Don't Tell Me I'm Too Old!

@GlenysOConnell

It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams.” – Gabriel García Marquez.

As a society, we seem obsessed with age. Age dominates the way we're expected to behave - how often do we hear the phrase: Act Your Age! when we're maybe feeling light and easy and a bit giddy? And what a putdown that can feel like! Then the way we dress - why shouldn't 'older' women wear bright colors and yes, tight pants and mini skirts, too, if they have the shape for it. Not something I would do, though. My shape needs something more demure...:-)
 
Age perception affects every aspect of our lives. Whether we get a job or a promotion, whether we're considered too old to learn something new, too old to date or find new relationships. An aunt in her late sixties was advised by concerned family members that she was 'too old' to take a trip to Australia to see the son she hadn't seen for years, and meet his family. She went. She had a great time - and looked years younger when she came home.
 

A friend who's an avid woodworker set about building himself a new workshop as his 70th birthday gift to himself. Another friend suggested to him that, at his age, it was pointless building this new project because, after all, he wouldn't have a lot of time left. Twenty years later, he's still enjoying his workspace, making wood carvings and creating other items from his own designs.

 

There's a lot to be said for staying young in our outlook. I'm pretty sure that 'young thinking' people stay healthier and active. I'm a great believer in the idea that 'attitude is everything' and that, if we give in to the idea that age prevents us from doing something, well, we may as well head for the rocking chair and slowly fade away.

 
I've taught creative writing online for years, and one question prospective students often ask is: "Do You Think I'm Too Old To Start Writing a Book?" My reply is usually: "Are you breathing? Do You have a pulse? Then no, you're not too old."
 
It makes me angry when I hear newsreaders announce that 'an elderly woman of 57' was injured in a car accident. Jeez, whoever said 57 was elderly?
 
I'm not immune, though. This age thing gets into your head. One of the main characters in my recently completed novel, The Bride's Curse, is a woman of 62. I found myself frequently referring to her as an older woman, and even twice as an old woman. Goodness me - I had to slap myself silly and go back and change all those references!
 
So, that's my rant for today, and the reason that I veered from the straight and narrow of the quotes listed for January above. After all, my fellow roses have done justice to them already and I'm feeling far too old to be competitive - Not!
 
Glenys O'Connell, who refuses to give her age even when asked by Homeland Security, also blogs on Romance Can Be Murder! http://www.romancecanbemurder.blogspot.ca/ And you can see her books on www.amazon.com/author/glenysoconnell

Don't Fall For This!

 @GlenysOConnell

Like most writers, I love the writing part. Making up stories – or, as someone once put it, telling lies for fun and profit, is a great way to earn a living. And you’re never short of (imaginary) friends, so you’re never lonely, either.

But, also like so many writers, I’m not so hot on the side of the profession that involves selling. Not that I haven’t done it – as a freelance writer and as a ghostwriter, I made pitches, bid on work, and generally  pimped myself with the best of them. But selling my novels? Oh, dear, I become the original shrinking violet….

So like so many others, I look for quick fixes. Surely someone out there can help me grab the sales that would make me a best seller? After all, I know my books are good. Readers have, bless their hearts,  told me so. The ones that bought them, that is.
But there are so many other books out there - how to reach the right audience and get them to part with their hard earned dollars?

I worked in real estate in Toronto for a while, and I used to comfort wouldbe vendors with the words: “All you need is one person who falls in love with your house. Then it’s sold!”  And that is true.

There’s another saying we had, too, that applied to overpriced, eccentric, or homes that needed that euphemism: “Tender Loving Care”. We would roll our eyes and say: “Well, there’s one born every minute.’ And it was unfair, because some of those ‘fools’ who bought the homes no-one in their right minds would touch went on to renovate and sell on at a tidy profit.

What does this have to do with writing and selling books, you ask? Lots. Because there are many  sharks out there who will promise you the earth, moon, stars and the New York Times bestseller lists, all at a bargain basement price. There’s a reason why many of them do not deliver: simply, they’re promising the impossible. Besides, what would you do if you had the moon and stars???

Every day, it seems. I get Twitter ‘followers” at @GlenysOConnell who promise me tens of thousands of new followers for my account, for a ‘reasonable’ fee. I don’t follow back. Or open my wallet, either.

You see, there’s no point in buying tens of thousands of followers, even if these people could deliver. Am I crazy? Wouldn’t a gazillion followers look better than the 5000 plus I already have?

