Happy Fifteenth Anniversary of the Insecure Writer's Support Group!

 Yes! It is another meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!

Hello fellow Insecure Writers and those who love us!

September marks the fifteenth year that many of us have gathered and shared our lives as writers, as creatives in a sometimes cold and cruel world. We give each other courage to go forth, reminding those among us who may falter - hey! no one made you be a writer, you silly! Time to sally forth into the fray and give it your best. 

I can't help but remember the numpty (Scottish slang for clueless) I was when I first started posting here. And now I'm a Cailleach, an old wise woman, dispensing wisdom from my comfortable rocking chair by the peat fire. Wait a minute - I am not. I'm still a numpty - just older, not wiser. I do have a wood stove but not a peat one, so there's that. And I just found a comfortable rocking chair on my street (the things people put in the trash!) but it is in our basement, awaiting a magic transformation, or a slow decline. 

Today the optional question is "Do you have a favorite character archetype you tend to gravitate toward in your writing?"

I do! I like the archetype of the huntress in classical archetypes - Diana, Artemis, and so forth. Maybe me being a Sagittarius might have something to do with it. She is independent and lives in the world on her own terms. In fiction Jo from Little Women, who does not look to a man to complete her, Anne of Green Gables, who's quirky spunky nature will not be quelled. The protagonist Nell Munro in my mysteries The Crooked Knife and Little Birds is fiercely independent and a bit of a maverick. In movies Katherine Hepburn in Woman of the Year (1942) and Lisbeth Salander - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.  Musicians like Lady GaGa and Pink. What I like about this archetype is she does not stand in relation to others as she does in archetypes like Mother, Lover, Demon etc... In the novel I'm writing there are eight women aged 15 to 82 and they will run the gamut of archetypes I'm sure. It will be interesting to put that lens on for a look as I do my second draft.

But before leaving you today I want to express my profound gratitude to those who have kept this fire burning - the one that we insecure types gather around and have kept it going all these years. Thank you dear Ninja Alex and your league of helpers! 

And I will include a couple of my early posts  - the one that follows in spring of 2012 and the following one was October of 2011 (so maybe my first though maybe I did do one that first run)'

Dear Ms. Morrison,

It has come to the attention of the Bureau of Risk Avoidance Maintenance that you have been feeling and expressing some measure of confidence. Agents of BRAM have heard reports that you told your writing group that you felt 'pretty good' about your writing life and that 'this was going to be your year'. We understand (through a careful analysis of your postings and visits to the mail box) that you are actively pursuing publishment of your ...ahem...writings.

We at BRAM wish to express the dangers inherent in such activity. Why if every writer took it into their heads to feel 'confident' and 'pretty good' what do you suppose might happen? It is for your own good, nay your safety, that you curb your desire to bring your writing out into the open air instead of keeping it safely locked down in a drawer or computer file where it belongs.

Counselling people to continue the healthy and SAFE practices of avoiding risk in all its forms is the mandate of BRAM. Here are the risks you will be exposed to if you continue on in this dangerous fashion:

1. You will receive rejections. This is a known fact. Very few writers put their material out to the public without suffering from some rejection.
2. That rejection may lead you to becoming despondent and you may miss important 'real' work because of it.
3. You may receive acceptances. This has been known to happen.
4. If you receive offers of publication or an agent desires to 'take you on' you may get giddy and drink foreign produced drinks such as tequila or Lagavullan.
5. Your possible acceptance may lead the public to expect more writing from you.
6. This will lead to possibly more rejection.
7. And most importantly - should you get published - people will see what you've been up to. Are you sure you want to risk that?

We here at BRAM hope you will take this warning to heart. Please go back to your hovel or attic or wherever you write and contemplate that a little insecurity now will lead to a much SAFER life. Bravado is ruinous.

Your Servant,

Ms. Edna Squelch,
BRAM secretary of warnings

 And here is the first one that I can find that I wrote.

