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by Theresa Garee | Feb 3, 2021 | Blog, Write Now Columbus Essay Archives
Write Now Columbus – February 2021
Dear Writers:
My running and mental health memoir, Depression Hates a Moving Target, just “badged” again.
Badged? What’s that?”
I didn’t know it was a thing until my editor emailed me the first time it earned a “#1 New Release” badge. The “badge” is that orange “#1 Best Seller” banner under the 4.6 stars.
But what the heck does it mean?
Well, for at least an hour (Amazon refreshes hourly,) the ebook of Depression Hates a Moving Target, sold more ebooks than any other ebook in the bipolar disorder category, more even than Carrie Fisher’s memoir, The Princess Diaries.
It looks good and, frankly, it is good. But it is also a bit of an illusion.
Does that make me a “best selling author?” Only on Amazon. And only for the ebook. Only in the bipolar disorder category. And only for the period of time that badge stays.
Now, if it floated at #1 in the bipolar category for more than a few days (three days is its record) or if it hit #1 in a bunch of categories at the same time or if it rose to the top 100 of all ebooks, then I might call myself a “best selling author.”
For now, I’ll enjoy the pretty little orange badge for as long as it lasts.
WHERE’S TAMI?
Tami is preoccupied with good cause. She sent a sweet note:
Howdy all. Tami here. As I write this, I am a week away from undergoing partial knee reconstruction surgery. I figured I should get it done during the winter so I can get out and about when Spring comes. And yes, it will come!
Please know we welcome your feedback about the newsletter.
Nita and I can be reached at writenowcolumbus@gmail.com.
Notice the new email address. Eventually, as your donations allow, we will move Write Now Columbus to its own website.
THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO DONATED!
Which brings me to YOU. Thank you so much to each of you who donated and to those of you who inquired about paying for a subscription to help us pay the expenses. We’re still researching the best subscription options since the ones we’ve found so far charge large fees.
In the meantime, if you feel moved to contribute, just click DONATE and it will take you to a page with a paypal button. Or you can email Nita for an address to send a check. We spend every penny toward keeping the site up and running.
Since not every subscriber on this list is interested in running, mental health, meditation, writing practice, and dogs, I created a separate newsletter. You can see the archive here and SUBSCRIBE HERE.
You may also download my free ebook Three Ways to Heal Your Mind which will subscribe you.
CENTRAL OHIO WRITING
Events have picked up a bit as I believe businesses and colleges are figuring out more about pandemic life. We have 27 events on the calendar to date and will add any more that we learn of as the month goes on.
We added two events that are NOT this month, the Kenyon Review Writers Workshops. They occur in June and July, but we wanted to alert you that applications are open now.
If you know of an event we haven’t listed, please email Tami and I at writenowcolumbus@gmail.com and we will add it. And if we can do anything else to help you, please reach out.
Thanks always for reading and have a great month!
~ Nita
If you purchase anything from the affiliate links on this page or in this email, Write Now Columbus will receive a portion of the proceeds. This helps us keep the website up and the internet on.
by Theresa Garee | Apr 4, 2018 | Blog
“As far as I’m concerned, the entire reason for becoming a writer is not having to get up in the morning.” — Neil Gaiman
I’ve got it again. You know, that thing you get when things are going well and people ask for stuff and if you give it to them your dreams might come true? Yes. Imposter syndrome. I’ve got it in spades.
It took a friend to diagnose it. All I knew was that I felt like crap. I felt like there was sludge in my veins and no ideas would come. I felt scattered too all at the same time. I was a spinning slug. Tears filled my eyes as I told my friend that a publisher had expressed interest in my book, Twenty-Six Point Freaking Two. But I had to send an email with additional marketing information and I had to send it that day. And my mind said, “Nope. You can’t do this. It’s too hard.” And worse, “You’re not worthy. Why would they want your work?” I felt like a fraud.
This is not the first time I’ve encountered imposter syndrome. The entire decade I practiced law, despite having huge successes in many cases, bringing in lots of money for the firm, and eventually being asked to become a partner, I kept waiting for them to figure out I had no idea what I was doing. And even though the feeling is familiar once I recognize it, that initial jolt always blindsides me.
I wonder if imposter syndrome is peculiar to women or perhaps to writers or artists in general. I wonder if it’s worse when you’re already bipolar with a general slant toward the depressive mindset. But this newsletter has to go out today. I’ll let you research those things.
Thankfully, once I knew what it was, the solution was obvious. Suit up and show up. Bring the body and the mind will follow. Do the work.
And so I did.
And now the email has been sent and the newsletter (including this essay) is in process and tomorrow there will be the monthly bills and the rest of the taxes and whatever reminders come up on the manuscript submission tickler system and more of the same on the next day and the next.
Meanwhile, I wait. I hope, and always, I work.
by Theresa Garee | Dec 4, 2016 | Blog
“Of all your troubles, great and small, the greatest are the ones that don’t happen at all.” – Thomas Carlyle
What if agents don’t want my book? What if small publishers don’t want it either? And if I self-publish, what if no one wants to read it?
If I had worried about these things before I began writing Twenty-Six Point Freaking Two, my memoir about running and mental illness, I would not have started writing at all. And now, even after I’m far into the process, I still can’t think too far ahead. Rather, I must focus on the small tasks that make up each activity. Write the email. Double check the requirements on the agent or publisher’s website. Check the email again. And again. Hit send. Then wait. Small steps. None of them overwhelming. None of them all that complex.
Depression and bipolar disorder render me easily overwhelmed. I have to chunk things down and keep it very simple. Perhaps other writers are more skilled at doing these things naturally. Perhaps their minds don’t spin negative scenarios the way mine does. Perhaps. Or maybe we all struggle with this in our own ways. I’m thankful I have meditation to help me stay centered. I find my breath. I feel my feet. I look around and ground myself in my surroundings. I think of one small task I can do right now. And then I do that. And then I think of the next small task I can do. And I do that. These small tasks make up my days as a writer. It’s not the big stretches of time. It’s the minute by minute things.
In November, I took a break from submitting and picked up a project I’d set aside many years ago, a book tentatively titled, Eat Your Toast. Ironically, it’s a book of daily practices geared toward helping people, myself included, live in the moment. I struggle with this more than anyone I know. I needed the reminders. I needed to read quotes about it. I needed to research teachers who focus on this. And I needed to write out exercises I could do all month while I was writing the book. I wrote 50,860 additional words on that book as a rebel project for National Novel Writing Month.
And now, in December, I’ll pick up Twenty-Six Point Freaking Two again and continue my journey toward publication. I still don’t know how this will play out. But if my project in November taught me anything, it’s that I don’t need to know the outcome. All I need to know is the next step.