Well, no. You see, the folks who chose to follow me – and I follow back – are ones who, for the most part, are interested in  my work. They are writers who happily share tweets with me for my work in exchange for comments about theirs. They are people with similar beliefs who share information. And many of them are, bless their little hearts again, readers who like my books. Who probably will buy my books. Oh, how I love them!

But the secret is that they choose to be on my account. One follower, five, ten, or five thousands, are infinitely preferable to tens of thousands who aren’t interested, just got dumped there, aren’t readers, don’t share a philosophy, don’t even know who I am. And don’t want to buy my books. So why would I pay to have them on my list?

There are many companies out there who make similar promises but aren’t scams. Like the sites that offer to publicise your free kindle book. Sure, there’s a chance you might get readers that way. But have you seen how many other free books yours will be competing against for space on their newsletter pages? And then there are the ‘intermediaries’. The other day I got an email from a company that offered to get my book on another company’s site for $60.00. I went straight to the other company’s site and saw that I could list the service I wanted a $25 – 40 .  Not $60.00. Uhmmm.

So, I guess what I’m saying is, don’t fall for those oh so very logical sounding offers that come your way, whether you’re a writer or in some other line of work where you need customers. . Investigate them. Ask other people in your line of work if they’ve tried them, and what happened. Most of all, think about what they’re offering. Is it worth the money? Is it something you could probably do yourself more effectively if you put your mind to it? Does what they’re offering even fulfill your need (like the tens of thousands of disinterested followers mentioned previously).

There will always be legitimate companies selling stuff you might not really need. That’s what sales are all about: “Gee, look at that! I never knew I needed it until they told me so!” And there are lots of scammers out there who talk a good talk and leave you out the price of their ‘miracle’ solution.

Think about what you need, and if what they’re offering is a) plausible and b) and this is a big one – does it fit with what you need, with your philosophy, and with the image you want to project?

As they used to say on NYPD Blue, Be careful out there!

*****My romantic suspense with a touch of the paranormal, Saving Maggie, is now one of ten books in a bundle from Crimson Romance, on sale at the 'steal' of a price - 99c for the bundle! It's titled Running to Love! Click here to take a look, or here for the free first chapter of Saving Maggie!

 

My Take on Movies & Videos - Comment for a Chance to Win a Free Book!

We’re talking about movies this month, and it’s not a subject I’m really well versed in. I know people who can recall the plots and quote lines from all kinds of movies, most of which I’ve never heard of. It kind of makes me feel left out when I’m with people who do this. Imagine the scene.

Me: So, what are we doing today?
Friend 1: How would you like a nice bass? Girls like a nice bass.
Me: I don’t see that on the menu…
Friend 2: No? Take that, you dirty yellow rat….

I’m left confused while they fall about laughing. Friend 1’s comment is from Napoleon Dynamite, Friend 2’s is from Home Alone 2….Leaving me wondering who’s the dummy, them or me.

I don’t watch a lot of movies. I did enjoy Noah, and thought Avatar was interesting. I hated Wolf of Wall Street, which was highly recommended by critics and friends. Am I odd?

I do watch television, though, and love English police dramas (Inspector George Gently, Foyle’s War, Dalziel & Pascoe, Endeavor, Inspector Lewis….even Midsummer Murders) And I’m not embarrassed to admit (although I maybe should be) that I have the Young & The Restless on my PVR.

One trend I have noticed – it would be hard to miss – is the prevalence of short videos that have spilled over from YouTube. I have MSN as my home page and many of these are featured in the videos list there. Some are fascinating, some educational, some delightful, and some leave me wondering ‘What just happened?’ Do I really want to spend even 30 seconds watching a video of a cat sleeping with its tongue out? Or how about a clever goat getting some fruit?
Of course, there are some great videos, too – like my talented son, Garth O'Connell,  doing a cover of Crack The Sky… http://t.co/9k5IccpP4F :-)

 As a writer, I tend to look at my viewing time as research. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. I have written two stage plays that have been produced and even won awards, and I was on the list of writers for a proposed new Irish teen soap, except that the project, three years in the making, was cancelled before production started due to budget cuts at the RTE. :-)

So writing a script for television or movies is on my dream list.

One great use of videos is for educational purposes. There’s a wide variety of really informative videos on a huge range of subjects, from health to cooking to car mechanics to fashion, woodwork,  painting…you name it. Some great ones on writing, too, and I’m thinking of putting my writing course, Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book, on video.

