A friend joked yesterday that I was to blame for the thunderstorms yesterday. I laughed - if only I were that powerful!
Unfortunately, I was at Target when the rain came, so I missed out on my rainy day naptime. Rats. And when I finally did get a chance to curl up on the couch, the phone rang. And rang. And rang. Vexing, frustrating phone calls. Double rats.
David took me to the movies last night to see Pirates of the Caribbean. Arrgghh, frightfully good movie, mate. You must see it ... it's the Pirates' Code ... well, they're really more like guidelines ...
Today I curled up and watch About A Boy for the 4th time. I think it's one of the best movies I've seen in ages - well written, pretty clean (if you can appreciate the English humor), the editing & directing is great - it's just a well-done movie.
I suppose I should be writing, but I've had several vexing, trying days in a row (grrrr!!!), and frankly finally being able to check out for a few hours is just what I needed. Wanting to write, but making myself take a break from it, kind of makes me to want to write more, instead of just writing until I'm dry ... if that makes any sense at all.
So, anyway, I'm off to put the kettle on and paint my nails while I watch Cops. Yes, this is one of those wasted Saturdays that make life so blissful!
One bad note: my best friend from high school called to tell me that her mom is in the hospital with ovarian cancer. Chances are that if she leaves the hospital it will be so she can spend her last days at home. It made me realize how petty some of the things are that I've been arguing with Cassie about the last few days. It also made me realize that while I don't get to talk to Meridith often, she knew I was there for her in a heartbeat no matter how long it had been since our last chat. And what was the only thing she asked for? Prayer. So if you wouldn't mind, pray for Meridith's mom, Barb - for a miracle, for relief of her pain during chemo, and for her family.
Thursday, August 28, 2003
I wish it would rain.
Big fat raindrops. Sheets of water pouring from the sky. Wind blowing wet leaves along the gutters.
Dark heavy clouds. Dreariness and dampness.
I need a nap, an excuse to crawl into a ball and cry for no reason. To lie on the couch and read until my eyes hurt. To make a pot of tea, cover up with a blanket and watch old movies until I fall asleep.
Instead, the sun taunts me, wakes me up when I want to stay in bed, and tells me that there's much to be done. Forces me to make lists, and stare at the vacuum cleaner and the piles of manila folders filled with work. The timeline of projects that will never get done. The bills that need to be paid. The chores that go unfinished. Happy lies about responsibility, and people depending on me, and the importance of me being me.
I need a rainy day, an overcast day to match my mood, an excuse to check out of things for a few hours and wake up when this funk is over.
Big fat raindrops. Sheets of water pouring from the sky. Wind blowing wet leaves along the gutters.
Dark heavy clouds. Dreariness and dampness.
I need a nap, an excuse to crawl into a ball and cry for no reason. To lie on the couch and read until my eyes hurt. To make a pot of tea, cover up with a blanket and watch old movies until I fall asleep.
Instead, the sun taunts me, wakes me up when I want to stay in bed, and tells me that there's much to be done. Forces me to make lists, and stare at the vacuum cleaner and the piles of manila folders filled with work. The timeline of projects that will never get done. The bills that need to be paid. The chores that go unfinished. Happy lies about responsibility, and people depending on me, and the importance of me being me.
I need a rainy day, an overcast day to match my mood, an excuse to check out of things for a few hours and wake up when this funk is over.
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
I woke up at 6 am with a story idea stuck on my brain. It had been there, smoldering for a few days, and then early this morning the idea wrote itself into an article right there in my mind. I had to get it on paper, or risk losing it for good.
The idea began germinating when I dropped my daughter off at college. The dorm bathrooms were plastered with posters about STDs, birth control methods - there was even a box of condoms on the counter, free for the asking.
OK, I admit that I was shocked.
But what shocked me more was that the posters and information weren't complete. They left out some very important information, or glossed over details about STDs and long term effects.
I wanted to take some post-it notes and make little "just say no" signs and stick them all over the bathroom. But I refrained myself. I thought I'd wait a few weeks before I embarrased my daughter.
Except that she was with me on this one. "I'm going to write an article", I told her. "Do it!" she encouraged.
Instead, I wrote an open letter to college coeds. It's great.
Now what?
And so begins my constant, freelance dilemma. When I write a great article that is of benefit to someone - I mean, life or death benefit - I feel guilty trying to sell it. I want to copy it and stand on the corner passing it out. Or give it away to as many publications as possible - which is what I usually do.
Today, though, I refrained myself again (I'm getting good at this self-control thing) and sent a query to a new magazine aimed at young adults. My thought is that by waiting, I may reach a better audience - people who really need to hear the message - instead of giving it away to a few papers that will never reach young adults.
