2011 Blog Book Tour

Here’s is the interview with Sylvia Ney which kicked off my book tour:

1) How did you develop an interest in writing?

The short answer is ever since I read Little Women when I was around 8 and fantasized about being Jo. The long answer is that in 1978 I unexpectedly lost custody of my 3 1/2 year old son. To save my sanity, I began keeping a journal. Around the same time, I started a public relations firm with a friend and began writing press releases, op-ed pieces, and feature articles, all with someone else’s name on them. Fast-forward 30 years and my wonderful husband told me I could quit working and write-full time. That was in 1999 and I haven’t looked back since.

1. Tell me a little about your blog - address, how long you've been blogging etc.

I began my blog in May of 2009 after taking an online class on doing a blog book tour with Dani Greer http://blogbooktours.blogspot.com/. My book had launched in February, 2009 and I had no clue how to market it.  Dani’s class taught me so much about blogging, but I never got around to a blog book tour - until now.

You can find me at: http://www.karenfollowingthewhispers.blogspot.com. 

The blog is a continuation of my spiritual journey towards healing.

1. I see you are working on a MS - please tell me a little about it - Title, genre, how you got the idea etc.

My husband and I took a trip to Scotland and Ireland in the Fall of 2009. While in Scotland, a voice whispered, “Tell my story.” I ignored it, thinking I pretty much imagined it. But in Ireland, in a magical forest surrounding Blarney Castle, the voice came back, stronger and more insistent. The working title for this foray into fiction-writing is “The Wishing Steps.” (SYLVIA, I’D BE WILLING TO PUT THE INTRO HERE IF YOU LIKE - IT DESCRIBES WHAT HAPPENED, but this is already quite a lengthy interview)

1. What other styles do you write - genre novels, poetry, articles, memoirs etc.

I wrote nonfiction for 30+ years and still occasionally write feature pieces for local newspapers and magazines. I still love personal essay as a form, which is why I love blogging so much--because posts really are short essays.

1. Is this a hobby or do you plan to make a career from writing? 

Ah, Sylvia, that question is a trigger for me. When I quit working in 1999, I was 50 and planned to write as a second career. But now I’m 62, older and wiser, and since, in my definition, a career means you make money at something, writing is definitely not a career. But it is a passion and something I plan on continuing for, hopefully, many more years to come.

1. What authors do you admire?

I have very eclectic tastes in reading. If I want to totally escape for a few hours, I’ll read Jodi Piccoult or Nora Roberts. If I want deeper, I’ll go to the classics. I still read a lot of nonfiction: biographies, memoir, self-help, spirituality. I’m currently reading a book called “Awakening the Buddha Within” and loving it.

1. What music, places, people inspire you?

I sing in a trio called Sugartime. We perform at hospitals, retirement communities, nursing homes, etc. We sing music from the 30’s to the 60’s. I love the old standards, Broadway tunes, and my music from the 50’s and 60s. I don’t listen to music while writing, though. I’m one of those people who needs absolute silence to write.

1. What do you do when you have writer's block?

I’ve been pretty fortunate in that I don’t really get writer’s block. That being said, however, with this current manuscript, which is my first attempt at writing fiction, I find it much harder to make myself sit down and face the blank page. With my memoir, I knew the plot - it was my life. This is so different. The story is emerging from a very deep place inside me and I have to open myself up to that process.

1. Have you submitted anything yet? Even a letter to an editor, written for high school publications, other blogs etc?

I have been published many times over the years with op-ed pieces, letters to the editor, feature articles and such. An essay was included in “Chocolate for a Woman’s Blessings,” an anthology of stories by and for women, published by Simon and Schuster a number of years ago. You can find some of these pieces on the page tabs at the top of my blog.

1. How long did it take you to write your current MS?

My memoir took a total of 10 years to complete. After I’d written 700 pages and given it to an editor, I was told “Karen, you have a story in you, but it’s not on these pages.” You just need to tell it.” Well, I didn’t know how to do that, so I went back to school to complete a college degree I’d begun in 1969. Four years later, I’d graduated Summa cum Laude and re-wrote my memoir. Two years later I began the query process. Two years later I chose to self-publish. Sigh!

