Update January 5th: Sorry I won't be posting again until Monday. But I'll still be visiting blogs.
Please Note: 1. The winners of the annual IWSG Anthology Contest will be announced today.
2. My Thank You Giveaway ends on Friday January 6th. Click here to enter.
Happy New Year to all and welcome to 2017! IWSG has arrived and I'm happy to say that this month Alex Cavanaugh is the main host like always. This month I'm one of the co-hosts (Sheena-kay Graham). The rest of January's co-hosting team includes Crystal Collier, Eva, Chemist Ken, LG Keltner and Heather Graham. Has to be a fine month when you get two Grahams at once.
Right now I'm not feeling any new insecurities so I'll stick with this month's IWSG question.
January IWSG Question: What writing rule do you wish you'd never heard of?
None. You read right. There's no writing rule that I regret hearing about or never wished to have come across. Why? Because as a child I had zero family support for taking on writing or anything art related as a career. If I got encouragement or better yet advice from others, I was grateful. I had to go a lot of this writing journey alone or with limited support before this very blog threw me into a world of love from writers and readers the world over. Sure I found some online support but none like what I've had since starting this blog. Everything I was able to glean or unearth has led me to this blessing. So why would I want to try and un-wish anything that I've learned? There's no turning back for me. I won't lie and say I've never had a regret or anything of the sort. But I know everything that has happened has led me to where I am now. A full time writer. Who cares if any rule, advice or person gave out something that didn't turn out peachy? I'm here and ready to roar. That's all that matters.
So I'll enjoy life and be there for others whether in support of writing or otherwise. Family is more than blood and this writing path has brought in some wonderful people into my life. I made the right choice and that's all that matters. I will be there for you when you need me. Just call. See you on Friday and God Bless.
What a heartwarming post, Sheena-kay! I, too, have found wonderful support through my blogging from IWSG members and other kind and encouraging people around the world. Wishing you continued fulfillment in your writing journey, and thanks for co-hosting the IWSG this month!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you found the blog community and the online writers! It's super hard to try to launch yourself in a new career when you have no support. I'd never have done anything without the amazing support of the online writing community. Have a great 2017, Sheena-Kay!
ReplyDeleteThanks Lexa, the supportive writing community is amazing.
DeleteYou have such a great attitude! Outside of my wife, no one else knew I was writing until I got online and found the support.
ReplyDeleteThanks for co-hosting today! The IWSG has kicked off with a bang for 2017.
So glad I co-hosted. IWSG is indeed off to an awesome start for 2017. Thanks for coming Alex.
DeleteThanks for co-hosting this month! "I'm here and ready to roar" - love this sentiment and I love this blog post. You've got a great perspective on things.
ReplyDeleteCheers - Ellen
Thanks Ellen. A positive perspective is very helpful.
DeleteGreat Post Sheena-Kay! I also had loads to learn and I'm still learning.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year and thanks for co-hosting this month!!!!
Happy New Year and hip hip hurray.
ReplyDeleteLove your sentence, Family is more than blood and this writing path has brought in some wonderful people into my life.
Those are my feelings too.
Thank you for co-hosting, and I wish you an awesome 2017.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat Garcia
Happy New Year! So glad you found the support you need and deserve from the writing community. And awesome that you are a full time writer. Me too.
ReplyDeleteYou found strength in those rules and that knowledge. And now you've showed them all.
ReplyDeleteHappy 2017!
Thanks for co-hosting, Sheena-kay!! Rules are there for guidelines so you can gain the confidence and experience to make your own. So proud of you for your success. I now how difficult it was before I found my wonderful critique group. We're here for you!
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome attitude! You've found the balance of sorting through what works and what doesn't and making a success of your passion. Thanks for co-hosting and wishing you a blessed new year.
ReplyDeleteI agree! There's nothing that stands in our way of writing. Good attitude. Thanks for co-hosting this month.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started out on my journey I tried to recall what my English Profs had taught about writing, rules, etc. But that was so long ago that I dove in and started churning words (and some garbage, too.) I've been blessed with some patient and knowledgeable reader friends who've helped me out tremendously. So yeah, the rules are there and I do my best to adhere, but I'll wander when I do. Not everyone stays in the lines very well all the time. Thanks for co-hosting this month.