I'm also thinking about shortening the article and sending it to the local newspaper editorial page. Our culture is feeding our young people a load of - pardon my language - crap about sex and condoms and STDs. I want to sound off in a public arena where parents can read the facts.
So that's my writing news for today. Got up at 6:30, started writing at about 7, it's 1:57 now ... finished a shortened version of an article & drove the draft over to my friend Jan's house, gathered notes, wrote a query and updated my blog ... all in all, a good days work!
The idea began germinating when I dropped my daughter off at college. The dorm bathrooms were plastered with posters about STDs, birth control methods - there was even a box of condoms on the counter, free for the asking.
OK, I admit that I was shocked.
But what shocked me more was that the posters and information weren't complete. They left out some very important information, or glossed over details about STDs and long term effects.
I wanted to take some post-it notes and make little "just say no" signs and stick them all over the bathroom. But I refrained myself. I thought I'd wait a few weeks before I embarrased my daughter.
Except that she was with me on this one. "I'm going to write an article", I told her. "Do it!" she encouraged.
Instead, I wrote an open letter to college coeds. It's great.
Now what?
And so begins my constant, freelance dilemma. When I write a great article that is of benefit to someone - I mean, life or death benefit - I feel guilty trying to sell it. I want to copy it and stand on the corner passing it out. Or give it away to as many publications as possible - which is what I usually do.
Today, though, I refrained myself again (I'm getting good at this self-control thing) and sent a query to a new magazine aimed at young adults. My thought is that by waiting, I may reach a better audience - people who really need to hear the message - instead of giving it away to a few papers that will never reach young adults.
I'm also thinking about shortening the article and sending it to the local newspaper editorial page. Our culture is feeding our young people a load of - pardon my language - crap about sex and condoms and STDs. I want to sound off in a public arena where parents can read the facts.
So that's my writing news for today. Got up at 6:30, started writing at about 7, it's 1:57 now ... finished a shortened version of an article & drove the draft over to my friend Jan's house, gathered notes, wrote a query and updated my blog ... all in all, a good days work!
Monday, August 25, 2003
Freelance writing is a crazy thing. You're looking for a story in everything - I scan the newspaper for ideas or weird bits of news. I have a clipping file with odd stories - like the guy who had an open call for applications for women to be his wife. He said friends had been asking him for years when he was getting married, and he just gave them a date, even though he had no girlfriend. Finally, on that date, he held the "auditions" in the mall, and let his family and friends pick out the girl - & then he married her right then. It made the headlines for being weird - about 5 years ago.
How about this: a story in the Sunday D&C about gay & straight families sharing suburban neighborhoods in Chicago. One gay man said he and his partner moved to the 'burbs because the liked the diversity of families, and that in the city, everything revolves around gay life, gay events. "That's not really how America lives," he said. Amen to that, although the media would love for you to think otherwise.
Anyway, I've been wondering what my next project should be. I love doing articles, and now I'm officially free to do whatever I want all day (no picking Cassie up at school, or being stranded w/o a car while she works). Enter my Aunt Hildy. I talked her on the phone yesterday, and she's working on a project translating a book from Dutch to English. The interesting thing it's about a murder in her family that happened back in the 30s or 40s or something. My mom has been telling me about it in bits and pieces, but now my aunt wants to write the story in English. She asked if I'd be willing to help her do that, and frankly, I think it's going to be a very interesting project. Cant' wait to get started on that one.
Anyway, today's big debate: clean? write? nap? I think it's going to take a while for this empty nest thing to really hit me, and when it does, will I be sad or glad? Maybe a little bit of both?
How about this: a story in the Sunday D&C about gay & straight families sharing suburban neighborhoods in Chicago. One gay man said he and his partner moved to the 'burbs because the liked the diversity of families, and that in the city, everything revolves around gay life, gay events. "That's not really how America lives," he said. Amen to that, although the media would love for you to think otherwise.
Anyway, I've been wondering what my next project should be. I love doing articles, and now I'm officially free to do whatever I want all day (no picking Cassie up at school, or being stranded w/o a car while she works). Enter my Aunt Hildy. I talked her on the phone yesterday, and she's working on a project translating a book from Dutch to English. The interesting thing it's about a murder in her family that happened back in the 30s or 40s or something. My mom has been telling me about it in bits and pieces, but now my aunt wants to write the story in English. She asked if I'd be willing to help her do that, and frankly, I think it's going to be a very interesting project. Cant' wait to get started on that one.
Anyway, today's big debate: clean? write? nap? I think it's going to take a while for this empty nest thing to really hit me, and when it does, will I be sad or glad? Maybe a little bit of both?
Friday, August 22, 2003
(c) 2003 all rights reserved
My young friend Ashley is having fits about applying to colleges. My darling daughter Cassie is leaving tomorrow for college, so I understand what's Ashley's going through.