When I can find a camera that makes me look good, or at least, human. Oh, and to answer the question I’ve heard so many times about the title of this course, I don’t and won’t do it naked. Believe me, that’s a blessing for the viewers.

So, having successfully led this month’s theme away from movies and onto other topics, I’d love to hear your thoughts on videos. Have you found any particularly funny, horrible, helpful? Have you taken any courses that were run online through video?

There’s a signed copy of the print version of Naked Writing, or of my romantic comedy, the No Sex Clause, for one lucky commenter!

You can read first chapters of my books on my website www.glenysoconnell.webs.com/

 

 

Seven Ways to Know if You Are Your Own Horrible Boss

We’re talking horrible bosses on the Roses this month, and we’ve probably all had them. They can make our working lives a living hell and make us unproductive and unhappy. In fact, the stress of working in tense surroundings can actually make us ill. Many people dream of being their own bosses, but that dream can become a nightmare!

When we’re working for ourselves, especially in any kind of creative venture, we tend to be much harder on ourselves and have much higher expectations of our abilities and time than an employer would. This applies whether you’re a writer, artist, a realtor or sales person cold calling for clients for your product or service, a designer, or any other line of work that means you alone are responsible for your success or failure.

Here are seven things that show you’re being a Horrible Boss to yourself:

1)      You set yourself daily targets which ten people working full time couldn’t possibly achieve in a week. This is known as setting yourself up for failure.

2)     You’re all ready to start work when you remember some urgent non-related task. The kitty litter needs cleaning, the refrigerator needs emptying, emails must be checked and replied to, your calendar needs updating – you get the picture. This is known as procrastinating.

3)     You get angry and resentful when social or family obligations come along that mean you can’t get your work targets, and take it out on everyone around you. This is known as transference – you feel under pressure to complete a project and now you convince yourself that if it wasn’t for these demands, you’d have got it all done. Yeah, right.

4)      You go on to waste time disliking yourself about being such a horrible person and spoiling the social event for others because of your attitude. This is known as guilt tripping.

5)     You beat yourself up because you haven’t achieved as much as you set out to do today. See #4

6)      Finally, you become reluctant to actually sit down and start your work – no matter whether it’s writing a book, cold calling for new sales clients, because all the demands on your time and skills have become overwhelming. This is being defeated before you’ve even started.

7)      You start looking for comforts, whether food, television, reading blogs, chatting on the phone – you can justify these distractions by saying you needed a break from the computer – even though you haven’t written a word yet. This is fear of failure – or fear of success - writ large.

I’m sure many of us could add to this list. Here are some answers I recommend:

 

#1). Know what you need to achieve, break it down into smaller goals, and then pencil in each goal into your daybook.

#2) Once you know what you need to do, follow your own guidelines and do it.

#3) This is a tough one – especially for people who work at home. Lay down some strict ground rules about your availability There are some things you can’t and shouldn’t miss out on – a social life is important to your mental health. You just don’t have to attend everything – and you don’t have to stay for hours. Choose what you do and how long, then relax and enjoy.

#4) You’re not a horrible person, you are someone following a dream. If you keep a tight rein on time sinks and on social events, you won’t need feel angry about ‘time wasting’.

#5) If you’ve followed #1 and set reasonable goals, you won’t need to beat yourself up about getting nothing done. Remember, too, that you can’t control everything. Go with the flow.

#6) This is a difficult one. You need to explore the reasons you’re reluctant. Is it connected to the earlier issues, have you not prepared enough, are you afraid of failure? Or success? We all have our own demons that can keep us from achieving. Find out what yours is and work through it..

#7)Sometimes, if you hit a snag, taking time out for a walk or a quiet read with a cup of coffee – or cleaning out the kitty litterJ - can help your subconscious come up with a solution. Just make sure it is a break and not quitting!

I’m writing this from my experience as my own Horrible Boss. Are you a good boss, or do you give yourself a lot of problems?

 Glenys O’Connell is working on her demons. Meanwhile, her book, Winters & Somers, is to be re-released on June 4^th by Tirgearr Publishing, she’s working on edits on another book and deadline with a third. Stress? Really? You can read the first chapter of Winters & Somers at her website

 

 

 

First, You Have to Know What Success Is For You

By Glenys O'Connell @GlenysOConnell

Before we can be successful, we have to know what it means to us as an individual. In writing, perhaps more than many other walks of life, there are many ways to be successful, depending on what the person – you – want to gain from your work.

