Tag: author

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Embracing New Challenges


For the last few weeks I’ve been grappling with the woes of unemployment.  This is the first time in my life that I have ever had to apply for unemployment and it’s both painful and humbling.  On the plus side, this newly available free time has helped me finish some writing and do more of the blogging and things.  I’ve even been more active on social media.  With more finished writing, I’ve also been submitting to online magazines.  Some have rejected me and others I’m still awaiting a reply.  It’s been a rocky few weeks.

With publishing and things, I have several short stories that will likely be rejected soon.  I say likely rejected because I feel I need to be rejected 10,000 times before someone will publish my work.  We shall see.  Also, June 16, will be a free eBook download day for Dollar Tales from the Morbid Museum: The Ghosts Inside.  Download on your kindle or kindle app for free the entire day.  On June 30, I have a new eBook coming to your kindle and kindle app titled Dollar Tales from the Morbid Museum: Flash Fiction.  This one will include four short stories and a little introduction to the Morbid Museum.

As far as promotion is concerned, I have recently started a Patreon page.  This is a social platform to help artists, creators, and the like to gain financial assistance for the creative endeavors.  Since I am unemployed, I thought this would be a good idea.  I at least would like $7 a month to help cover the cost of this website.  I have also been working harder on increasing my reach on my Facebook and Twitter pages. I have increased likes and followers, but this is only the beginning.  Please tell your friends and keep an ear out for other free eBook download days.

The challenges will never cease, and I will continue my mental health battle.  I’ve been finding more and more reasons to stay positive and finally feel like I have a support system.  This is a first for me, but this is what motivates me to keep writing, to keep searching for a new job, and to continue promoting myself to one day become a full-time writer.  What a joy that would be to work for myself and still make enough money to survive and have fun.  We should all be so lucky.  Remember to face your challenges and never give up!

 

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Why I Share Articles About Anxiety


As I have grown to understand the full scope of my anxiety, I am more open about discussing anxiety.  I tell people I have anxiety.  Some believe they can relate and are sympathetic.  Some do have anxiety but never speak of their own struggles.  I sometimes wonder if they think I am brave for vocalizing mine.  Then there are others who do not understand anything.  They associate anxiety with being nervous before a test or feeling stressed at work.  They do not feel anxious every second of every day.  They are why I share articles about anxiety.

Someone offered me a neck and shoulder rub.  They said, “You’re so tense.  Loosen up.  Relax.”  I replied, “I always feel like this.  This IS me relaxed.”  At the time, I did not know all the physical symptoms of anxiety.  I have experienced muscle tension as long as I can remember.  I did not realize I lived with this condition for almost 20 years.  Everyone says I look tense, on edge, or hyper alert.  It makes them uncomfortable, but they have no idea how uncomfortable I am.  Their discomfort goes away; mine is constant.  They are why I share articles about anxiety.

I want to understand myself, so I can heal and grow.  I want other people to better understand where I am coming from and possibly appreciate me a little more.  I want potential romantic partners to understand why I worry or lack confidence in myself.  I want everyone to be patient with me and understanding.  I want to be loved in a way I have never known.  I want to feel comfortable and at ease with someone; with everyone.  I want to feel like I am not a burden to everyone around me.  That is why I share articles about anxiety.  That is why I write articles about anxiety.

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Don’t Set Goals for the New Year; Set Goals for Life


As the year comes to a close, one reflects on everything that has transpired.  So many horrible things have happened and yet, I can see light at the end of the tunnel.  I have nothing but a sense of hope for the coming new year.  I feel there will be more tragedies and horrors for the world overall but my personal life, my small world, my tiny existence is about to move into a place it has never been.  I cannot say exactly what I mean because I personally don’t even know what I mean.  Things will get better.

Here are some of the hopes, dreams, and goals I have for the coming year.  I hope to get a new job that does not involve working nights and hopefully pays well.  Arguing and wrestling with drunks lost its appeal many years ago and I hope to never work in a bar environment for the rest of my life.  With a new job that frees up my nights and weekends, I will perhaps have more of a social life.  Although, I’ve never been much of a social person due to my anxiety, but I will have the opportunity and that makes me happy.

Having recently finished the first draft of a novel, I know that my writing endeavors will evolve over the next year.  My skills as a writer are growing and there are several things I need to work on to improve but I have the tools I need to achieve this.  I feel I will surely have something published soon.  If not in 2018, I will definitely have something published in 2019.  I hope to have more blog entries starting with this one.  I will not make any promises other than writing more.  Less concrete goals work better for me.

I have always felt I would change the world with my writing but felt there were many obstacles and barriers preventing my achievement of this.  I believe I know what these barriers are and I have a plan for removing them one at a time.  It will be a long process but I will achieve my goals.  I want to mention that all these hopes and dreams and goals are not New Year Resolutions.  They are simply goals one sets in one’s life.  My New Year Resolution is the same every year.  Be awesome and feel sexy.  I meet this goal every day of every year.

I hope to bring some of my newly found skills in writing to you, the public of potential or aspiring writers.  There are many things I was told over the years about writing but no one could ever offer examples of how to achieve these things.  Sometimes I thought they were just regurgitating what others had always told them.  I have found examples of these common things to avoid and, more importantly, examples of how to fix them.  It will take some time to implement these changes but I feel confident that I will finally reach success.