The school Cassie's going to isn't her first choice, or even her second or third choice, but it is where she was accepted, and what we could afford. Sometimes you have to bloom where you're planted. While we as parents can see the financial wisdom of the choice, it's no consolation to a young girl living at a state college with no car.
All that pressure to go to a big school! Everyone saying, "Go to an ivy league school!" "Raise your SAT scores" (the SATs were the bane of Cassie's existence - she just doesn't test well under pressure like that. She did average, but not well enough to get into the one school she wanted to go to; well enough to get in to 2 great private schools that we couldn't afford. But I digress.)
I've been thinking about the people who have rocked our worlds and shaped modern society: did they all go to college? Does an ivy league degree assure success? What makes a person successful anyway? How much of it is the result of external factors (where your degree is from, what your SAT scores were, did you ace physics), and how much is internal (your character, your determination, your drive, your initiative).
I did a little reseach, and I've come up with some interesting tidbits of trivia, stories of famous people who bombed out of school (or quit, or were kicked out), who were monumental failures, or simply lived very normal, average lives - and yet we experience their influence every day. In each case, one thing stands clear: giving up wasn't an option. Some just kept plugging along until they got it right. Some simply made the best of the situation and made lemonade from lemons. Some just lived their normal, average lives, but aspired to achieve extraordinary things.
And one more thing.
If you DO happen to go on to get a college degree, remember this: Only 25% of American adults even have a college education - so if you went to a state school & graduated last in your class, you're still better off academically than 75% of the general population - it's what you DO with that degree that matters. Unibomber Ted Kaczynski graduated from Harvard. Sometimes, great schools turn out scary people, and mediocre schools turn out great people.
Just further proof that a fancy degree isn't all it's cracked up to be.
===================
Peter Jennings is a high school dropout who never went to college
Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner is a high school dropout who got her GED
Harry Truman never got past high school
Bill Gates attended Harvard, but dropped out
Media magnate Ted Turner attended Brown, but was kicked out ... twice
Popular television and weather personality Al Roker attended SUNY Oswego
Oprah Winfrey went to Tenessee State
Colin Powell went to City College of NY
Charles Schultz went to art school and got a C+ in a class in drawing children.
Louisa May Alcott never went to college, but she was a celebrated writer & women's suffragist; she was the first woman to register to vote in Concord in 1879.
Thomas Edison only had 3 months of formal education because the school told his parents he was too "slow". He homeschooled instead.
Steven Spielberg dropped out of high school in his sophomore year, was persuaded to come back and placed in a learning disabled class; he lasted a month and dropped out of school forever.
Famed rocket scientist Wernher von Braun flunked ninth-grade algebra.
In an early screen test, Fred Astaire was described this way: "Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."
Elvis Presley was fired after just one show at the Grand Ole Opry and told "you ain't going nowhere, son."
At one point in his life, Malcolm X was imprisoned. He used the time to copy a dictionary word-for-word into his journals and sharpen his writing skills.
Charles Goodyear bungled an experiment and discovered vulcanized rubber.
Jonas Salk, who developed the polio vaccine, spent 98 percent of his time documenting the things that didn’t work until he found the things that did.
Asked once about how he felt when his team lost a game, Joe Paterno coach of the Penn State University football, replied that losing was probably good for the team since that was how players learned what they were doing wrong.
===========
sources:
- Washington Post "Where Did Our Heroes and Heroines Go to College?" By Jay Mathews Tuesday, May 7, 2002
- Famous Flops (http://faculty.marymt.edu/learning/famous_flops.htm)
My young friend Ashley is having fits about applying to colleges. My darling daughter Cassie is leaving tomorrow for college, so I understand what's Ashley's going through.
The school Cassie's going to isn't her first choice, or even her second or third choice, but it is where she was accepted, and what we could afford. Sometimes you have to bloom where you're planted. While we as parents can see the financial wisdom of the choice, it's no consolation to a young girl living at a state college with no car.
All that pressure to go to a big school! Everyone saying, "Go to an ivy league school!" "Raise your SAT scores" (the SATs were the bane of Cassie's existence - she just doesn't test well under pressure like that. She did average, but not well enough to get into the one school she wanted to go to; well enough to get in to 2 great private schools that we couldn't afford. But I digress.)
I've been thinking about the people who have rocked our worlds and shaped modern society: did they all go to college? Does an ivy league degree assure success? What makes a person successful anyway? How much of it is the result of external factors (where your degree is from, what your SAT scores were, did you ace physics), and how much is internal (your character, your determination, your drive, your initiative).
I did a little reseach, and I've come up with some interesting tidbits of trivia, stories of famous people who bombed out of school (or quit, or were kicked out), who were monumental failures, or simply lived very normal, average lives - and yet we experience their influence every day. In each case, one thing stands clear: giving up wasn't an option. Some just kept plugging along until they got it right. Some simply made the best of the situation and made lemonade from lemons. Some just lived their normal, average lives, but aspired to achieve extraordinary things.
