Hi readers! I hope things are going well with you. As a fitness instructor I used to have would say, “Here’s wha we’re gunna do.” Today I’m gunna write about two things. I know. Writing coaches tell you to stick to one topic in a blog post, but I’m gunna break the rules. First topic: news about what I’ve been doin’ lately. Second topic: a note, mainly, but not exclusively, to writers about blowing away the blues.
What I’ve been doin’
I’ve been busy with a snail-mail project directed to indie bookstores, celebrating Undertow’s 10th year of reaching readers. I’m pitching the book again, giving stats and facts and nudges to stock the book. A major surprise popped up this week. Two bookstores in Ohio sell Undertow already! Which matters to me a lot, because Ohio is the home state of The Way International™ headquarters, in New Knoxville. As you may imagine, I’m targeting a whole lot of bookstores in that state!
If you’d like me to include your local bookstore in my promo mailing, just Reply to this email and let me know the bookstore’s name, and if possible, its address. Or I can look that up myself.
As for my own local bookstore, Writers Block Bookstore, in Winter Park, Florida, they’ve been selling Undertow on their website since 2017.
Note: My books are printed, sold, and distributed by IngramSpark to online book sellers, indie bookstores, libraries, and eBook outlets in the USA and other countries through their Global Connect program.
Blow away the blues
If you’re a writer, are you feeling down and out? [about writing or anything else, like the state of the economy, politics, wars, Ebola, gas prices, etc. you name the bad news of your choice]. Or are you in a slump as you tackle your latest manuscript? Whatever your shade of blue, here’s some light to change the color. It’s from my book, From the Porch to the Page: A Guidebook for the Writing Life (New Wings Press, LLC. 2023), from the chapter, “Writing the Truth.” (Pg 17).
No matter what awful situation surrounds us, as writers, we know a secret that can rid us of the blues. What is it? On the nearest blank page, write whatever comes to your mind. And keep writing. Write what you really feel, smell, see, hear, and touch. No one is watching. You’re free to lose yourself in some messy sentences, brainstorm new characters… In your journal, which no one should ever read without permission, write the truth about what bothers you, what helps you.
Thanks for reading!
Charlene
*I do NOT use AI to write content. I do use spellcheck when needed. 🙂
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