New Horizons on the Horizon
Where will my path lead?
My disdain for social media couldn’t be more pronounced. I wrote an article on Medium some time ago about why I left Facebook for good - and it was one of the better decisions I’ve made in my life. Having an audience is necessary for a writer, and as I’m new to the publishing world, there is an expectation for having a social media following.
I call bullshit on that. I don’t think it’s necessary nor desirable. We’re not all Kardashians or interested in supporting the network of hideousness that is behind social media, Facebook’s crimes, Instagram’s addictiveness and all of social media’s negative contributions to our lives.
It seems as if I’ve been sucked back into that world that I left behind long ago. Now I’m on LinkedIn, Twitter, Medium, Substack, and WordPress. My heart and mind says to quit bouncing my brain against LinkedIn and Twitter, but at this point it’s really only to call attention to my work on Medium and substack. WordPress lies fallow at the moment, needing a redesign.
I’m interested in Dev. Editing. I think I’d be good at it. I’m taking classes and it’s going well. It could be a way to supplement my income while writing. Of course, that means, marketing myself, and I’m so bad at that.
A New Direction
In speaking with an editor last week, the idea of joining the speaker’s circuit came up. I’m toying around with going back to teaching. I loved my work with students, but of course, difficulties with administration and the piles of grading are not conducive to a calm mind in my life.
But the idea of speaking to an audience is appealing to me. So many people don’t enjoy public speaking. Of course, right before I speak, I get nervous as so many performers do. But then I enjoy the experience. Years of standing in front of a classroom have led me here. It’s something I can do, something I enjoy, and it pays real money. It’s a way to reach my audience without having to go full social media.
At the Atlanta Writers Conference, I spoke with one of the guest speakers about joining the speaker’s circuit. She suggested I start by contacting local libraries, who are always looking for speakers.
So Seattle, let’s see just what you are made of. The countdown begins. We’re about 10 weeks from our move date, end of August/beginning of September.
The idea of Dev Editing and speaking, or some combination of editing, writing, and speaking is very appealing to me. Hey, it sounds better than a 40-hour week at a university, though I’m going to try to get into Univ. of Washington - good benefits.
This is a writing week. Also, I’ve been invited to judge a story competition on Monday night, so that’s exciting. The gf has been away for a weekend visiting family. She returns tonight and then we’re off on another exciting week of reading, writing, X-files, The Orville, foods, guitar, and playing with Herman, the dachshund.
It’s hot here. Summer heat and humidity have arrived.
At the end of the week, I’ll be back to more about memoir and memory, including a look at another section of my memoir.
Stay safe out there. Thanks for reading. Until next time, I’ll . . .
Just keep writing!