Happy #12 IWSG!
The IWSG is twelve years old! I suppose that means raging adolescent hormones, stray body hairs, and pimples. On the bright side, the joints aren't hurting yet and energy levels are still high. Enjoy that, kid.
So, when did I discover the IWSG?
That happened quite by accident. I started this blog after receiving my first book contract. That contract required an online presence...either a website or a blog. Well, back then...in the good old days...blogs were being recommended by most every writer website as the best way to create an online presence. My son, Boy #2, helped me set it up. We stayed up into the wee hours getting all the bells and whistles half-assed.
I was so proud.
Not really. I had zero idea what I was doing and felt a bit like a fool. That first weekend, I kept refreshing the stats. No one was reading the blog. I'd wasted my time.
But my kiddos...those amazing creatures who have more spunk and determination in their little pinkies than I do in my whole body, started googling how to get blog readers. One of the suggestions was to read and comment on other people's blogs. So, I did. Eventually, I stumbled upon an IWSG post. I commented and the next thing I know, Alex visited my blog and left a comment. I was star struck! A real writer commented on my blog. I was so excited, I joined the IWSG and next thing I knew, I had blog traffic.
The IWSG keeps me connected to the writer world and that connection is what keeps me from hanging up my typewriter.
Thank you, IWSG and Alex. :)
And this month's awesome co-hosts! Thank you, Sonia Dogra, J Lenni Dorner, Pat Garcia, Sarah - The Faux Fountain Pen, and Meka James!
Your kids sound amazing! Glad you kept blogging. :)
ReplyDeleteThey are pretty doggoned awesome. I'm glad I did too!
DeleteConnection - that's the key.. Still totally insecure, OK with that now, thanks to IWSG. Anonymously I'm Esther O'Neill, East of the Sun - and in a dead zone too. Hence no Google address.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm glad you stopped by Esther! It takes dedication to log on when you're in a dead zone.
DeleteAwesome your boys got you started and kept you going. You started blogging for the same reason I did - I had a contract and needed a web presence.
ReplyDeleteNothing like a contract to put the fire under an introvert's booty.
DeleteI felt like a fool, too, at first. Sometimes I still do. Kids and Google...they save our butts more than we'd like to admit. LOL
ReplyDeleteI will say, it was easier to come up with content when I thought no one would ever read it. LOL
DeleteI went through a similar process. My kids hooked me up with a computer after writing on paper. Then, like you, signing a contract for my first book, it also stated having social media outlets. Blogging was the hardest for me. What to say???
ReplyDeleteNow I'm feel as if I have so so many blogger friends. I love this group!
Some of my very best friends have come from blogging. It truly is a special network of people.
DeleteThat's sweet your boys encouraged and helped you in the beginning. You got this now.
ReplyDeleteThey are special boys <3
DeleteChildren are useful, after all . . . ;-)
ReplyDeleteThey're even more useful when I need furniture moved. LOL
DeleteThose early days of blogging when no one is visiting or commenting on your posts were so frustrating. Joining the IWSG was a huge game changer for me in that regard.
ReplyDeleteJoining the IWSG linked me to hops too, which were a great way to branch out. I kinda miss the hops...
DeleteI started blogging in 2011 when agents and others in the publishing industry said that everyone should have a blog. I had way more followers who have since stopped blogging back then. I'm so grateful for this group. I feel like I found my community.
ReplyDeleteI know a lot of dropped blogging for other social media spots. I'm most comfortable here. The other platforms can feel a bit drive-by and superficial.
DeleteI remember those early "shouting into the abyss" days too. I joined a few blog hops, but IWSG has definitely shown the most staying power.
ReplyDeleteThe IWSG is a special group, that's for sure!
DeleteI remember the first blog I started and how no one knew about it and the quest to figure out how to fix that.
ReplyDeleteJust like everything else in the writing world...figure it out as you go and lean on anyone who will throw you a lifeline!
DeleteYes, the IWSG keeps me from putting down my pen... such a wonderful sense of community, which is hard to find in online groups.
ReplyDeleteHappy IWSG Anniversary Day!
And it's a monthly reminder that another month has slipped by and that I better get to work!!