And there are many people who will tell you how to become successful – often the advice is contradictory. I remember being told ‘Write the book you want to read’ and at the same time being told ‘Write for the market’.

Well, I worried, what if my taste in reading material isn’t what the market wants? I guess the thing to do, really, if you want to be published is to update your favorite reading material with what you learn from researching the market, in order to write a book that you want to read – and other people want to read, too!

For example, I’ve always loved ‘gothic’ mysteries, in particular the work of the legendary Phyllis Whitney. Her books don’t appear on the top selling lists anymore, but basically, her writing category has morphed into ‘romantic suspense’, still with the woman in jeopardy theme but a lot sexier  and more dangerous and wide-ranging – and who can complain about that? So I can write the plots I love, and still write for the market, yes?

One thing I do know, there are few – if any - fast tracks to writing success. Read about many bestselling authors and you’ll learn they have been writing for years before hitting the A-list. Stephen King claimed he could wallpaper his room with all the rejections he received before Carrie’s success!

The Internet is full of Get Rich Quick Schemes – save your money, avoid them and keep writing. They often have tempting titles like: Ten Minutes to Double Your Income! Unlock Your Writing Power! Free Money Making Plans! The Secret to Writing Success! Maybe I’m biased, but I suspect the only people to get rich from these schemes are the people selling them.

Personally, I think you have to define what you consider to be success for yourself – and surprisingly, that doesn’t always come with a dollar figure attached.

Usually when we think of writing success, we think of the bestseller lists, adoring fans

waiting for signed copies of our books, royalty cheques big enough to impress the stodgiest bank manager, and write-ups in the popular press. But before you throw yourself into the mad dash for the number one spot, consider this question: What does writing success mean to you? Do you even want to reach for the stars?

For some writers, the act of writing is fulfilling enough. For others, it’s knowing that somewhere out there someone is reading their work. Still others are burning with a message they need to get out into the world – whether they ever earn a penny or not. If your writing can make one person feel that they are not alone in the human condition, would that be enough to make you feel successful? Or do you want to grab the brass ring, to have adoring fans and publishers fighting to catch your eye?

Too many of us set off on the wrong road, never questioning what we actually consider to be success on our own terms.  Success isn’t a generic, one-size-fits-all garment; we each need a different version of it. And too many writers come to a crashing standstill, unable to reach a goal they don’t understand or have the aptitude for, or are actually subconsciously undermining, instead of pursuing a dream that fits them just right. And then starts the painful process of self-blame, of denigrating our talent and belittling the work we’ve done when it was, perhaps, simply the wrong work, the wrong success path for us.

So, learn your craft, write well, and choose your own path to the success you want.

And if anyone has used one of those ‘quick path to success’ plans out there and been successful, I’d love to hear your story!

 

Glenys O'Connell is a multi-published writer of romantic suspense and comedy, a playwright, and non-fiction author. She wrote the book on writing basics: Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book.

 

 

HOT OR COLD? Phew! It Can Be So Confusing!

 

When it comes to sensuality ratings in books, the hot or cold designations have always confused me.

 I’ve read wonderfully sensual passages where the couple reached the bedroom door and then..well, the rest was left to the readers’ (often very fertile) imaginations.

And I’ve read scenes where the writer has tried so hard to be outrageously hot that the love scene reads more like a sex ed manual.

And then there’s the totally I’ll-write-erotic-or-die scenes where I’ve wound up giggling in amazement and thinking, gee, that would be physically impossible unless you were eight feet tall and built like an Orangutan.

And who but another Orangutan would find that kind of sexy description hot?

Yep, in my humble opinion, writing really hot and sexy scenes that make the reader all hot and bothered is an art form and is done well only by really exceptional writers who have a knack for it. These scenes are usually highly emotionally charged as well as very physically hot.

I write romantic suspense, so the sexy hot and the murderously hot have to balance. It's also a mistake to try to forcer oneself to write hot - at least, it never works for me. Possibly because when I get to a certain point where it’s obvious I’m trying too hard to get  erotic - I’ll read it to my DH and we both fall about laughing.

My books usually have a couple of sensual scenes in them, but also a lot of banter between the hero and heroine which is both funny and sexy. I’ve been amazed when a couple of reviewers have described my heroines as bitchy, when they’ve actually been showing irritation or standing up for themselves with an Alpha male who’d swamp them if they didn’t. I wonder if these reviewers think women should always be meek and submissive and hide their true feelings?