And one more thing.
If you DO happen to go on to get a college degree, remember this: Only 25% of American adults even have a college education - so if you went to a state school & graduated last in your class, you're still better off academically than 75% of the general population - it's what you DO with that degree that matters. Unibomber Ted Kaczynski graduated from Harvard. Sometimes, great schools turn out scary people, and mediocre schools turn out great people.
Just further proof that a fancy degree isn't all it's cracked up to be.
===================
Peter Jennings is a high school dropout who never went to college
Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner is a high school dropout who got her GED
Harry Truman never got past high school
Bill Gates attended Harvard, but dropped out
Media magnate Ted Turner attended Brown, but was kicked out ... twice
Popular television and weather personality Al Roker attended SUNY Oswego
Oprah Winfrey went to Tenessee State
Colin Powell went to City College of NY
Charles Schultz went to art school and got a C+ in a class in drawing children.
Louisa May Alcott never went to college, but she was a celebrated writer & women's suffragist; she was the first woman to register to vote in Concord in 1879.
Thomas Edison only had 3 months of formal education because the school told his parents he was too "slow". He homeschooled instead.
Steven Spielberg dropped out of high school in his sophomore year, was persuaded to come back and placed in a learning disabled class; he lasted a month and dropped out of school forever.
Famed rocket scientist Wernher von Braun flunked ninth-grade algebra.
In an early screen test, Fred Astaire was described this way: "Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."
Elvis Presley was fired after just one show at the Grand Ole Opry and told "you ain't going nowhere, son."
At one point in his life, Malcolm X was imprisoned. He used the time to copy a dictionary word-for-word into his journals and sharpen his writing skills.
Charles Goodyear bungled an experiment and discovered vulcanized rubber.
Jonas Salk, who developed the polio vaccine, spent 98 percent of his time documenting the things that didn’t work until he found the things that did.
Asked once about how he felt when his team lost a game, Joe Paterno coach of the Penn State University football, replied that losing was probably good for the team since that was how players learned what they were doing wrong.
===========
sources:
- Washington Post "Where Did Our Heroes and Heroines Go to College?" By Jay Mathews Tuesday, May 7, 2002
- Famous Flops (http://faculty.marymt.edu/learning/famous_flops.htm)
Thursday, August 21, 2003
48 hours and counting until my baby leaves for college. Whhaaa!!!
Thankfully, she finally agreed that she shouldn't work these last 2 days (she loves Hollister - my feelings are a little less warm and fuzzy, but that's a rant for another day ... ) But she got up this morning - still exhausted from Florida and having worked late last night (was supposed to be 4-11, but she finally got home at about 1:15 in the am ... one of the lovely things about Hollister that we disagree about ...)
Anyway, she's at least started making a list of things that need to go to her dorm. It's a start. She's also got some loose ends to tie up: eye dr. appt; phone calls; dinner tomorrow with family; and some shopping for stuff like pens & pencils, a lamp, etc.
I don't think that it's hit her yet that she's moving - not just going on another week-long excursion, like Florida or Mexico or even camping. She's going to be living somewhere else. It's a weird thought for me, too. It should be interesting to see how we both handle it.
I'm torn between wanting to do everything for her, wanting her to stay - and counting the minutes until it's time to go. I hate the time when something is "almost" here - vacation, surgery, work, anything. The prep just drags on and on and makes it all more stressful.
Anyway, I am officially the mother of a college freshman. Good grief!
Thankfully, she finally agreed that she shouldn't work these last 2 days (she loves Hollister - my feelings are a little less warm and fuzzy, but that's a rant for another day ... ) But she got up this morning - still exhausted from Florida and having worked late last night (was supposed to be 4-11, but she finally got home at about 1:15 in the am ... one of the lovely things about Hollister that we disagree about ...)
Anyway, she's at least started making a list of things that need to go to her dorm. It's a start. She's also got some loose ends to tie up: eye dr. appt; phone calls; dinner tomorrow with family; and some shopping for stuff like pens & pencils, a lamp, etc.
I don't think that it's hit her yet that she's moving - not just going on another week-long excursion, like Florida or Mexico or even camping. She's going to be living somewhere else. It's a weird thought for me, too. It should be interesting to see how we both handle it.
I'm torn between wanting to do everything for her, wanting her to stay - and counting the minutes until it's time to go. I hate the time when something is "almost" here - vacation, surgery, work, anything. The prep just drags on and on and makes it all more stressful.
Anyway, I am officially the mother of a college freshman. Good grief!
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
REAL success! I chopped about 150 words without batting an eye & sent the column off to my editor. Not easy to do, that chopping down to meet a word count. It's like a surgeon cutting off his own hand.
