Hello and welcome to the monthly meeting of the
Insecure Writers Support Group(IWSG) blog hop!
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| Internet Writers Support Group Blog Hop First Wednesday of every month. |
What is IWSG? Founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group and author Alex J Cavanaugh explains the group's purpose is "to share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!" You're invited to become a member of this supportive group.
The group blogs the first Wednesday of every month. The list of bloggers is always available so you can hop around to the author blogs filled with humor, advice, and thought-provoking topics on writing and publishing. You can find the list of participants at Alex's IWSG page.
The group blogs the first Wednesday of every month. The list of bloggers is always available so you can hop around to the author blogs filled with humor, advice, and thought-provoking topics on writing and publishing. You can find the list of participants at Alex's IWSG page.
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| IWSG Question for the Month |
My first piece of writing was an article I submitted to a woman's magazine about breastfeeding. I was a new mom and learned so many things through my experience with my baby, I wanted to help expecting moms to have a successful time with this overwhelming time in life.
I mailed in the submission expecting to receive a raving acceptance letter telling me how wonderful the article was and how much it would benefit soon-to-be nursing mothers. I was crushed not to hear anything from the magazine and decided I would never write an article again. That article was probably thrown in the trash, but eventually, after our daughters left home and we sold our floral business, I started writing articles for the local newspaper which led to many more free-lance articles in newspapers, magazines and e-zines.
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Share My Memoir or Not by J.Q. Rose
Yes, I'm insecure this week. I'm taking a break away from writing romantic suspense and challenging myself to write a memoir. I am a firm believer in everyone recording the story of their life or at least part of it.
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| Writing a memoir |
I'm focusing on the year in my life when we purchased a retail business--a flower shop and greenhouses. Did we know anything about being a retailer, growing plants in a commercial greenhouse, designing flower arrangements? No, but we did it anyway. Talk about being insecure--giving up good jobs, taking our one year old daughter away from grandparents and family, and moving eight hours away to a town where we knew not one person.
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| Peach roses--my favorite flower. They smell good too. |
The main rule in writing a memoir is to tell the truth. And I am, but that involves showing the previous owner, Nellie, in a bad light. She and her husband have passed away, but her family is still in the area. I have decided to change their names, but this is a small town and folks will know who I mean. So, I am thinking of writing this book, but only allowing our family to read it. And yet, I think this memoir could be a great encouragement to someone who is hesitant to break out of their life and try something new. (Hmmm--like writing a book, perhaps?) When we see someone overcome obstacles to achieve a dream, their story inspires us to try to make our dreams come true too.
An author friend tagged me on FB to reveal the first lines of the first three chapters of my WIP, so I thought it would be fun to share those lines in the memoir here with all of you too. You'll see Nellie is in the story right away.
Untitled--I'm insecure about choosing a title too!!!
Chapter 1 Our whispers in the silence of the strangers’ bedroom seemed to echo in our ears.
Chapter 2 After the sleepless night, we packed up our belongings and quietly trod down the stairs to face Jack and Nellie.
Chapter 3 Contentment fell across my shoulders like a newborn’s swaddling blanket as I nursed Baby Sara in my rocking chair in the front room of our home in Marseilles.
Please help me decide whether to share the story or keep it just for my family. I'd love to hear from you. Thank you.
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Opportunity for you--Karen Walker is putting together an anthology on aging. If you are fifty or older, visit her blog for details on how you can contribute.
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Connect with J. Q. Rose on Facebook