Still, I’ve always considered my books to be in the ‘mild’ rather than ‘hot’ category, and I’ve often wondered if I should make them hotter. I’ve been surprised when publishers have put them in the ‘sensual’ category. And even more so with reader response. Here’s a few of the reader comments I’ve got:

“Phew – that book is sooooo hot!” Reader fanning herself with said book.

“Gee, I didn’t know sex could be like that!” Uhmmm, wistful reader….

“I marked the sexy parts in yellow highlighter to read to my partner.” What could I say to that?

"Hey, if you ever want help with the research, you know where to find me." Yeah, and I know where to find your wife, as well.

And the all-time most embarrassing of all? “I just loved the sex in that book. Do you think your husband would give mine some tips?” Okay, my poor DH is still squirming from that one, spoken loudly at a party.

Going sort of off-topic: when I was a kid, I used to watch old war movies with my dad. (Yes, I was a Daddy’s Girl). One of them involved a battleship slowly sinking in the freezing cold Atlantic. The Captain talks to the crew about abandoning ship. “We can either wait and hope we get rescued before she blows up, or we can take to the life boats. Would you rather freeze or fry?”

Freeze or fry. Be cool or hot. It’s a question I’ve wrestled with ever since.

Maybe I’ll solve it in the next book.

I'd love to hear comments about how other people feel on the hot/cool/cold issue! To get an idea of how I'm coping with the 'heat', click here to read the first chapters of  some of my books. :-)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do You Dream of Writing a Book Now That Summer's Over?

Win a Copy of Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book!

September always seems more like the beginning of a new year to me than does the traditional time of January 1st. Even though I no longer have to wrestle kids back to school, with all the shopping and form filling and preparation that goes with that, September still seems like a brand new page.

And, of course, for a writer a brand new page is irresistible. We simply can't wait top fill that glorious blank with new ideas, new words, new stories.
So, if the end of summer has re-awakened your dream to write, here are a few words of what I hope is wisdom from my writing course and book, Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book!:

As writers, we’re dreamers – and I don’t just mean about characters and plot
lines. No, we also fantasize about our careers, about signing books while surrounded by adoring fans,

of watching our titles fly up the NY Times bestseller list, of being invited to chat with Oprah, of writing non-fiction that catapults us onto the speech circuit as An Authority.

And then we daydream about what we’ll do with all those millions we will earn through our writing, or how we’ll parlay our growing knowledge into something that will help change people’s lives…. Yes, there are probably as many dreams as there are writers when it comes to thoughts of the life we’ll lead as Famous Writers Whose Books Are Bestsellers.

 But here’s the hard truth: these dreams have little to do with your success as a writer – unless you act on them.
To be successful you need talent, yes, and a commitment to your work. You need to mix that talent with a fair old dose of hard work to turn those dreams into your reality. The simple truth is that first and foremost, a writer writes. It’s that simple. The complicated bit comes in knowing what you should be writing and in planning for your success. Don’t give up the dreams; just temper them with a little feet-on-the-ground common sense.

Find a way to turn them into goals. Plan your writing career as you would any other endeavor that’s important to you. Dream big, for sure, but keep one eye firmly fixed on your own reality.

 In fact, it seems to me that there are several secrets to being successful as a writer and getting published. Consider these: 

1) Believe in yourself and don’t give up.
Writing can be disheartening at times – you sacrifice time you could be doing other things in order to write. It’s hard, and sometimes it may feel that there are only rejections and it will never get any better.

 2) Write the book of your heart - let your passion for the story shine through. Forget the idea of a

‘formula’ and write the book you want to read, the book that tells the story that you need to tell.

 3) Realize that a good writer is in a constant state of ‘becoming’ rather than ‘being’ – writers should always be honing their craft, learning and growing, to constantly become a better writer rather than merely a good writer

4) Be prepared to put yourself out there - there are many wonderful books that their creators have consigned to a box under the bed for fear of rejection, or fear of what other people might say or think. You have to believe in yourself and in the story you want to tell. What someone else thinks – be it a relative, a friend, your boss, an agent, publisher, editor, or even your creative writing teacher – counts only in so far as you can see a way to use their comments to make the book better in your own eyes.

5) Do the work. This is the biggie - no-one ever became a successful writer by talking about the book they’re ‘going to write someday’. Get the words on paper, learn your craft, learn to edit and polish, send your work out and learn from the critiques you receive from editors and agents. Then, when you’re published, be prepared to promote, promote, promote….no matter how difficult you find this, or how shy you might be.