Now I can settle in and really do a great column on the 30th anniversary of the release of the movie The Cross and the Switchblade for next month. Until then, I'm thinking about setting up a blog to post all the Christian music info I get - new releases, reviews, article reprints ... can I keep up with that, too? How long before this blogging becomes boring and I find a new project to waste my time?
Now I can settle in and really do a great column on the 30th anniversary of the release of the movie The Cross and the Switchblade for next month. Until then, I'm thinking about setting up a blog to post all the Christian music info I get - new releases, reviews, article reprints ... can I keep up with that, too? How long before this blogging becomes boring and I find a new project to waste my time?
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
I've never been a great math student, but for some reason I always loved geometry. Maybe it was the absolute truth of proving a theorom. Anyway, the only thing I remember from math at all, other than the basics of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division (all of which I still struggle with, especially in my checkbook, ha ha) is this proof:
If A=B, and B=C, then A=C
Using that logic, if chocolate is made from cocoa beans, and beans are a vegetable, then chocolate is a vegetable, and therefore one of the four food groups.
What's a day without at least one good rationalization? ;)
If A=B, and B=C, then A=C
Using that logic, if chocolate is made from cocoa beans, and beans are a vegetable, then chocolate is a vegetable, and therefore one of the four food groups.
What's a day without at least one good rationalization? ;)
Monday, August 18, 2003
Yeah! I've made headway on several of my projects! I have notes, and I've listened to some music, and I think I have a tiny skeleton of an outline ... tiny ... but it's a start ....
I really love this editor I'm working for right now; they take very good care of me at this paper, and I always feel guilty when I can't get my brain functioning to write when I need to. Isn't that always the case, though? I can have lots of time, lots of ideas - when I'm not at the computer or have loads of time before deadline. Then as deadline approaches? I hit a brick wall.
It's like there are a thousand ideas bouncing all around in my brain like a strobe light, making it impossible to capture just one and get it on paper. Or like trying to catch fireflies. One minute they're there, and then just when you think it's in your grasp, it blinks off and disappears. I'm torn between wanting to catch one, and wanting them all go away and give me peace. But then I would have nothing in the well from which to draw even a droplet to splash across a page. And I need to splash a couple of pages - now!
Cassie comes home tomorrow! Yeah! I was telling my husband that I'm not sure why I miss her so much this time. Maybe it's because she's been gone a lot over the summer, and she leaves for school on Saturday. It doesn't seem possible that I am the mother of a college student. Yeeessshhh. I'm old.
I really love this editor I'm working for right now; they take very good care of me at this paper, and I always feel guilty when I can't get my brain functioning to write when I need to. Isn't that always the case, though? I can have lots of time, lots of ideas - when I'm not at the computer or have loads of time before deadline. Then as deadline approaches? I hit a brick wall.
It's like there are a thousand ideas bouncing all around in my brain like a strobe light, making it impossible to capture just one and get it on paper. Or like trying to catch fireflies. One minute they're there, and then just when you think it's in your grasp, it blinks off and disappears. I'm torn between wanting to catch one, and wanting them all go away and give me peace. But then I would have nothing in the well from which to draw even a droplet to splash across a page. And I need to splash a couple of pages - now!
Cassie comes home tomorrow! Yeah! I was telling my husband that I'm not sure why I miss her so much this time. Maybe it's because she's been gone a lot over the summer, and she leaves for school on Saturday. It doesn't seem possible that I am the mother of a college student. Yeeessshhh. I'm old.
OK, back to my thoughts:
Should I be more motivated by paying gigs, or should I give 100% to every assignment. I think the latter - I mean, people expect quality, and I should give my best every time I've committed myself to write.
But it's also a lot to ask to expect a full-length feature article for nothing. One editor keeps telling me that although he doesn't pay, I can add his publication to my resume. That's a nice thought, but given that I've been published in more than 18 publications (print and electronic) I'm not looking for feathers in my cap - unless it's CCM Magazine.
Then again, one paper asked me to write a feature for nothing, and for whatever reason I said "yes" without even hesitating. I sold the story to two other papers, totaling about $150 (one paper was Canadian so I'm still waiting to see how that check translates into American dollars). After learning about each other in the article, one of the sources may be teaming up with another source for a huge project. And the article did run nationwide in reprints in Canada and the US.
I think that I'd be happier if I could just get publications to pay me what they promised. One paper offered me $35 for a story, and I haven't seen either a copy of the paper or a check - despite the fact that several times the publisher has told me it's in an envelope ready to go. That was in April. One national magazine accepted an article I wrote, and I haven't heard from them since to see if they even still want it. There are a few publications that have run articles, but pay 30 days post publication, so I'm waiting for a couple of $10 and $20 checks ... and waiting ... and waiting ...