DeleteYour kids are awesome, and you are, too. :) I'm thankful for this community and you.
ReplyDeleteAww, same to you, Tyrean <3
DeleteSo many of us started back in the 'day' when blogs were recommended for writers. Glad you're here.
ReplyDeleteSame to you, Susan. Glad you're here too :)
DeleteYou are a writer. We are all writers.
ReplyDeleteAnd we are in good company :)
DeleteI laughed when you said you were star struck when Alex commented on your blog for the first time, Elizabeth. I shared that same feeling ~ OMG, a real writer wrote a comment to me! I didn't know what I was doing at first, and I felt like a fool and a fake at the same time. I didn't have two great sons to help me figure things out, but I discovered on my own that if you reached out to other bloggers in the group and read and commented on their posts, you were soon finding friends! Here's to many more years in a great group! All the best to you!
ReplyDeleteI still feel like a fool and a fake on any given day. But I feel less like a fake fool when I stay in touch with my writer friends and the IWSG. I have no intentions of going anywhere. Who else would put up with me like you all do?
DeleteI love your origin story and how your son helped you. I still struggle with half the lingo my kids toss my way.
ReplyDeleteHey, I have had to google phrases my kids say and text. There's no shame in that.
DeleteIt is certainly a give and take, and you always have to be ready and willing to give more than get.
ReplyDeleteThe IWSG is celebrating 12 years today, which is so amazing for a blogging community of writers. A dozen years of support! 🎉
"The only thing you absolutely have to know is the location of the library." – Albert Einstein quote
September is library card sign-up month! Get one, use one, and be grateful such places exist.
J Lenni Dorner (he/him 👨🏽 or 🧑🏽 they/them) ~ Speculative Fiction &Reference Author, OperationAwesome6 Debut Author Interviewer, and Co-host of the #AtoZchallenge
I didn't know it was library card sign up month. What's even cooler is that I can now use my library card to get ebooks and audio books.
DeleteHi, here is Pat Garcia. Google doesn't work well on my Mac and will let me only post anonymous, so I have to identify myself. Thanks for dropping by blog. I so agree with you. Leading a blog hop is not easy and Alex does an excellent job at leading. He has the ability to draw people together.
ReplyDeleteShalom shalom
I've noticed a lot of people are having trouble signing in to comment. That's so annoying. Fix it, Google!!!
DeleteWhat great kids you have! The clueless fumbling sounds so familiar. I had to smile at the 'star struck' part. That is exactly how those first comments from real authors felt.
ReplyDeleteAfter years of writing all alone, it was so nice finding friends.
DeleteThat's so awesome! How wonderful setting the site up was a family project. :) GAH! I can't believe ISWG is 12 years old.
ReplyDeleteOne of my sons felt so bad for me not having followers that he was making fake identities and using them to follow my blog. Such a thoughtful, clever, corner-cutting little guy he was.
DeleteIt's great that your boys were so supportive, Elizabeth.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
They are good boys...well, men. LOL
DeleteYour meme game is strong, my friend! LOL-ing at that first one especially.
ReplyDeleteI had a similar experience when I first set up my author blog. I'd been blogging off and on since 2006 but never as an author. I did the refresh-the-stats thing too but got virtually no traffic till I started participating in the IWSG. It's such a positive, supportive community.
Thanks for stopping by my blog so regularly and encouraging my meme-hunting.
I will never, ever try to challenge your memery. You are the meme master.
DeleteI am so happy I found your blog. It is always a good read...the smiles and laughs are just icing on the cake.
Sometimes all it takes is a hopping around indeed and never know what you find. At least back in the day with blogging. Also, fun to be a fool lol
ReplyDeleteTry this again. Sometimes all it takes is a hopping around indeed and never know what you find. At least back in the day with blogging. Also, fun to be a fool lol
ReplyDeleteHello Pat! :)
DeleteI don't know what's up with blogger and the profile problems! Glad you tried again.
I do enjoy being a fool. Life is too short not to be foolish.
Technology is constantly shifting. And now everything has to be video. But I prefer the written word. Hang on to your typewriter!
ReplyDeleteGlad you stuck with blogging and writing, Talented Lady.
ReplyDeleteHugs, Sandra sandracox.blogspot.com