Tag: writer insecurities

Insecure Writer’s Support Group

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle36 Comments

I took a few month’s off, but now I ‘m back and as insecure as ever. 🙂

My short bio:  Sydney Aaliyah Michelle is a Contemporary Romance writer, a voracious reader and movie fanatic who hails from Texas. After surviving 5 1/2 years living in China, she had the courage to finally pursue her passion and become a writer.

InsecureWritersSupportGroupHuge thank you to our awesome co-hosts for the January 7 posting of the IWSG, Elizabeth Seckman, Lisa Buie-Collard, Chrys Fey, and Michelle Wallace!  I also wanted to say thank you to Alex J. Cavanaugh for creating a safe place for those of us who need help. 

I have a painful/agonizing/gut-wrenching/creativity-stifling case of ENVY! I know, it is so unhealthy, but I can’t help it. It started early last month when I punished myself by stalking some new releases, all who out performed my new release. Everywhere I turned, it seemed like people where hitting that top 100 list, author’s were releasing their 8th/12th/ 20th novel (I’m on my 3rd).  Books in my genre where out selling me left and right. I even found a new adult sports romance debut novel that was blowing up the charts while my third new adult sports romance novel is basking in mediocrity.

Don’t get me wrong, I am happy for each and every author who is successful doing what we do. I want all of us to be a success, but my mind hasn’t been in the right place lately. HELP!!!!

Am I a terrible person? How do you get over envying other people’s success?

Click here and visit the other blogs in the group.  

Insecure Writer’s Support Group – Energy!!!!!!!

Published on by Sydney Aaliyah Michelle36 Comments

InsecureWritersSupportGroup

It is the first IWSG under the new site. Congrats to the new Insecure Writer’s Support Group website. Our host for this month, CD Coffelt, Tina Downey,Isis Rushdan, and Michelle Wallace! Thanks to you all.

There is this quote I heard from the rapper Ludacris that said, “passion is energy.”

I’ve also heard that when you’re searching for your passion, “You should do the thing that gives you energy.”

Most of the time I feel this way about writing, but somedays, not so much. Take today for example:  The plan was to get off of work early and make it to the library by six in order to have three uninterrupted hours of writing. I managed to get off on time, but first I had to drop a package off at the UPS Store. I went to three UPS Stores before I found one open and the traffic to get to that one was a beating. By this time I was starving. Instead of a nice energizing meal, I grab and chicken sandwich and fries from Wendy’s and eat it in the car while trying to avoid hitting anyone.  By the time I made it to the library, I was exhausted, frustrated, and full. I wanted to lay my head down and take a nap. 

Instead, I flip through my scene list and found the first kiss scene, one of my favorite scenes to write in a book and proceed to plow through it.  When I looked up two hours later I got 1700 words in and it came out pretty good for a first draft.

The library is kicking me out with this annoying song they play, but I wanted to ask: What do you do to energize yourself when your exhausted, but still need to write? Do some scenes energize you more then others? 

A big thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh, J.L. Campbell, Susan Gorley, Joylene Nowell Butler, Michelle Wallace, L. Diane Wolfe, and Lynda R. Young for their work on the IWSG website. I is a sanctuary for writers. Thank you!