Halloween month at Here Be Magic has lured me out of my
hermit basement like a ground squirrel checking the area for predators. Since there are
none--besides vampires, werewolves, soul-sucking ghosts, scary clowns and
T-Rexes--I guess it's safe for me to join in.
The fact is, nearly all of us have hectic schedules, but it's
important to periodically make time to do things like this -- to join in. Whether
online or in real life, fellowship with other authors, with readers, with other
folks in the publishing industry is part of what makes this difficult career
satisfying. In any career or role in life, I imagine we experience a certain bond,
even a need for fellowship, with others in similar occupations. We can all
benefit from new ideas, inspiration, and advice, or even provide these things
and be a helper to someone who needs the wisdom we've gathered.
In the last year and a half, I've focused more on my
freelance editing business than writing, but my first foray into a Kindle
World, writing a dragon shifter paranormal romance set in Magic, New Mexico, under the jolly and somewhat wacky
auspices of SE Smith, was released recently, reminding me just how much I need
to nurture both sides of my publishing brain. It also reminded me how much I
love interacting with other authors, as a group of us in the Kindle
World wrote our stories together, discussed marketing, and shared our ups and
downs. I love editing and helping others achieve their goals, but I also love
storytelling and, well, telling lies for fun and profit.
So my advice to all of you, readers and authors alike, is
not to be scared of the predators out there. Jump out of that burrow. Make time to join in. To discuss
your career or just your love of reading. If I hadn't been a member of an
active local RWA chapter, with a monthly opportunity to enjoy that fellowship
with others in my career, I don't know that I would be pursuing writing or
editing.
Social media, too, has opened up the range of voices, authors, and
readers I can share with, expanding my horizons in my career (and my crochet
hobby!), as it can with yours. I doubt I could have found too many neighbors
who appreciate the fact that I crochet peens and take photos of them in
ridiculous poses, but online I sure have!
Sincerely,
Jody W. & Meankitty
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