Dear Journal,
Hi, my name is Jan and I'm an insecure writer. Oh, I know you don't believe me. You think I'm just trying to fit in with the new in-crowd, but you're wrong. I am insecure at writing and perhaps even more with revising. You see, I believe that revising separates the sheep from the goats (hi Elspeth's sheep!!!). I don't know if a writer is a sheep or a goat but today, of all days, insecure writers' day, I'm saying that a writer is a goat and not a sheep. Why? Well because goats eat anything and live off of it. Same as writers. Exactly. Why today, just today, dear journal, I ate an old tire, some sh*t (don't ask, won't tell), and my bank statement. Why? You may well ask. The tire is obvious for you alert journals, the second item I've already said I won't comment on, and the bank statement - that was dessert. If I wasn't a writer and a reviser I might have said that it was desert, but that would be wrong. Why would a bank statement be a big sandy hot area with a cartoon guy crawling across it, saying in balloon speak "water...water...just a bit of water..."?  Some other reasons that writers are goats and not sheep. We smell. It's true. I know we don't like to admit it but when we are deep in revisions, showers are just another pesky thought. Plus we eat popcorn with garlicky oil on it (no - not butter, we're on a diet!) and parmesan with that nice old sock odour. And the third reason we're like goats and not like sheep is that we can't sleep. We're always jumping around on mountains trying to find something, anything, to write about. If we were sheep we'd count ourselves and sleep. I can't sleep - that's why I'm writing this in my journal pretending it is Wednesday - oh - it is almost Wednesday - just 13 more minutes and it will be - then I can put the compost out and maybe go to sleep. I might have a cigarette. On the deck, in the driving cold rain. That would make me feel like a writer and I would definitely smell like a goat. Then I couldn't go to sleep and I could work on fleshing out my main character in the revision I'm doing. Good idea. By the way, Mari and Tartlette, I'm not blunking or drogging or any one of those elvish words. I'm just really really really tired. Because I'm a goat, an insecure writing, revising goat and baaaaaah (oh come on - I heard four goats today and that is just how they sound - the sheep copied them - they ARE sheep ya know).
Sometimes when people ask me what I'm "up to" (very suspiciously I might add) I will tell them I'm a writer and go blah blah blahing about 'what I'm working on' and how hard it is to find 'real publishers' these days. But don't kid yourself, journal, I'm still being insecure when I do that. Yes, I am. I'm blowing a lot of hot air. The thing is that when I'm finally a 'published writer' I won't ever say that. I'll slip it in real cool. "Yes, I'm working on my twelfth book. Uh...well only one's been published, but I AM working on my twelfth book. I'll be so secure. Then every first Wednesday of every month I'll write a Secure Writers' Post. Ha! OK, I'm going out on the deck to smoke now. See you tomorrow, I mean today.

Insecure Writers in the Summertime

It is the monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group - go to the link and sign up or look for other worried writers to read. 

What does the insecure writer get up to in the summer? I'm so happily stuck into a new project (Tales of the Dispossessed) that I'm having no problem meeting my goal of roughly 1 thousand words a day. I should have a shitty first draft by the end of the summer and be able to then dive into my favourite part - revising. It isn't a mystery this time - it is a tale of the future - about 12 years from now when some of the things we see evolving have reached their apotheosis and people everywhere are figuring out how to survive. Oddly this focus on end times is cheering me up somewhat. Perhaps I'm finally getting this impermanence thing.

My fella is away working in Labrador this summer so my life is quieter than usual (and it is usually pretty quiet). I have lots of time to write and to garden so I'm very happy. I have some little trips here and there to do readings of my newest book (Little Birds) and that is fun but I'm not pushing it too much. 

a picture of how I used to spend my summers as a child. We are undoubtedly stopped at a sign telling us about the continental divide - something my father was mysteriously obsessed with.

I've been getting feedback and so far it has all been terrific. This makes me very happy. I'm proud of this book. I was proud of The Crooked Knife too but this is a better book because my writing gets better with practice. An obvious truth but yay!

Here's this month's question (which is optional):

July 1 question - Is there anything you'd like to see changed, added, and/or rearranged about the book publishing industry?

Hmm. . . this is a tough question. I think that is like asking how a building could be remodeled when it is on fire. Soon we will have to rebuild a new model. I do not blame anyone for this but the book publishing industry like the music industry is undergoing an incredible change - I might go on about the good old days but they probably weren't and what is the point? I'm quite glad not to be a publisher, a book store owner, or a music producer these days. I will muckle on best I can and hope sanity will prevail. I do thank people like Jane Friedman who I find a terrific resource for navigating the tricky waters of the publishing business.  And of course Insecure Writer's Support Group (in particular our fearless leader Alex J. Cavanaugh)  for bolstering the insecurities of all of it. 