Freelance writing is something you have to do because you love to write. If you're in it for the money, get an application at McDonalds instead and be thankful for the steady paycheck. You can make some money, but you'll be writing a lot for smaller amounts - although that can add up very quickly. Someone in my writers group said that hardworking, dedicated, full time freelancers make about $20,000 a year - not much for a full time job, but a nice part-time, flexible job.
But that takes way more ambition and organization than I have. I used to own my own retail business, and one thing I'm not interested in doing is running another. But that's what freelancing is. Keeping track of what you sent, to whom, who accepted it, when it's due, who owes you, who is reprinting ...
Fortunately for me, I long ago decided to let God handle my paycheck. I've drawn a line between giving away writing as a ministry, and letting myself be taking advantage of. When I really feel like I'm supposed to give something away as a ministry, God always send other papers who want to print it, and I make way more money than I would have if I'd sold it just to the one paper. I write what I simply can't hold in, and let God handle the rest.
And besides, I'm not always the most motivated writer. It's 10:14 am and I'm still in my jammies on a gorgeous summer morning (should I go to the beach, or write? hmmm ... ). When I think God is telling me to get busy, He usually has something ducky in store.
In any event, I need to finish up the things I've committed to. Then I may call the restaurant up the street and see if they need any waitresses.
Should I be more motivated by paying gigs, or should I give 100% to every assignment. I think the latter - I mean, people expect quality, and I should give my best every time I've committed myself to write.
But it's also a lot to ask to expect a full-length feature article for nothing. One editor keeps telling me that although he doesn't pay, I can add his publication to my resume. That's a nice thought, but given that I've been published in more than 18 publications (print and electronic) I'm not looking for feathers in my cap - unless it's CCM Magazine.
Then again, one paper asked me to write a feature for nothing, and for whatever reason I said "yes" without even hesitating. I sold the story to two other papers, totaling about $150 (one paper was Canadian so I'm still waiting to see how that check translates into American dollars). After learning about each other in the article, one of the sources may be teaming up with another source for a huge project. And the article did run nationwide in reprints in Canada and the US.
I think that I'd be happier if I could just get publications to pay me what they promised. One paper offered me $35 for a story, and I haven't seen either a copy of the paper or a check - despite the fact that several times the publisher has told me it's in an envelope ready to go. That was in April. One national magazine accepted an article I wrote, and I haven't heard from them since to see if they even still want it. There are a few publications that have run articles, but pay 30 days post publication, so I'm waiting for a couple of $10 and $20 checks ... and waiting ... and waiting ...
Freelance writing is something you have to do because you love to write. If you're in it for the money, get an application at McDonalds instead and be thankful for the steady paycheck. You can make some money, but you'll be writing a lot for smaller amounts - although that can add up very quickly. Someone in my writers group said that hardworking, dedicated, full time freelancers make about $20,000 a year - not much for a full time job, but a nice part-time, flexible job.
But that takes way more ambition and organization than I have. I used to own my own retail business, and one thing I'm not interested in doing is running another. But that's what freelancing is. Keeping track of what you sent, to whom, who accepted it, when it's due, who owes you, who is reprinting ...
Fortunately for me, I long ago decided to let God handle my paycheck. I've drawn a line between giving away writing as a ministry, and letting myself be taking advantage of. When I really feel like I'm supposed to give something away as a ministry, God always send other papers who want to print it, and I make way more money than I would have if I'd sold it just to the one paper. I write what I simply can't hold in, and let God handle the rest.
And besides, I'm not always the most motivated writer. It's 10:14 am and I'm still in my jammies on a gorgeous summer morning (should I go to the beach, or write? hmmm ... ). When I think God is telling me to get busy, He usually has something ducky in store.
In any event, I need to finish up the things I've committed to. Then I may call the restaurant up the street and see if they need any waitresses.
That's it: today I HAVE to get some writing done!
Some freelancers complain that they can't find writing assignments. I have a few assignments, I just can't actually DO them!
1. Review Evanescence CD/small article
2. Review Shoofly Pie (very good book, by the way)
3. Transcribe/article on Rock & Roll Worship Circus for article
4. Article on the30th anniversary of the Cross & the Switchblade, and story on Apologetix
5. Article on the Irondequoit Windows Project - yeeesssh. I may never get that one done.
6. I still have 23 tapes from GMA to transcribe, and about 15 CDs to review!!!!
Unfortunately, only one of those assignments is paying, which may be why I'm feeling burdened by the rest of them - the others I need to write and then sell! Sigh. Can't I just go take a nap? :)
Some freelancers complain that they can't find writing assignments. I have a few assignments, I just can't actually DO them!