ReplyDeletesadly family does not always acts as the support pillar. Mine was always more of a quake factor :)
ReplyDeleteI like your attitude about the writing rules and finding support where and when you needed it for your writing!
ReplyDeleteHapy New Year!
betty
That's a great attitude! I didn't expect my family to get too excited about my writing, but they have been pretty good about it. My husband is my cheerleader and that's a bonus.
ReplyDeleteGreat way to look at the posed question. Happy writing.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree, Sheena. Writing has made the world very smaller and much friendlier. Happy New Year. Thanks for co-hosting!
ReplyDeleteAwesome attitude! Love that pic too :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting and have a great 2017!
I admire your attitude and hear your roar all the way over here (San Diego, CA). Thank you for co-hosting.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you finally found the support you needed on your writing path! I agree, no lesson is a bad lesson!
ReplyDeleteI have to say that I have great support from my family, and I know I'm extremely lucky. I wish everyone had that because I see how not having that support affects so many writers.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI don't regret hearing any writing rules either.
Thanks for co-hosting this month, Sheena, you ROCK! I will admit that I have trouble with active/passive voice, but I'm "actively" working on it. :)
ReplyDeleteWhen I started out writing, I had no one. I had to learn on my own. It was tough, but I am grateful for the things I did learn. With that said, several of those did cause me a lot of grief. I mention a couple of them in my post. :)
ReplyDeleteNot regretting hearing any rules makes complete sense to me. I think it's something like education and we should never regret any education.
ReplyDeleteArlee Bird
Tossing It Out
You're not the only one that loves rules. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
Oh, how I love this! - "I'm here and ready to roar. That's all that matters." :)
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely love your answer! So glad you're hear roaring with us.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy co-hosting!
I don't share your love of rules, but I too appreciate a guide. Thank you for co-hosting, and Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI love your answer too! I don't like the rules but I am grateful for the learning. Happy 2017!
ReplyDeleteI love your answer. So glad you found your 'tribe' and they gave you what you needed.
ReplyDeleteHappy 2017 & thanks for co-hosting. Yeah, not having family support is a killer. I remembered how my mom freaked and practically staged an intervention because she thought I wanted to waste going to college to become a songwriter. All because I check off writing and music as subjects I was interested in on a college form/survey. Just recently heard from her, sounding all proud, that she saw my book online (likely FB). :-O
ReplyDeleteWe all have to find our way in life--rules or no rules--so my rule is do my best and don't look back.
ReplyDeleteThat is the right attitude! Just like you, I appreciate all the tips and support I can get and I am equally amazed at the friendships that have evolved throughout my blogging experiences! The IWSG is the most amazing and supportive group I have come across online!
ReplyDeleteWell put, and I wholeheartedly agree. *hands over a wedge of cheese* Here's to the epic blogging community and the lessons we've all learned along the way, eh? We rock.
ReplyDeleteWoot for finding strength! I love the attitude. Thanks for co-hosting. You pass along strength and encouragement well. <3
ReplyDeleteGood for you, Sheena-Kay! More power to you. All the best for a wonderful 2017, my dear. I love your picture of the child flying through the air. I recollect a few of my five children have done that.
ReplyDeleteHappy new year to you, Sheena! I don't hate any one rule. I just hate it when so-called experts think that you ALWAYS have to follow the rule, regardless of whether it makes the story better or not.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Sheena, very inspiring. Thanks for co-hosting this month.
ReplyDeleteWhat wonderful words, and a great take on things. I'm going to take this inspiration and head on out on to the writing front.
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled you found support in this community - I have too! Thank God you followed your heart (and mind) to get here. Now there's no stopping you ;)
ReplyDeleteGlad you are continuing to follow your dreams! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI never thought of it that way. Thanks for sharing that, Sheena. <3
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for co-hosting!
It's so sad you didn't have support. Husband has been awesome. I can't imagine taking this journey without him onboard. Anytime you need something, email me or find me on Twitter or FB. I'll do what I can to help you or find someone who can. Hugs ♥
ReplyDeleteYou make a very good point. Trying out any rule does exercise our writing skills.
