Start of a New Thing

As I mentioned awhile back, this will become my primary blog as of this weekend. I'm in the process of closing out my other blogs, for several reasons--all good. I just want to narrow my focus in life. So I'll continue to post all the crazy and amazing things I run across, but I'll also be posting more content about being an Indie writer etc. My hope is that I can do this one blog right rather than the poor job I've done with having 5 (not to mention maintaining a website, 5 facebook profiles, 2 facebook fan pages, etc.)

So for those of you who don't know about NIWA, its a community some friends and I founded to promote quality Indie writing/publishing. 20 years ago their were 20 major imprints, now their are 5. Amazon isn't just killing Borders books etc. It's clobbering those giant inefficient publishers as well. What stands in the way of true Indie success is the perception that Indies are amateurs and only big, expensive, nepotistic publishers can help you find entertainment you demand. NIWA to the rescue. I'll talk more about that in upcoming posts but lets move onto my inaugural post for the newly launched Fun, Amazing, Etc. blog.

Learning what it looks like for Andy to write has been a challenge and a passion for many years and the fight is ongoing. We had a thread started about how to fit writing into your life and I recommend anyone who wasn't around during that time look it up in the forum if you are experiencing stress there.

I have discovered the hard way, that writing is a very sedentary and solitary experience. It's also a compulsion for many of us. Leads to a sort of writing bulimia where we get ass in chair time for awhile and make joyful progress, then all the other things that don't get done come crashing down around us just as our writing starts to go stale. I think the ideal solution is to discover a balance but in my life the muse is fickle. So I've developed a seasonal approach. I work really hard on my writing for a couple weeks and then take a break.

The biggest thing I've learned though, loops back to the nature of writing--solitary and sedentary. Writers must be intentional about getting exercise and maintaining their relationships. Make time for those two things even when you are writing heavy, or you will lack stimulation for the writing and the time you throw at it won't be productive. Double up some if you have to--dictate some notes on your novel while walking the treadmill. You gotta eat, schedule meals with friends and family so you can give them full attention for a bit before locking yourself away again. I'm sure I'll get back to this topic in the future, but to keep it short, I'll let it go at this.

Have a great day everyone, just above those clouds the sun is shining.