1. Review Evanescence CD/small article
2. Review Shoofly Pie (very good book, by the way)
3. Transcribe/article on Rock & Roll Worship Circus for article
4. Article on the30th anniversary of the Cross & the Switchblade, and story on Apologetix
5. Article on the Irondequoit Windows Project - yeeesssh. I may never get that one done.
6. I still have 23 tapes from GMA to transcribe, and about 15 CDs to review!!!!
Unfortunately, only one of those assignments is paying, which may be why I'm feeling burdened by the rest of them - the others I need to write and then sell! Sigh. Can't I just go take a nap? :)
Sunday, August 17, 2003
OK, I admit it. When the lights went out, I panicked.
I was at the video store when suddenly everything went dark. The girl behind the counter and I were the only ones in the place - a young man who had been a bit overly attentive to her had just left the store, and frankly, it was a little creepy that the lights went out just a few minutes after he left. The girl picked up the phone to call the owner to find out what she should do with the power off, and the phone line was dead.
OK, that was Friday the 13th kind of creepy.
We relaxed a minute later when another customer came in and told us that power was out all over the mall, down the street, at the gas station, and at the stop light. At that point, we assumed that nearby construction had disrupted a power line; with the PGA just up the road and traffic heavy, it was also possible an accident took out a pole. I wasn’t worried when the library power was out, and when I got home, my power was still on.
Then my husband called to tell me that power at the restaurant was out in Henrietta, he’d heard power was out all over the Northeast, and our cell phone service was out. My heart skipped a beat. I turned on the TV, but all the stations were static. I logged onto CNN.com, and saw a breaking news headline that indeed confirmed that power was out in most of the major cities in the NE. Some reports said an explosion had occurred at a Manhattan power plant, others reported smoke coming from a Con Edison building.
And then our power went out.
No local news. No power. No cell phone. Not even all the radio stations were on the air.
I was sure that a terrorist had struck, shutting down not only all the power on the eastern seaboard, but airports across the country. Or maybe this was the first hour of the apocalypse. Cassie was in Florida with my sister, and my fear was how we would get her home. (OK, so she wasn’t coming home for 5 more days, but I was thinking ahead.) I called my brother-in-law’s cell phone (that was a good sign; his cell phone was working), and he told me they hadn’t heard or seen anything in Florida about the power outages, but they were heading back to the hotel anyway and he’d check it out. Being in the military, I figured that if he hadn’t heard about it, I could relax.
A little.
I only had about ¼ tank of gas in my car, and if I had to go anywhere, it wasn’t going to be far. If I needed to drive to pick Cassie up somewhere, how would I get past the Thruway entrance? I thought I’d give a shot at trying to fill up just up the road, but traffic was at a standstill & the gas pumps weren’t operational, so I stayed home.
Before long, it became apparent that whatever had happened, there was not an immediate danger to the general public, but things were going to be disrupted for a while. Cassie wouldn’t be flying for several more days (although she called me again that night and asked to come home because she was sick; I told her the airports were closed so she’d have to stay), and even if the airports were not open by then, my sister and her husband would take care of her. I joked to my sister later that I figured if her husband had to call in a military plane to get his family, he’d make sure Cassie got at least as far as their house in PA.
So I relaxed and actually settled down to enjoy the quiet.
Just having returned from our yearly camping trip, we had a ready supply of flashlights and batteries, a camp stove, a radio, and even a battery operated fan. Throughout the night we just sat in the living room, listening to WHAM as Bill Lowe and Bob Lonsberry informed and entertained us through the darkness. I went outside and looked at the sky and saw more stars than I knew existed, usually invisible with the distraction of the street lamps.
At 11 pm, the lights came back on, and it was back to business as usual. Except that I have to admit that after the initial panic, I had actually enjoyed the power outage. I learned that I could survive without the Amazing Race, and that water for tea boiled on a camp stove tastes as good as water boiled on the electric range. After the initial panic, I realized that Cassie was safe in Florida with family that loved her and would take care of her as their own, and in the event that this was a terrorist attack, we have other family living in the area that could take them all in until safe travel home could be arranged. Once I remembered that God was really in control, and there wasn’t a blasted thing I could do from almost 1300 miles away, I realized that maybe this night of dark and quiet was a gift, and I wondered how much more relaxed life would be if we were forced to settle in at dusk and partake of the peace and quiet of night without TV, computers and other electric noise. I even wrote in my journal. Long-hand. With a pen!
I also wondered if this was a glimpse of what might be ahead during the tribulation. If power were out for a week - not just lines down, like in an ice or snow storm, but actually unavailable - how would our lives be altered? You couldn’t use ATMs or credit cards. No gas because the pumps are electric. No cell phones, either because the towers were unavailable, or because there would be no way to recharge batteries. Signals from radio and television were weak or out all together. We were being asked to conserve our water usage, and in some cities, there was no water available at all. How much of a reserve does the city have? Travel would be seriously disrupted; although planes were able to fly and land using back up, there was no security screening available, so flights were cancelled.
