The Indelibles: I Am Not Alone

I began my indie journey with lots of prayer and lots of rejections. I had pitched my novel to several publishing houses and agents and had gotten some great rejections. The decision to go indie wasn’t easily made. There was an inordinate sense of loneliness.

I was going it alone. Me against the world…including the millions of other authors who too had decided to take the indie path. I was my own boss, the captain of my ship, mistress of my own fate (ran out of clichés but you get the point). It also didn’t help that so many traditional publishing professionals wrote warning after warning about going it alone, praising the safety of a publishing house.

But once I decided to take the plunge, I found something surprising. I wasn’t alone. I found that I was surrounded by support in people who believed in my writing and believed in me. The only difference was none of the people worked in publishing houses.

It took me a while to realize that the answer to my loneliness was right in front of my face. I took a minute to see something I recently told my daughter about her schoolwork: It’s not always about knowing the answer. Sometimes you only need to know how to find the answer.

I found the answer to my loneness in the community around me. I had my husband, who is my biggest supporter/cheerleader/task master/accountability partner. I had my two friends, who are avid readers and loved me enough to tell me when my writing sucked. And how can I forget my readers, who loved my novel and didn’t mind calling, texting and squealing to tell me so.

I even found support in other writers. It’s true at first that I felt like I was in competition with other authors. In a sense I am, but in another sense, indie authors are my companions, walking out this indie life with me.

Indie authors are not alone. We just have to recognize the support we have around us.

Laughter is Good Medicine

My family is going through another round of sickness. The flu wiped us out over the Christmas holiday and now my son, daughter and I have developed sore throats and coughs. I'm really getting sick of being sick and this year seems much worse than others. I've done all I can. We sleep a lot and keep tissue and throat longeses in stock in the house, but I think it's time to call out the big guns.

Laughter.

Proverbs 17:22 says, "A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones." I think a little merriment is in order. Because sometimes, all you need is a good laugh.

So here are some my favorite funny things. Enjoy your dose of medicine.

Tim Hawkins is a hilarious Christian comedian. I love all he does. This is one of my favorites.


This guy clearly has too much free time on his hands, but it's still funny.

I'm telling you, if I had been in the audience, they would have been carrying me out, too (yes, I have a little dark side to my sense humor).








I don't know why, but I can't stop laughing when ever I see this photo. The stingray looks so sad.

My Life in Stitches: Single-Tracking

Single-tracking.

This word will strike fear in the heart of commuters who use the DC  Metro system. It means that something bad has happened and the trains have to be run on a single track. One train must wait for the other to pass, which means delays. It’s necessary to keep the passengers safe, but no one likes it.

I’ve had to single-track my knitting. 

My knitting life hasn’t been very happy lately. I think I have too many patterns that 1) require my undivided attention and, 2) take some time to finish. Don’t get me wrong. I like the patterns I’m working on. I just don’t like working on them all at once. I have never been a knitter who did well with more than three projects. I think my eyes got bigger than my needles over the Christmas holiday and I haven’t been right sense.

Adding to my issues is that I’ve come across some really great patterns. I found a sock pattern called Hot Waves (haven’t done socks in a long time). I’ve also bought a few patterns, Atmospheric and Sunday Brunch. I can’t wait to cast these on, but I have to wait until the other trains get off the tracks.

I’ve been single-tracking for about a week with two trains…projects: a brioche scarf and a shawl with a detailed lace pattern. I’ve seen both projects inch forward, which is great. I’m the type of knitter that needs to see progress. I think when I finish these two (which should be soon, thank goodness), I will probably keep single-tracking for a while until I get my knitting mojo back.