No Whining Wednesday – Embrace the Quiet

Welcome back to No Whinging Wednesday! The only day of the week where you do not get to whine, criticize, or complain. If you’re new to this blog, click HERE to learn more about NWW.

The No Whining Wednesday Badge
The No Whining Wednesday Badge

This week has been a week of quiet for me. Of reflection and deep thought. So, I thought of a wonderful quote to help to get us through this day. This week, we will attempt to capture peace and free ourselves from complaining through something that seems simple to do but is more complicated than it seems on the surface: Be still. Do you know how to Be still? Stillness can be defined as:

“The absence of movement or sound.”

Of course, this doesn’t have to mean literally without sound or movement. More like being slow to speak and thinking critically before making a decision (movement). During times you feel like arguing or snapping or getting upset and frustrated do not look for the answer, just wait. I love how Rainer Maria Rilke said, “Try to love the questions themselves. Like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them.”

Wait for mental clarity. Wait for the calmness to return. Wait for the right words to speak. Just wait. Be still. Do not worry about what move to make. Today is not about moving anything. Today is about being still. Here’s our  motivating quote:

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MIA on Purpose

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I’ve been intentionally missing in action this week. There’s a saying somewhere that says that when you’re working on anything that you want to succeed, it is really dangerous to listen to what everyone says. Sometimes you just have to tune everything and everyone out for your sanity.

In addition to solidifying some business endeavors, I’ve been putting the final touches on the ARC Copy of Renaissance for my advanced readers next month and have decided to lay low in the process. I’m so excited to introduce Nora to my team! (Email Me to join my Advanced Review Team for Book One in The Nora White Story). I am officially knee deep into revising Book Two. I’m not even going to look at Book One for at least a month! After spending so much time on a project you get to the point where you are relieved to let it go out into the world. Sure, you’re nervous about what others would think of your creation (I am trembling). At the same time, there’s a weight lifted at having made it to this point. A sigh of relief to have been done with it. What happens now is what will.

But that’s not all….

I’ve also been away because I’ve not felt motivated to speak. I have been tempted to re-blog! But I didn’t want to break my silence until today because it’s the day I set for myself so I held back. Silence is something I think we all need every now and again. I look forward to it and enjoy being still. I’m not unhappy, I just appreciate silence in a world that never stops talking, as the saying goes. This also helps me to write. There’s something amazing that happens as a result of muteness. How the creative juices flow and the mind ignites with clarity. I’ve had blog post ideas but I have not felt like saying anything. Sometimes you just gotta take a step back and reevaluate. Like looking at a chess board, it will require you to step outside yourself to see the whole board. You’re able then to see your moves in a genuine and unbiased way. What could I do better? Where have I went wrong? How can I improve? What revelations can I turn into tangible action? I turn inward and listen for instruction on the next move.

My Advice for New Writers by John W. Howell

Great advice for both new and established writers. Post Quote: “Reality 1. Readers have no idea who you are. You need to market yourself and your books. You need to understand social media, marketing, selling, and general good business practices.”

Vicki Goodwin's avatarMystery Thriller Week

Your book

I was at a book signing the other day, and a person asked me a question that caused me to have to think a little before blurting out an answer. The question was, “What should every new writer know?” My answer at the time seemed to satisfy the person asking but after giving it a little more thought I decided that my reply was at best adequate and at worst incomplete. Now thanks to the Mystery Thriller Week I have been given another opportunity to adequately express what I have no come to call My Advice for New Writers that Every New Writer Should Know Before Deciding to Become a Writer. I think you can tell from my title that the thought process has grown from my initial response at the book signing. Also, if you have decided to become a writer no matter what anyone tells you, I would…

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Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing – Uncovering the Truth about Vanity Publishers by @CuriouserEdit

Must watch video. I really dislike being used and I hate scams so I am sharing this info.

I think the key problem with this situation is that most authors don’t know much about Book Publishing. I don’t mean far as publishing our own books, I mean the publishing industry itself, how it works (I’m still learning myself). It’s easy for someone to pay someone to publish their book for them if they are interested in someone doing all the work but they don’t know that paying publishers is not how it works. Publishers invest in the author by providing everything (Book Cover, Editing, Formatting, ISBN, everything), and they make this money back in Royalties. As Shayla explains, that’s why it’s difficult to get accepted by a Traditional Publisher. If they are going to invest in your work they need to know your book can sell, otherwise they don’t get their money back. Of course, I’m not saying it should be all about the money but this is a business and that’s how it works. Anywho, here’s Shayla. (You can read the script HERE for the vocab.