That's all for now, but I'd love to hear from anyone just starting a new book. Leave a comment about it and I'll send one lucky writer a signed print copy of Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book! You can read the first chapter on my Romance Can Be Murder website or see it here on Amazon.

August is the Month for Hot Stuff at Yard Sales!

By Glenys O'Connell, @GlenysOConnell

I have to confess that I’m an addict – there’s no such thing as a garage or yard sale where I can’t hunt down something that I didn’t know I needed until I saw it there….
 August, frankly, is yard sale addict heaven. Lots of people buy homes with the idea of moving in for September, before the weather turns bad or in time for the start of the school year. And moving, for most people, means shucking off all the junk and unused or unloved items that have accumulated since the last move.

That means fine pickings that for people like me, who have Magpie somewhere in their genetic history.

Unfortunately, the let’s-sell-it-rather-than-move-it logic doesn’t apply to us yard sale addicts. Picking up treasures (sometimes highly questionable ones) is fine, but when it comes to parting with them…well, you can hear our screams for miles around.

How do you recognise a yard sale being held at a yard sale addict’s home? Watch her play tug of war with would-be customers over those cracked dishes, or weep as that odd looking piece of machinery or kitchen gadget (she never did know what it was intended for) is carried away triumphantly, probably by another addict.

I have had some great finds – the set of Captain’s Chairs that I refinished and sold for six times what I paid for them – oh, did I ever feel self-righteous about that! Pity that I then took the money and – you’ve guessed it – went yard sale-ing again…

Then there’s this lovely antique nursing rocker that I got for so little I felt guilty about it. Good finds, yes?

But this made-in-Kashmir brass and enamelled Item – not only does it not fit in with anything else in the house, but I haven’t got a clue what it was intended to be used as. Let me know if you have any ideas!

And the quilts – oh, I love hand stitched quilts. I guess it would be more ethical to make my own, but why bother when someone else is willing to part with their family heirlooms for just a few dollars?

Yard sales are also great places to stock up on books – yeah, 5 for $1! Who can just take five? Of course, some writers say it’s wrong to buy second-hand books because the authors don’t get a royalty. Well, I can honestly say that I’ve found some great authors I might never have read if it hadn’t been for a cheap yard sale pick up – and I’ve gone on to buy their all their back lists and new releases, so book-buying at yard sales is guilt free!

I’ve donated a few of my own treasures (yes, it hurt to part with them!) to the upcoming annual auction and yard sale fundraiser at our church. I heard a rumour the other day that they’ve a nice little sideline fundraiser on bets as to how many of my donations I’ll try to buy back…..

Oh, the shame of it…..

Glenys O'Connell is planning to finish her next romantic suspense novel, Dark Revenge, just as soon as she can find her laptop among the latest yard sale clutter..... You can read first chapters of her other books at http://www.glenysoconnell.com/firstchapters.htm

 

 

May is For Writing Memories, Too...by Glenys O'Connell (Book Giveaway)

I love the Internet.

I have always loved the Internet.

Right from way back in the early 1980’s when it first became available to the very rural area I lived in. In those days you had to plug a telephone cord into your computer, none of this cable or satellite technology. And it was slow, at times painfully so. But then, at that time computers were also very slow, and the slowness did nothing to diminish the wonder, the sheer joy of being able to send an article or a newsletter to people in places as disparate as South Africa, Australia, The US and Jamaica, and have it arrive within hours.

Well, yes, I did say it was slow. But in those days it could take anything up to four weeks for a letter in what we now call 'snail mail' to reach any of those destinations from here in rural Canada.

To be able to send copy for articles, promotional materials, web content - this was in the pre-blog days, if you can imagine that - in so short a time was a miracle in communication terms. These days I can send an entire manuscript to a publisher in minutes, send article proposals to magazines far away, write web content for companies across the Atlantic who then use the miracle of the Net to disperse them to clients in other countries…

There's no doubt that writers have benefited hugely from the arrival of computers and the Internet. Sure, people argue there are drawbacks, such as digital books threatening the very existence of real paper books (as if!) and some bemoan the fact that anyone at all can put out an ebook or a dvd or a cd without having to go through the filters of 'professional' gatekeepers such as publishers and record companies.

Well, phooey!

This will all shake out in time. There are awful ebooks out there, unedited, badly written, plotless and pointless. But the simple fact is that, once bitten, the reader will be twice shy. People putting out poor quality work won’t find a market for their next work.

