptop at on top of the handle-bars was a bit too steep for comfortable writing. I soon got cramps in my wrists when I tried to type out any serious-length text. So I had to elevate the front end of the shelf away from the bike's control unit - but how? 


Perfecting The Raw Material

I figured some sort of wedge between the shelf and the control unit would do the trick, so I cut up an old moving box and experimented with folding different shapes into triangles and wedges. It had to both elevate and straighten the shelf to a comfortable writing-height, while being sturdy enough to hold the weight of my laptop as well as my hands while typing on it.

I finally found the perfect sturdy wedge-shape that helped make writing while riding the bike almost as comfortable as when sitting at my desk. I tried it out that same night. It worked wonderfully, just as I'd hoped and imagined. 


One Last Thing...

Since functionality was now perfected, I also wanted to make sure I wouldn't accidentally knock the entire thing to the ground - my laptop is the one thing out of all my possessions for which I'd run into a burning building (I'm a writer. 'Nuff said.). So, unwilling to subject it to my clumsiness, I ordered two velcro-straps on Amazon. They arrived two days later and, after a few more minutes of testing, found their ideal positions:

Now, unless I knock over the entire bike, my laptop is no longer in danger of flying off the handle. *snerk*

Yes, I know the entire setup looks a bit makeshift. I'm not exactly a master tinkerer. But it's stable, secure, and comfortable enough to use for an hour of writing. And it didn't cost me much aside from about half an hour of experimenting and a few euros. 


Cost Break-Down

Building my own Write Bike (as I call it) was way cheaper than buying anything specifically designed with the purpose of moving while writing. All in all, the costs broke down to the following:

What I had to buy
- 2 velcro straps for 11,02€ 

What I found at home
- 1 home exercise bike, original price (2012) ca. 100€
- 1 laptop support, original price ca. 4€
- 1 moving box, original price 1,50€

This amounts to a total of 116,52€, of which I'd paid 105,50€ years ago.


Final Result

And so here it is: My Write Bike in all its glory. I use it almost every night and am loving it.

 

Do you have a way to work out while writing? What other options are there? I'd love to hear about your experiences in the comments.

What Would It Take - Another Poem

(Apparently, I'm on a roll...)



What would it take?

What would it take
for you to bid farewell
to your mother and father
your sisters and brothers
indefinitely

What would it take
for you to walk
thousands of miles
through heat and cold
through hunger and thirst

What would it take
for you to carry
your beloved children
through fever and fear
towards the unknown

What would it take
for you to prefer
the uncertainties and insecurities
and foreign hostilities
to all that is familiar

What would it take
for YOU to leave home
Not because you have somewhere to go
But because you have nowhere to stay
Because 'home' has ceased to be

What would it take?

Waste of Words - A Poem

(My first in many years...)

waste of words

people talk

back and forth

interrupting

repeating

in circles

round and round

the chatter of a million empty phrases

unheard

unfelt

over and over

saying nothing new

nothing bold

nothing true

again and again

I sit

listening

and wish for silence

for looks between souls
for truths without words

Here and Now

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you Happy Holidays with an overdose of cuteness! Have a wonderful, relaxing time with your loved ones, and may you recharge your batteries for an all new and exciting 2016.

Merry Christmas!

SpokAnimal C.A.R.E.

Interesting Tidbit about Debut Sales

Interesting post on The Huffington Post the other day: What Should Authors Expect to Earn? 

According to The HuffPo, 25,000 copies is a "sensational" sale for a debut novel. 15,000 copies will garner enough attention to get a publisher interested in the second book.

For someone working in the automobile industry, selling 25,000 copies sounds like peanuts. Most car companies wouldn't even fire up their production lines for such a measly number of units. 


[I guess that proves it: books ain't cars. Just in case you weren't sure.]

The following comparison might put the above-mentioned author sales into a more relatable perspective: Madison Square Garden seats up to 19,830 people during a basketball game. So if you sold your book to every spectator during the next Knicks game, you'd make a publisher sit up and take notice. 

So the question all debut authors should ask themselves is...








When's the next Knicks game? 

:-D

Taking my Writing to the Next Level in 2016

Hard to believe 2015 is almost over. It was a busy year for me, writing-wise. I finished a novel and started querying agents for it (one has already requested a full. Yay!). I almost finished the first draft of the next novel in the series. 

So - busy. Busy busy bee.

2016 is about to become so much busier. Not only do I plan on finishing this second novel and a first draft of the third (and last in the series), as well as hopefully *fingers crossed* selling the first. I'm also going to start a freelance (copy)writing business. 

Gulp. Did I just post that out loud? 

I guess I did. Does that make it official?

I'm going to start small - as part-time next to my day job, which will remain my main source of income. For now. ;-)

To get started, I created a website about my copywriting endeavors, called Word for Word. The first blog post on the bloggy page of this site goes live this Sunday, and explains How to Prepare for Going Freelance as a Copywriter. 

I'm also launching an entirely new blog, called Blusher's Blog, dedicated to all things erythrophobia - a social anxiety that leaves people afraid to blush. Sounds harmless, right? Except it isn't to those afflicted. Living with erythrophobia can severely restrict and confine your life. I overcame it several years ago, but it's still a topic close to my heart that I'm finally ready to talk about. And maybe help a few people through it in the process. The first post also goes live on Sunday, and describes How Fear of Blushing, aka "Erythrophobia", Affects People (Besides Blushing). 

If you're curious enough to check them out, I'd love to know what you think! 



