There are so many rules to having a presence online. I know them well. After all, I tell them to my clients, because the rules are there for a reason. When it comes to blogs, I tell people that they are like babies, they need a lot of care and feeding before they grow. Another rule is that you must post so often, usually daily, and you need to post consistently.
The fact is “rules” can hold you back. I knew going into this that there would be days because of my Addison’s disease that I would struggle. I thought I couldn’t start a blog until it improved because I might not always feel up to posting. That is pretty much what Addison’s does to you. Each day is different because your adrenal gland doesn’t produce enough steroids. Kind of like diabetes except you can’t control it with diet but you are constantly worrying about how much steroids you need. I still haven’t gotten the hang of stress-dosing. And you often don’t feel well. I call it the Princess and The Pea syndrome because my muscles will hurt so that a ruffle in the sheet can cause pain.
But we all have our issues. Normal is a setting on the dryer, right?
Trying to follow the rules held me back for so long. It was a great way to procrastinate. I have a great excuse. I am constantly working to improve my health but I may never get to the point where I feel good every day. That is just life. So the choice is to retreat and not do what I want, or to say f-it and break the rules. (Studies show that swearing helps reduce pain!)
The fact is I see a lot of the supposed “online success” rules broken on some acceptably popular sites.
So first, thank you for your patience on days when I am not my best. But most importantly, what rules are holding you back from your goals and why are you not breaking them?
Have a great day!
Paula
But letting go of 2016 was different. We didn’t just let go, we pushed and kicked that year away! Sadly, this year is worse and it isn’t even over yet.
It’s recently been announced that there is a 
For many authors, psychology is a godsend, lending them new insights into 
“Oh, I want to write today, but I just don’t have the time!”
It is really important to your overall health to decrease stress. Before I became a software engineer extraordinaire I worked in mental health where I met Mr. Paula who was an intern and is now a Doctor of Psychology.
I just attended the Writer’s Digest Conference and as always, I returned home tired and full of inspiration. But there’s something that has stuck in my mind that is nagging at me. Saturday afternoon, I was sitting in the lobby, chatting with several aspiring writers who had a lot of questions about the industry and genre categories among other things. At one point, I overheard a conversation between two attendees adjacent to me. One of the writers turns to another and says, “Isn’t this so great? I’ve met a lot of people, exchanged cards with them.” Etc. Etc. But the other person shrugged and said, “I guess, but I think it’s lame the way these things are all about sponging off of the wannabes to make a bunch of money.”
Like most of you, we don’t have a lot of time so we have to prioritize what we spend that precious time on. At least when it comes to entertainment. And there are so many good choices, but we can’t watch them all. So there is what we call the “B list”. As in, if we had more time, the show would be something that we would like to watch, but right now there are so many more “A list” shows. It doesn’t mean that the “B list” shows aren’t good, they are. But with time being a limited resource, we often don’t get a chance to get them. There are always more new content and shows out there to compete, and before you know it, you are binge watching because it is now or never.
Today I’m talking with Australian author John Birmingham about his journey from the dizzying heights of the traditional publishing scene, to deciding to go indie and hybrid and his insights into how the publishing industry has changed. It’s an honest and really fascinating interview.
by John Herrick
Warning: Hacks for Hacks tips may have harmful side effects on your writing career, and should not be used by minors, adults, writers, poets, scribes, scriveners, journalists, or anybody.
Take food graters. We have one that was pretty cool. It was a circle on top of a catch pan that you could rotate around for the grating type you needed. Not your mother’s metal square thing that left a mess. But after spending waaaay too much time trying to grate some lime zest my daughter had the brilliant idea that we really needed a new one. Not technically the language she used but you get the point. Sure enough, there is this 
Not too long ago, self-published authors were collectively admonished about the need to invest in their work. Hiring quality editors, proofreaders, cover designers, and formatters before attempting to sell a book was the constant mantra of industry experts. While some hapless writers continued to slap their Word docs up on Amazon and hope to snare a few readers, authors who took their careers seriously made the proper investments.