ReplyDeleteA few of you like the rules, not surprised. :) As I'm sure folks aren't surprised that I hate them. LOL
ReplyDeleteHappy 2017!
Thanks for cohosting this month. I'm so glad you found this group. Although I have support from my family, they don't really "get" what writing is like. This group does. Best wishes for a great 2017.
ReplyDeleteThis reader is grateful (very grateful) for all writers. You rock. (Something to remember next time insecurity beasts nag...)
ReplyDeleteI love your positivity!!
ReplyDeleteGood to see you're able to stay positive. God bless you as well.
ReplyDeleteGreat perspective, Sheena! Thanks for reminding me of the support I've gotten from family and friends.
ReplyDeleteI guess I was lucky. My family always supported me and my goals in writing and otherwise and I always had great teachers pushing and encouraging me to become better. Am I as good of a writer as I could be? Absolutely not. When you don't know what you have, I think you are more likely to take it for granted.
ReplyDeleteThanks for being an awesome co-host for IWSG. It's always fun linking up and learning that my struggles in writing aren't mine alone. :)
Writing is not as easy as people think it is. There's a delicate balance to it--too much of one element or too little of another makes it not good, but even though my family know I write, I'd rather they didn't read my work. My friends have read my stuff and though they're supportive, I don't tihnk they really get it because they're not writers.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you found such support among the writing community! It's really hard when people you care about don't see writing as a love or career opportunity. You're not alone. ((hugs)) Thank you for hosting this month!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year. Thanks for co-hosting.
ReplyDeleteJuneta @ Writer's Gambit
Family is so much more than blood indeed. Great you found the support.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great look on life. Check out my blog if you have time. I'm gathering support for the launch of Forbidden - and offering a gift worth $200 for the bloggers and reviewers who post during my launch Feb 14-18. Thanks http://www.featherstoneauthor.wordpress.com Blessings
ReplyDeleteHappy to "meet" you through the IWSG. Thanks for being a co-host this month. I enjoyed your site and recent blogs. Keep up the good work! www.dianeweidenbenner.com
ReplyDeleteLol, I love that picture at the end :) I feel about the same way you do. I gained a little encouragement from a couple of my teachers in school, but joining the blogging community has taught me so much more about writing. I would probably have given up on writing, besides my journaling, had it not been for the blogging community and IWSG.
ReplyDeleteSo true, Sheena. Writing has brought so many wonderful people into my life.
ReplyDeleteThat picture is awesome. I guess I agree with you about the writing rules--generally. When some people though (like some agents) try to "enforce" them to the extreme (as in laying down a certain number of adverbs that can be used on a page) I get a more than a little irritated.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Sheena-kay. I don't regret anything I've learned. It's best to learn it all and then decide what you can ignore or discard. Like you, I was on my own on this writing journey until I met the writing-blogging world! I hope you have the best year ever!
ReplyDeleteWhat a good point you make. I agree too; this blogging community has made all the difference.
ReplyDeleteI love to learn new rules and try to keep learning all the time. I love the blogging community and have learned so much from my blogger friends all around the world. :)
ReplyDelete~Jess
Interesting.
ReplyDeleteI didn't really answer this question for my blog, but if I did, it would be all the rules that aren't actually rules, but strong suggestion. There are a lot of things that is taught in English class that is just plain wrong, and I wish that more classrooms would teach actual English rules and not what they teach now.
That's awesome that you're able to write full-time--congrats! You're living the dream.
ReplyDeleteI rarely answer the question of the month. There's too much other stuff going on.
Thanks for being an awesome co-host!
ReplyDeleteI do understand some of the way you feel when it comes to support and family. I'm the odd one out in mine. None of them share my love of sci-fi or writing (we're not biologically related, which does explain why I'm different to them all). It's especially hard when in the past my parents have supported my brothers financially in their career ventures, but would never consider helping me. Having said of all that, I'm extremely fortunate to have found a family that gave me a home and stuck with me. So, I really can't complain.
I agree about family being more than blood. The writing community is a wonderful and supportive thing.