And, as someone who loves writing, I can't see any real reason to deprive others of the fun of putting out their words into the EtherNet.

My first computer was only black and white, and worked on a rather dowdy, extremely limited word

processing system. Then Windows was invented and - wow!
One company I worked for as a journalist proudly presented me with a Macintosh Computer - the Apple trademark was still in the pipeline. This computer, with its tiny monitor, needed a large floppy disc to be inserted in the top drive, and another in the lower drive. The top disc held all the programming information, and without it, you weren't going anywhere!

The bottom disc contained all the material you diligently typed in, and this disc, closely guarded, was the one a courier took to the company's editorial headquarters two or three times a week.

Yes, I can hear you youngsters out there snickering. But that’s fine. Someday your kids or grandkids will compare you to a dinosaur, too.

The daily newspaper I worked for provided portable electric typewriters to its staff, and quickly scented the benefits of a computer network in the office. For myself, running a fairly remote satellite office, they purchased a portable computer. People these days might laugh, but then it was state-of-the art.

To be honest, with its case closed it looked just like a large, square portable typewriter. Oh, but the joy it brought - I could type in all my articles and features, then - get this - I fitted the telephone receiver into the two rubber rimmed holes on the top, made a few adjustments, whispered "AbraCaDabra" or, on bad days, a prayer to St. Jude, patron saint of hopeless cases,  and all my work flew across the ether to my boss, the Managing Editor. I might finish work at 3:30 am, but it was in his computer 100 km away, when he started work at 6:30am

The only glitch, really, was that digital cameras weren't available then. I'm a photojournalist, took my own pix to go with articles and stories, and these were on the old fashioned rolls of film. Where once a courier stopped by my mailbox in the wee small hours and whisked my paper copies of articles off to head office, now he stopped by only on the days I called and asked him to pick up film.

Now everyone has a digital camera - sometimes several if you include the pocket one, the laptop one, the computer one, and the cell phone one…..

Sometimes as sit on my front porch with my laptop, I imagine I can see words and pictures flying by my head, carried on unseeable waves, from thousands of computers and cameras and phones…..

Yes, I love the Internet.

Do You love the Internet? There's your choice of one of my ebooks for the best reason to love the Net.

Glenys O'Connell's love affair with the Internet continues to grow as she dabbles with Indie publishing. Click here to take a look at her list of traditionally published and Indie published books here.

Writing Programs: Help A Writer, Win an eBook!

Spring is all about new beginnings, and I love it. I’m a spring baby – born on March 21^st, the date many people consider to be the first day of spring, after the Spring Solstice. But it gets more confusing – the solstice can occur on either the 20^th or more rarely, on the 21^st, depending on time zone and year. And then there’s the differences between the Gregorian and the Julian calendars, oh my! Small wonder I get easily confused J

Here in the Great White North (rural Ontario, Canada) Spring is all about planning while waiting for the snow to melt. Yep, we still have plenty of the white stuff. So we browse magazines and catalogues to plan spring wardrobes, pore over seed catalogues and plan for fresh veggies and a riot of flowers.

The seed catalogues contain positively pornographic photos of gorgeous exotic new types of flowers, shrubs, and vegetables, plenty to keep a gardener warm in her dreams until the weather warms up!

Yes, I love the new beginnings Spring offers. But some new beginnings are there all year round. New novel ideas are waiting like gifts to be unwrapped. The secret is to know when the time for the great unwrapping has arrived!

With four new releases in the past four months: The No Sex Clause, Saving Maggie, Judgement By Fire, and Winters & Somers – I’ve been feeling exhausted and a bit jaded. The excitement that goes with a new release involves lots of exhausting promoting and talking about the books – at least, once the editing, formatting, and waiting are over – and all I could think about in the last couple of weeks was NOT writing. My DH and I went out a lot, visiting, shopping, exploring. Planning. I did a lot of catching up with friends who thought I’d fallen off the face of the earth. Reading. Housecleaning. Paperwork. Taxes. But most of all, playing and replenishing the creative well.
And daydreaming.

Then it happened. An idea popped into my head and held out its arms like a newborn to several other ideas that were languishing in a file on the computer. Every writer has a file like this – mine is named IDEAS – not very poetic but gee, it serves the purpose.

So, with ideas linking, characters began to step out of the shadows of my mind and introduce themselves. Considering I write romantic suspense, mystery, and comedy, I sometimes worry about what – or who – exactly is lurking in the shadows of my mind. But let’s not dwell on that!