It will be interesting to see what happens next. Or in the words of that wonderful optimist Maggie Muggins (said at the end of every show) "I wonder what will happen tomorrow, Mr. McGarrity?"

 

IWSG and 2nd novel released

 Welcome to another meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group - sign up here to join this lovely group - IWSG !

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!

The awesome co-hosts for the May 6 posting of the IWSG are Jenni Enzor, Jemima Pett, Jamie of Uniquely Maladjusted but Fun, and Kim Lajevardi!

This month's question is "What was the most inspiring feedback you received including agents, editors and beta readers?"

Hmm... that is hard to answer in some ways. It is so topical for me right now as my new novel Little Birds was released a couple of weeks ago and I'm starting to hear from those who have been reading it. I have to say though that the response that has really stuck for me came after my first book The Crooked Knife was released. It came from one of my closest friends and it was really her look of surprise when she contacted me and said how good it was. I laughed and said she must have been worried that it would be bad and she'd have to make shit up. Exactly! she replied. She never was any good at lying. The other feedback that really encouraged me was from the book-clubs that I attended and finding out how deeply they read and what they were curious about. Very thrilling. 

I had the same editor for both books and her feedback was positive without being remotely gushing. From the publisher of my first book - nothing. He probably didn't read it. I remember talking to him early on and getting off the phone and saying to my husband that I didn't know why he'd decided to take it on he was so bored with the whole thing. Ha. This is one of the fabulous things about being a rather aged author - I really don't care - as long as my copyeditor (my husband) likes it and I like it - well the rest is up to the gods. 

While we're on the topic of releases - do any of you experience a sort of post-partum depression when a book comes out? I'm feeling very blah and not sure if it is the world in general, finishing a big project, or you know - hating publicizing said book. What do you think?

A Lunar Eclipse, a Launch, and the Insecure Writer's Support Group

 Early March and it is cold as anything out. This morning (which is yesterday morning as this is posted) I woke up very early and then stayed up to watch the lunar eclipse. Our moon (which is naturally also your moon) had nearly set by the time the eclipse was total, but I got to watch each bit of it over about twenty-five minutes.

Watching it put me in a weirdly more positive mood than I've experienced for quite awhile. I like that steady old moon and her utter dependability.

Another dependable thing is the monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Link to the sign up page here for all the info:  IWSG

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! 

I'm quite interested in today's question so I will have at it - it comes at a very good time as I'm about to do a soft launch of Little Birds.

What elements do you include in your book launch? Or what do you have in mind for your future book launch? Or what advice do you have to offer to others planning to launch a book

My debut novel The Crooked Knife was set in Labrador and I was quite insistent that it would launch there. My publisher wasn't all that supportive of this idea, even though I paid for all my travel myself. I did the launch at the Labrador Interpretation Centre (a museum) in the village I'd lived with my partner for five years - North West River. They have a small theatre which is where I set up. I got a good crowd for a town of 400 - about fifty or sixty people. I was introduced by a friend from NWR. I read from the opening knowing that no one had the book yet. It was both terrifying and extremely satisfying. The crowd, most of whom I knew, asked really wonderful questions and the whole feel was just what I wanted, celebratory. I did two more 'launches' (heck, ships launch more than once!) after that - one in St. John's, Nfld and one in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The one in St. John's was quieter but still well attended. It was in a small café. I was introduced by my sister-in-law who had published with the same publisher and is a well-known person in town, having been a CBC radio host for many years there on a popular daily show. 

I guess my favourite though was the one in Halifax. I'd organized to do it in a small theatre (The Bus Stop) in the North End. My family and friends came out in droves and I was introduced so wonderfully by one of my closest friends, a fellow writer. It felt wonderful to have this chance to share what was so close to me for so long. And people were so interested in what I'd been writing about - the struggles the indigenous people have in Labrador (anywhere actually), the environmental devastation caused by the putting in of a huge hydro dam, the descriptions of the land - which is a part of Canada most people never see.

