Time for another posting with the Insecure Writer’s Support Group, where writers can share their insecurities and encourage one another. IWSG was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh and we share our posts the first Wednesday of the month.
I’m not sure how to start this post, but I guess I will just jump right in. First of all, I would like to apologize for going completely MIA from this blog and not posting for last month’s IWSG day. This summer has been entirely overwhelming and my computer and the internet were lowest on my priority list. I had every intention of posting for August IWSG, but ended up with only a 24-hour period between getting home from a Mexico mission trip on Monday and leaving for a youth conference on Tuesday, and I spent most of that time catching up on sleep and rearranging my luggage. I could go into more details of the ups and downs of the last two months, but I do not want to get too far off topic.
So, this month’s question is a good one: Have you ever surprised yourself with your writing? (For example, by trying a new genre you didn't think you'd be comfortable in?) Yes, and yes! Before the IWSG started its annual anthology contest, most of my writing was personal narratives, devotionals, and an occasional dabble with realistic fiction. Then, I decided to enter the past two years, and it was an enlightening experience. I am looking forward to finding out this year’s theme (today!). In 2015, I experienced first-hand what it is like to have a character take over the story. Before that, I thought it was a mythical experience and never conceived that it would happen to me; but it did, because a minor character redirected my plot line and became a major part of the story. For last year’s entry, I found out that I enjoy writing fantasy (at least in short story form). Honestly, I was afraid to touch it. Fantasy is one of my favorite genres to read and it has always seemed way too intimidating to attempt to write. And though I may not be writing some brilliant, epic fantasy, I did expand upon my short story a little bit since the contest. One day, if I would actually put some more effort into it, I could find a home for that story.
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| Happy Writing! |
With that kind of travel plans, I can understand why you didn't post.
ReplyDeleteGlad you've benefitted from the IWSG contest. Hope you enter again this year.
I like stretching myself into new genres, so I'm trying to think if I can figure out what I'd like to write about for this year's contest. It's one of the few genres I love to read but almost never write, so it's a challenge.
ReplyDeleteSure sounds like you had a lot to do this summer. I hope you enjoyed the trip and youth conference. I'm glad that the IWSG contests helped you to write something new that you would't have tried otherwise.
ReplyDeleteTravel trumps blog posting every time. No worries. And I think fantasy is easy to write. You get to make up your own rules... ;)
ReplyDeleteI love that IWSG got you to try different styles of writing that were outside of your comfort zone! How wonderful! :)
ReplyDeleteI totally get not writing during your 24 hour break between traveling. It's always good to have down time. (Though I probably would have planned to write too and not gotten around to it. Sometimes that's just the way life goes.)
With Love,
Mandy