Saturday, September 25, 2010

I'm on a Crusade, Please Join Me

Just since yesterday, thanks to the Writing Experiment, I have gained new followers and have started following a lot of great new blogs.  (I'm excited to check my Dashboard every day now)

Over at Rach Writes she has a Writer's Platform Building Crusade going on and I have climbed aboard.  Care to join all of us? 

We are part of a new generation of writers and we must embrace it.  Let me take you back in time for a second to 1998, the year I started dabbling in the publishing world.  It wasn't pretty, people!  In 1998 I was twenty years old, living as a resident tourist in an apartment in Hollywood, California and dial-up was my best friend and worst enemy.  There were no online forms for agents, no Query Tracker.  My view into the publishing world was from a large book called The Writer's Market.  They didn't have a fun interactive website like they do now, or I didn't know about it.  I was buying lots of stamps and waiting for months for rejections to my queries. 

That wasn't even the worst of it.  Blogging was non-existent, so I was writing in a vacuum with no one to write with that understood the writing world.  It was no wonder so many classic writers offed themselves or became depressed alcoholics.  It's not safe to be a writer without friends.  That's why I put my fiction aside for a bit and have now come back to it twelve years later.  (Sure, I kept my lofty writing goals in my head and I never gave up on my journals, but I didn't query again for twelve years.)

Us writers need each other and blogging is the best way for us to have a group and still be alone with our thoughts when we need to be.  Thank you bloging world for being here when I'm down and when the words won't spill out across my blank pages.

Thank you Rachael Harrie for the crusade! 

10 comments:

  1. Hi Patricia, welcome on board the Crusade :) I'm really glad you're enjoying your blogging. It's so great to be able to connect to other writers in the same position as us - I'm loving the online writing community!!! I'll be kicking off my first Crusade Challenge in a few days, can't wait to see what you come up with :)

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  2. You're almost to 50 followers! :)
    I'm #46. *waves* Nice to meet you.

    You will love this online writing community. So many wonderful, kind, smart, creative, talented writers in the blogosphere.

    Have a wonderful week,
    Lola

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  3. The online writing community is so supportive - no vacuums here! You'll love it here. :D

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  4. Beautiful! In 1998 I was applying to grad school and having my first baby. I had no idea what to do with my writing self and subsequently took time off as well. I am with you. Grateful for internet friends!

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  5. Hi Patricia, another Crusader here. Glad to hear you didn't give up on your dreams. Nice to meet you! :)

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  6. You guys are great! Thanks for stopping by and making me feel so welcome. I'm looking forward to watching everyone grow as writers and bloggers. :)

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  7. Just wanted to say hi. I'm a fellow crusader and now new follower of your blog!

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  8. There's definitely a community out here...

    Go the Crusade!

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  9. Hi Patricia, thanks for stopping by my blog! I've returned the follow favor and look forward to joining you on crusade :)

    It's so true -- a support network is crucial for today's writers. This is a great way to build & keep that network!

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  10. Hi, I just joined the Crusade today and wanted to stop by to say 'hello'!

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