I have a day job. I also am on the board of my local Junior League. Both of these things take oodles of time. Of course, I write - also very time consuming. I thought juggling three jobs was more than enough. But then my book Carolina Heat came out in December, and I learned I had a new, 4th job. Something nobody really warned me about. The great time sucker called promotion.
Being with an e-publisher is different than being with one of the big NY names. There are no three martini power lunches at the Algonquin. No book tour hitting cities like Cedar Rapids and Green Bay with a media escort. I get to do it all myself. And a big piece of that is blogging. Not just here every week, but guest blogging all over the Internet. Some of the sites which so graciously allow me to blog have NY Times bestselling authors blogging just days before or after me. Which makes me feel a lot of pressure to deliver something witty yet sincere and also involving good excerpts from my book. Not easy! Coming up with a different topic each time that fits all those requirements forces me to really rub my brain cells together and hope I generate enough static electricity to start something.
Long story short, today I am over at http://mizging.blogspot.com/ blogging about love, because isn't that what February is all about? Please stop by and say hello! I, meanwhile, will be continuing the great timesucker, posting my guest blog at a whole bunch of groups and hoping someone notices. Because if I sell even one book off this guest appearance, it will be worth it (although more than one would be nice...and there's no way of knowing....but I stay optimistic nonetheless!).
Don't have a clue what the Junior League is, but when I was a stay at home mom and a 4-H leader, I got more requests to volunteer, cause "you're not busy, right?"
ReplyDeleteNot only were those two full time jobs, I wrote. A lot.
Unlike Christi, I'm not pubbed, but timesuckers are everywhere. You have to be aware of them.
And advoid them.
I am, unfortunately, my own worst time sucker. I love long baths, and soaks in the hot tub. Love reading,(other people's stuff, not my own so much)and daydreaming. In the summer, the DH and I are rarely home. Too much fun stuff to do outside! I've learned to control some of it. My time sucker activities are now rewards for when I reach a write goal. In summer when I want to go somewhere,the Dh will ask "How much writing did you get done?" before we go. So, I don't avoid them, it would take the joy out of writing. It would make me feel like I was sacrificing something, and I am very selfish with my me time. But I am aware of them,and I make them work for me.
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean about time suckers...I'm a full-time freelance writer, which a lot of people interpret as 'she's home all day, she'll do _______'. I really do have to create schedules and time for both my nonfiction writing and fiction, otherwise I snow myself under.
ReplyDelete...and just a shameless plug, I lurve your book...everybody go buy a copy!!
Thanks for shedding some light on how hard it is to come up with different posts to promote your book! It looks easy when others do it, not so easy in real life. (says she who isn't pubbed yet!)If you need another interview spot, I'd love to have you!
ReplyDeleteI think blogging is *hard* and the tours in particular are, so my hat's off to you for working so diligently at it!
ReplyDeletetime suckers are everywhere...and the biggest problem is you don't recognize it's a time sucker until the next day....what happened to all my time? we all moan.....sometimes it's like living in a time warp....one minute it's 5pm, the next it's bed time...=)
ReplyDeletecarrie
Along with time suckers, I think I have to mention guilt and procrastination. I am a world class procrastinator and also a pleaser. So, if someone asks me to do something, I ineveitably say yes so a) I can help them out and not disappoint them--I find this with my mom especially and my youngest dd. And b) well, that about covered it. Also when I get stuck with a chapter, I'll avoid writing by reading (just finished Kristin Hanna's Winter Garden--thumbs way up), or going to a movie (saw When in Rome yesterday--it was okay), or going to lunch with a friend (don't have any reviews on that one right now). Or do internet searches and read blog posts---great post, Christi!
ReplyDeleteWell, if we're being honest, my worst time sucker is television. I will watch almost anything, no matter how bad it is, rather than write. My will power has gotten quite a workout since I started forcing myself to hit word counts!
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