Phew. These have got to be the loftiest aspirations I've ever had. It's scary, exciting and exhilirating all in one. And I know it's a little early, but maybe you already have goals for 2016, too? If so, I'd love to hear about them. Maybe we can be scared, excited and exhilirated together?! 

The Hero's Journey in a Nutshell

Source

On NaNoWriMo, The Hopes Of

On NaNoWriMo, The Frustrations Of

Or not. Yep. I feel you, Mimi.

Write on!

 

Writer Comic #1

6 Habits That Got Me Through NaNoWriMo Successfully

I've participated in National Novel Writing Month four times so far, three of those times successfully. This year, I'm going for it again, my goal being to finish the first draft of the novel I'm currently working on. At the moment, I'm 35.000 words into the manuscript. If I manage to add the 50.000 NaNoWriMo-words in November, the first draft should be as good as done. It'll probably be a mess, but it'll be words on the page that I can improve. The first hurdle taken.

So that's my goal for this year's NaNoWriMo. And the general conditions appear to be in my favor. I have no big travel plans this November. I started on the manuscript just two months ago, so I'm not burned out on it yet. And this manuscript is the second in a series, the first of which I'm currently querying agents with, which provides additional motivation to get the second one done asap.

But, I also tanked my last NaNoWriMo attempt two years ago. Okay, conditions weren't ideal that year, since I was backpacking through Peru during one of those weeks, but I didn't even manage my personal goal of 30.000 words in the previous three. So I thought back on how I managed 50.000 words those three times before, and realized I did adopt a few habits in those years that helped me get through. Maybe those can help you, too, so here they are:


1. Write. Don't Edit.
It's like vomiting words onto the page. Toss them out there as you're thinking them. Don't hesitate, don't look back. Editing, improving those words, can wait. As Nora Roberts said, you can fix anything but a blank page.

2. Create an Outline.
Tossing those words out there is easier when you have a good or even just a general idea of where your story is headed.

3. Ignore the Outline.
If at any point you have a lightbulb moment about the plot that conflicts with your outline, forget the outline. Follow the lightbulb. Then adjust the outline accordingly for your next writing session.

4. Write before Work / you start your Daily Routine.
Set your alarm an hour before your usual wake-up time. Take this time to write, and only write. No Emails. No Facebook, no Twitter. No kids. Just a cup of coffee, your laptop, and you.

5. Write on your Lunch Break.  
Or on the bus or train. During the kids' nap time. Basically, write anywhere and anytime you get the chance.

6. Forget about the Word Count.
At least until the end of the day, when you can sit down and check how many words you've written. If you wrote in the morning, and every other chance you got, you might be closer to those 1.667 words/day than you think. You might even be over. If not, now's the time to finish them. Just don't distract yourself from your writing by worrying about the word count.


I'll be trying to get back into those habits and mind set this November. But what works for me, might not work for you. I'd love to hear about your own tips, tricks and habits that have helped you reach those 50.000 words in 30 days. Tell me about them in the comments.

And good luck to anybody attempting NaNoWriMo this year. Let's do this!

Awesome Writerly Quote #3

Burn, Baby, burn!!! Mwahahahahaaaaaa

TBR Pile Time

I love book nerds. They come up with the coolest things...

Do you have a To-Be-Read pile as high as Mount Everest? Well now you can calculate how long it'll take you to read all those books (under the assumption you won't aggregate any more), with this TBR Time Calculator from Read It Forward. 

I immediately let it estimate when I'll have decimated my TBR pile at the rate I'm going: four years. 

Four. Years. My pile will be razed to the ground by Augst 27th of 2019. Twenty. Nnineteen. 

I guess that time-frame indicates I either have a million books to read, or am just a really slow reader. To be honest, it's a bit of both. If I'd used this calculator when I was a teenager, it would probably have told me I'd be done in two months. Alas, these days I'm lucky if I have 30 minutes a day of reading time. 

Teen-me would want to kick threen-me's ass for that. Then again, threen-me sometimes wants to kick teen-me's ass for not realizing how much free time she had. So I guess we're even.



Has anybody else tried the calculator? When will you be done with your TBR-pile?

Book Country's Genre Map

Ever asked yourself which genre your WIP actually fits into? 

Ask no longer. Consult Book Country's Genre Map. 

It's a map! With genre countries! Click on any of the countries, and the map will tell you all about its genre. 

Awesome sauce!

Awesome Writerly Quote #2

"I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear." 


- Joan Didion

On Nerds, The Pride Of

This post by Chuck Wendig moved me to tears. Okay, one tear, but still. A blog post about Star Wars, not even Star Wars itself, made me choke up. At work.

Ahem. 

Mr. Wendig should have labelled it NSFW, lest your colleagues look at you funny and you have to come up with a bogus work-related reason why you're all misty-eyed. Only fellow nerds would understand. 

Which brings me to my point. Chuck Wendig's post is an amazing testimony as to why nerds are nerds. It represents nerddom at it's finest. Whether it's Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter, The Avengers, Buffy, Hunger Games, Final Fantasy or *insert chosen favorite here*, the emotions Chuck Wendig describes are the reason why we immerse ourselves into these fictional worlds so fully. It explains why we are labeled as nerds, and label ourselves as nerds with such pride:

"It [Star Wars] gave me characters I love and a simplistic, elegant view of both narrative and morality that inevitably you push back against while simultaneously reaching for it. It made me friends. It was a love my family shared then, and it’s a love my wife and my son share now. It is the universe that keeps on giving. It made me feel like I could do anything,..."

"It means friends and family. It means the power of story. It means the power of possibility."


Bull's eye, Chuck. Just... bull's eye.