Shove your rat race...

Apologies for the unannounced hiatus. To be honest, I was on the precipice of giving up blogging altogether.

As much as I enjoy blogging, I was starting to feel it could potentially overshadow my whole reason for blogging in the first place: Writing.

I have no plans to ever give up my writing dream, but I believe I’ll be putting that dream in jeopardy if I allow myself to succumb to the PR fiasco that has become the minimum requirement, apparently, for “building an author platform”.

It gives me the boak to see poorly written novels with countless 5 star reviews on Amazon. You can't help but wonder if they're borne of some kind of reciprocal obligation from other bloggers/book reviewers. I’d rather have one fair and honest review, over a thousand copy & pasted efforts from frazzled (but well-meaning, I’m sure) participants in this whole circus.

The appeal of being a writer was once about escaping the rat race. Now it hosts a rat race all of its own!

If “Author” was advertised in a recruitment website these days (humour me), I believe it’d probably state the following requirements:

·          Daily liaisons through social media

·          Relationship building with others in the industry

·          Networking and sourcing new clients (readers/other bloggers)

·          Attend writer’s conferences and workshops

·          Organise, manage and distribute press releases on blog tours

·          Promote your brand through blog hops and guest interviews

·          Host giveaways

·          Oh… and write a book.

Am I the only person who is pissed off with this priority list? I'd genuinely prefer to write for the love of it and remain unpublished, than adhere to the above expectations in that order.

I've been bitten once by this. Someone sent me lots of friendly emails, then asked me to post a guest blog for them (with no offer to read any of their stuff). Intimidated, I obliged and never heard from them again. If I ever do a blog tour, please don't accept my request unless you believe in me and/or my writing. I promise to do likewise from now on. 

Do you want to know what's prevented me throwing in the bloggy towel, though? Reading some lovely, honest writer’s blogs, such as Is Anyone There, Mothers of Brothers and First Draft Cafe. In fact, the majority of bloggers I interact with don't succumb to these daft priorities. And that makes me feel optimistic once more.

I’ve decided to move my goal posts once more (and I’ll go ahead and keep changing them till I figure out what works for me). I won’t be blogging every Friday anymore. I may post more frequently, or less. If you'd like to keep up with my erratic behaviour, please subscribe or join my lovely 59 followers via Google Friend Connect. 

It feels liberating to break away from these unfair expectations of new writers. “But the industry demands it” some might say? Well, the industry changes constantly. New boundaries are being made with each new technological advancement. With the ability to self-publish, writers aren’t dictated by traditional publishers anymore (quality of work is another issue altogether. Lets not go there today...).

Nobody knows what’s going to happen in the future, but I do know one thing: my books will still be there at the end of it all, so I’d better bloody well give them the love and attention they deserve, instead of rushing out three books a year whilst simultaneously trying to promote my previous three, etc. Fair play if you're into all that, but it's not my idea of a fulfilling life.

I’ll continue to participate in events like A-Z Blogging Challenge and NaNoWriMo, as I enjoy them and they’re fun. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how interactive we’re all pressured into being: writing is a personal, lone journey. So I’m going to do it my way and I continue to wish you all the best with your own journey. :)  

If you want to have a gab about writing, feel free to email me, or if you're in the Glasgow area I'd happily meet up for a coffee. We can despair over the lack of publishers knocking down doors to meet us, or have a good old jealous-bitch session about those more successful than us, whether they deserve it or not.

P.S. If you read my last post... I didn't win the Euromillions. Huff! I've also scrapped the "chapter a day" redrafting idea I had. It's coming along well at its own pace. :) x 

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Shove your rat race...

Tiny salmon swimming in a stream

Tiny salmon chasing that impossible dream.
Tom Green, Road Trip.


I'd like to make an announcement.


I've decided that, after today, I'm never playing the lottery again. I have tonight's Euromillions ticket nestled in my purse. It'll be the last chance I ever get to win the lottery.


How many hours have you spent wondering what you'd do if you'd won? I've spent hundreds, possibly thousands of hours in enjoyable contemplation. 


I'd wake up early, have a detox tea on the balcony of my mansion as I watch the sun rise. I'd start the day off with a massage and facial, whilst I mull over which gorgeous outfit to wear, or which recipe I want to try out in my massive, country-style kitchen (complete with island and dual cooker... sigh) for that evening's dinner (if we're not dining out, that is).


As I feast on breakfast, I'd go about my business, dealing with practical matters and philanthropic duties. I reckon that would take me up to around 8 or 9am...


Then I'd close the door of my writing room and get to work. Aside from a brief lunch, I'll continue to write until it's time to get the dinner on. Then I'll spend the rest of the day with my loved ones.


I'm not a particularly extravagant person. I'm one of those geeks who enjoy frugality and planning ahead. Yes, it's out of necessity, but I'm glad for it. It's become apparent that I don't need the lottery to obtain my highest level of happiness.


I need to write books to obtain my highest level of happiness. The country-style kitchen and mansion will just have to wait until the publishing industry have decided to pay me my billions. *sigh*


In the meantime, I'll just have to settle for sipping on my detox tea and watching the sun rise from my office window. I'll continue to shop in Primark for £2 dresses and categorise my recipe searches to "budget-friendly". Most importantly, I just need to get my head down and write.


If I were to buy two Euromillions and two lottery tickets a week, I'd be spending £312 a year to enter a contest in which I'd have a 1 in 14 million chance of winning. How can I even entertain those odds when I refuse to believe I'll fall into the category of the 1 in 8 women who get breast cancer in their lifetime?


A lottery win could enable me to give up the day job and write for a living. But so could persistence with my writing. Call me naive for thinking it a possibility, but why the hell not? There's plenty of full-time writers out there (of who I am sickeningly jealous), there's no reason I can't be that too one day.


The money dress will have to wait for now...

In other news...


Although I vowed never to be a slave to word count again, I'm still eager to get this second draft moving along. I have some time off work at the end of June, and would like to have Draft 2 done by then.


I have 29 days from now to redraft 36 chapters (I know it sounds excessive, but murdering my darlings will happen in Draft 3). I'll update you on my quest next Friday. Things might be looking frantic by then!


Have a lovely weekend, everyone. x ◦

Tiny salmon swimming in a stream