In any event, things are back to normal for now, and Cassie is due home in 3 days. And today, I had something to write about!
I was at the video store when suddenly everything went dark. The girl behind the counter and I were the only ones in the place - a young man who had been a bit overly attentive to her had just left the store, and frankly, it was a little creepy that the lights went out just a few minutes after he left. The girl picked up the phone to call the owner to find out what she should do with the power off, and the phone line was dead.
OK, that was Friday the 13th kind of creepy.
We relaxed a minute later when another customer came in and told us that power was out all over the mall, down the street, at the gas station, and at the stop light. At that point, we assumed that nearby construction had disrupted a power line; with the PGA just up the road and traffic heavy, it was also possible an accident took out a pole. I wasn’t worried when the library power was out, and when I got home, my power was still on.
Then my husband called to tell me that power at the restaurant was out in Henrietta, he’d heard power was out all over the Northeast, and our cell phone service was out. My heart skipped a beat. I turned on the TV, but all the stations were static. I logged onto CNN.com, and saw a breaking news headline that indeed confirmed that power was out in most of the major cities in the NE. Some reports said an explosion had occurred at a Manhattan power plant, others reported smoke coming from a Con Edison building.
And then our power went out.
No local news. No power. No cell phone. Not even all the radio stations were on the air.
I was sure that a terrorist had struck, shutting down not only all the power on the eastern seaboard, but airports across the country. Or maybe this was the first hour of the apocalypse. Cassie was in Florida with my sister, and my fear was how we would get her home. (OK, so she wasn’t coming home for 5 more days, but I was thinking ahead.) I called my brother-in-law’s cell phone (that was a good sign; his cell phone was working), and he told me they hadn’t heard or seen anything in Florida about the power outages, but they were heading back to the hotel anyway and he’d check it out. Being in the military, I figured that if he hadn’t heard about it, I could relax.
A little.
I only had about ¼ tank of gas in my car, and if I had to go anywhere, it wasn’t going to be far. If I needed to drive to pick Cassie up somewhere, how would I get past the Thruway entrance? I thought I’d give a shot at trying to fill up just up the road, but traffic was at a standstill & the gas pumps weren’t operational, so I stayed home.
Before long, it became apparent that whatever had happened, there was not an immediate danger to the general public, but things were going to be disrupted for a while. Cassie wouldn’t be flying for several more days (although she called me again that night and asked to come home because she was sick; I told her the airports were closed so she’d have to stay), and even if the airports were not open by then, my sister and her husband would take care of her. I joked to my sister later that I figured if her husband had to call in a military plane to get his family, he’d make sure Cassie got at least as far as their house in PA.
So I relaxed and actually settled down to enjoy the quiet.
Just having returned from our yearly camping trip, we had a ready supply of flashlights and batteries, a camp stove, a radio, and even a battery operated fan. Throughout the night we just sat in the living room, listening to WHAM as Bill Lowe and Bob Lonsberry informed and entertained us through the darkness. I went outside and looked at the sky and saw more stars than I knew existed, usually invisible with the distraction of the street lamps.
At 11 pm, the lights came back on, and it was back to business as usual. Except that I have to admit that after the initial panic, I had actually enjoyed the power outage. I learned that I could survive without the Amazing Race, and that water for tea boiled on a camp stove tastes as good as water boiled on the electric range. After the initial panic, I realized that Cassie was safe in Florida with family that loved her and would take care of her as their own, and in the event that this was a terrorist attack, we have other family living in the area that could take them all in until safe travel home could be arranged. Once I remembered that God was really in control, and there wasn’t a blasted thing I could do from almost 1300 miles away, I realized that maybe this night of dark and quiet was a gift, and I wondered how much more relaxed life would be if we were forced to settle in at dusk and partake of the peace and quiet of night without TV, computers and other electric noise. I even wrote in my journal. Long-hand. With a pen!
I also wondered if this was a glimpse of what might be ahead during the tribulation. If power were out for a week - not just lines down, like in an ice or snow storm, but actually unavailable - how would our lives be altered? You couldn’t use ATMs or credit cards. No gas because the pumps are electric. No cell phones, either because the towers were unavailable, or because there would be no way to recharge batteries. Signals from radio and television were weak or out all together. We were being asked to conserve our water usage, and in some cities, there was no water available at all. How much of a reserve does the city have? Travel would be seriously disrupted; although planes were able to fly and land using back up, there was no security screening available, so flights were cancelled.
In any event, things are back to normal for now, and Cassie is due home in 3 days. And today, I had something to write about!
NOTE:
To view posts prior to the creation of this blog, including my list of all time favorite "Books I've Loved That Have Loved Me Back", visit my website
To view posts prior to the creation of this blog, including my list of all time favorite "Books I've Loved That Have Loved Me Back", visit my website
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