So those were the launches. Because they happened at the tail end of COVID there were problems. People weren't used to coming out, but they did. I did radio interviews in Labrador and in St. John's but nothing in Halifax. I had a book publicist and she was as helpful as she could be, with the time she was allowed to offer, but I managed much of the details myself. I'd been a publicist in my past (for music primarily) so knew how to put things together. I had a wonderful event in Chester, a village that I consider my hometown though as a Forces brat I don't really have one. It was a theatre event where I was interviewed by a friend and again had a good crowd. 

My second novel Little Birds will be self-published in a couple of weeks (just finalizing everything). This will be a soft launch - mostly online. When the weather warms up I plan to do more - still unsure of what exactly. I don't think I can get the same crowds for a second book but I suppose that depends on a few factors. I would like to do a small launch in Halifax and perhaps see if I can do some book store readings. I will start my publicity campaign after the soft launch.  Little Birds deals with the issue of human trafficking. It is something that has gotten a lot of attention lately, as it clearly deserves. It isn't a cheery topic but one that evokes much emotion. I think I handle it in a sensitive way and the fact that indigenous women are more vulnerable than other populations to this kind of activity is well-known. Because of that I want to be very careful how I approach publicity. 

I really don't have any suggestions for others launching books - I think it so much depends on the type of book and your own level of comfort being the center of attention. I spent lots of years in theatre and can stand up in front of any crowd without fear. I would tell those who dislike this to consider they are advocating for their book, not themselves. It does make it easier.

This is me at the Halifax launch of The Crooked Knife.

writing and grief

 It is the monthly meeting of the IWSG.

Our dear pal Bella was euthanized yesterday, at our home, which was the best thing about a terrible thing. We aren't normal and may not be for quite awhile. We miss her every second. There. I didn't think I was going to post today but yesterday I wrote an obituary for her because my natural response to pain is to write. So even though it might not seem like it belongs here, I assure you it does. Writing it helped me make sense of the whole thing.

So here:

Bella Morrison, born April, 2012 in Labrador, died February 3^rd,2026, at her home in Prospect surrounded by her loving people.

Bella was born in Labrador, probably in Sheshatshiu. She was sent by plane with her sister to meet her folks, Jan and Ron, when she was about 8 weeks old. She was a lively girl right from the beginning, but always sweet with it. We called her circus dog because she was fearless in the woods, getting on old logs that were sometimes four feet off the ground, like a tight-rope walker. In the fall of her first year we brought her home to Labrador where we all lived for the next five years. In Labrador she got to experience a completely autonomous life. We’d go off to work and she’d do her day. It usually started by visiting Hector, an elderly fellow who lived next door to us. They’d sit on the porch and discuss philosophy. We only know of other activities she got up to when we were about to leave Labrador. One woman, (someone we really didn’t know – and yes that is possible in a town of 500) told us she regularly took Bella with her in her truck when she went to do errands. Bella had canine friends that I hope she is frolicking with now – three dogs from Sheshatshiu who would come by our house to pick her up – Chopper, Panda, and Junior. When we came back to Nova Scotia she settled in nicely – although she had more constraints naturally, but she was always ecstatic to visit her home province. Here in Nova Scotia she made lots of friends – mainly humans, because the dogs here weren’t so free to choose. She particularly loved Sherri who she considered a pack mate and Sherri’s partner Colin. Bob and Joan were also favourites, especially Joan who always had a treat for her. She also loved her brothers and sister – Jake and Sarah, Jesse and Cal and put up with those young kids, Roric and Harrison, although she got pretty jealous of the attention Ron would pay them.

The love of her life was Ron. Back when she was still a pup he went first to Labrador and Bella and I travelled by plane three months later. When she saw him she became a quivering mass of emotions and had to sit on his lap while he drove us from Goose Bay to North West River in the truck.

As I told her repeatedly as she was leaving today – Bella is a good dog. Ron wanted a dog from Sheshatshiu because they always have a fair bit of native dog in them – and that makes them comical, biddable and ever so loving. Her only sin was that she was mad for vegetables and didn’t see why she shouldn’t pick them out of the garden when she had a hankering. Unlike the brother she never met, Hoagy, she was very good at sticking close to home and only did walk-abouts when she was really bored. She loved playing tug-a-war with Ron and fetch – especially with the so-called Red Bone which was really purple. She loved going up to High Head and running free and that is where we will scatter her ashes.

*******************************************************************

Thanks for reading if you did. And now back to normal broadcasting.