Anyhow, during my ‘recovery’ time, I’ve been reading a terrific book on getting more written. It’s called 2kTo 10k: Writing Faster,WritingBetter,And Writing More ofWhat You Love. It’s by Rachel Aaron, a prolific writer herself, and well worth reading if you want to – well, if you want to do what it says on the cover!

So now I have a dilemma. I have this terrific idea for a contemporary mystery series leavened with humor, set in a country house in England. My fingers are itching to hit the keys without even an outline – chapter one is already done.

Then I took Ms. Aaron’s advice and downloaded a trial version of Scrivener (click the link for a trial copy). It’s a marvelous program that helps you keep track of, and easily access, everything in your manuscript.

Now I’m torn. Do I plunge into the writing , knowing I’ll face blocks when the plot or characters don’t gel and I’ll have to rework, revamp, or edit like crazy. Or do I take the time out and explore this new program and figure out if it really will work for me?  I know I’ve had problems sometimes (who hasn't?) with having to go back and edit for mistakes in simple details such as character descriptions and names, or chronology. This is a real pain that usually occurs if you have to stop writing for a few days and then try to get back into your manuscript.

So, learn the new program or fly by the seat of my pants into the writing? Any thoughts? Do you use a writing program like Scrivener? Do you outline? Are you a planner or a pantser when it comes to writing? There’s the gift of an ecopy of Saving Maggie from Amazon for the most helpful comment!

 Glenys O’Connell writes romance and mysteries laced with humor. You can read some of her first chapters at Romance Can Be Murder!

When Is Your Own New Year? (And book giveaway)

By Glenys O'Connell

I gave up on New Year's resolutions years ago. Good Heavens, I can disappoint myself any old time, why set myself up for more pain and humiliation by failing to live up to those nice, shining New Year's vows?

Mind you, I am attracted (like the moth to the candle flame) to all the hoopla that goes with the idea of a nice, shiny clean slate to start the year. Like the moth and the flame, the attraction has frequently ended badly.

Like the 25 extra pounds that still sit in all the wrong places, despite many diet resolutions. Like the exercise plans that have fallen by the wayside, nudged out of mind by pressing deadlines. The always tidy home? Regular notes to distant friends and family? The solid two hours a day of uninterrupted writing? Ha! All sunk without trace.

Being a bit of a contrarian, though, I've tended to celebrate two New Beginnings each year. Yes, you heard right - TWO New Beginnings a year. In September. And March.

September was when our four kids returned to school, leaving behind a summer's worth of chaos. The farm harvest was pretty well in, the garden produce jammed, jellied, frozen and canned, everything winding down to winter. Time to clean house, return to my job (journalism and freelance writing), catch up with friends, complete the house renovation projects, plan, dream....

Then March - Spring about to burst on us, pregnant with potential. Summer clothes out of storage, a cornucopia of new fabrics for little girls' summer dresses and fabric art. The camera primed and ready to catch the images that warm us in the winter months. And the seed catalogues - the excitement and anticipation of the new arrivals in the mail! Oh, my - the possibilities of summer!

Somehow, the conventional New Year's always seemed to pale by comparision to the fresh starts offered by September and March.

 
I have to confess, though, that this New Year's has been a little different. My very first Indie fiction publishing venture, The No Sex Clause, a romantic comedy, was released just before Christmas - and what a wild ride that's been! And on New Year's Eve itself, Crimson Romance published my Canadian set romantic suspense, Saving Maggie. After what seemed a long drought in fiction work, I was back in the game and loving it!

So what's up for the coming year? Two new romance books and a couple of non-fictions. Also, the Indie re-release of three books that are now out of contract with a publisher.

And I'm planning to return to practice as a counsellor and life coach.

Redecorate my home. Do some travelling. Dust off the sewing machine and quilting frame.

And oh, my - that pile of seed catalogues on my desk is positively glowing with happy thoughts....

So, there's my confession. What about yours? Does your new year really start on January 1st, or is there another time that gets your anticpation and creative juices flowing?

Leave me a comment, and I'll gift your choice of an ebook copy of Saving Maggie or The No Sex Clause to the one I like best!

Glenys O'Connell is currently frozen in place  by record breaking low temperatures and snow. She'll emerge briefly in February, like the groundhog, to test whether Spring is imminent or not. You can learn more about her and her work on www.glenysoconnell.com or  Amazon page