1. Are you part of a critique group or writer's guild?

I am not currently part of a critique group or writer’s guild. I do have some beta readers that provide feedback. I also hire an editor once a manuscript is completed.

1. Have you ever attended a writer's conference? Yes

1. Where do you live - city, state?

I live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I’ve been here since 1994. Before that I lived in Portland Oregon for 10 years and prior to that I lived in New York City, where I was born and raised.

1. When working on your current MS did you complete an outline first or did you just start writing?

No, I don’t have an outline. I just have this darn voice that is very fickle, if you ask me.  It’s been an amazing journey discovering who and what this voice is. I can’t really talk about it--it’s quite overwhelming. I’ll probably blog about it at time point.

1. What is your writing process like? Certain hours that you find more productive, a routine, a set amount of time or a number of pages you make yourself write everday etc.

I found that for me, setting a certain time constraint or word-count goal doesn’t work very well. I set myself up for failure that way. Instead, I set my intention to write every day and I park myself down at the computer and hope for the best.

1. Do you have an editor or agent?

No, I wasn’t fortunate enough to find an editor for my memoir. I hope I’ll have better luck with the novel when it’s completed. And I will definitely hire an editor prior to the query process.

1. Would you care to share your opening paragraph (hook) with us?

Chapter I

In the beginning…there was self-hatred

My friend Chuck waltzed around the room, his then 11-year-old daughter, Sivan, snuggled in his right arm, her eight-year-old sister, Amali, nestled in his left. The two girls’ arms were wrapped around each other behind their dad’s neck, and their giggles could be heard from where I sat on the other side of the large dance studio, where our community of folk dancers gathers every Saturday night. Watching this man with his children, I couldn’t help thinking how lucky those two little girls are and how different their childhood is from mine

First stop: Managing Expectations at Diane Wolfe’s blog: Spunk on a Stick

First of all, I’d like to thank Diane for helping me format “Following the Whispers” so that it could become an e-book. She is awesome to work with. It’s funny how you come to love people you’ve not met in person through an online relationship, but it’s true. 

This is the first stop on my virtual book tour and the topic is managing expectations.

Expectations get me in trouble. If I expect to either: have a good time, have the best vacation ever, meet the man of my dreams, lose those 20 pounds, fill in your own particular thing here, I’m doomed. Because we cannot control results. 

What we can do is have a dream and hope for a certain outcome. We can set our intention and place our energy and attention on whatever it is. But to expect to get what we want sets us up for disappointment and for me, puts me on an emotional roller coaster--one that doesn’t stop.

As a writer, I wanted to be published. I had dreams of being on Oprah. Those dreams were dashed when I couldn’t even find an agent after almost two years of trying. I had to ask myself what I hoped to achieve by publishing my book. The answer came: I wanted to share my story with others in hopes of helping those struggling with similar issues. It wasn’t about making a lot of money or becoming famous. If I had expected those things as a result of publishing, I would have failed. 

So dream away, hope all you want, set goals and take the steps to reach them. But don’t expect anything, accept what does occur, and your emotional journey will be a bit more peaceful.

Writing and White Hair - appeared on author Ann Best’s blog

Thank you, Ann, for hosting me on this second stop of my virtual book tour to honor launching “Following the Whispers” as an e-book. 

I don’t think Ann will mind if I say we are both “elders.” I’m 62 and she is 71. We both came to writing much later in life and that brings with it a whole different perspective.

Unlike Ann, who wrote and published poems and essays all along, I worked as a public relations professional, writing and publishing articles, but with someone else’s name on them. In 1999, however, I quit to write full-time, under my own name. 

At the time, I saw writing as a second career, but how was I to know it would be 10 years before I would see my dream of a completed memoir published and out in the world. I was 50 when I began, and 60 when I held the published book in my hands at my book launch. I quickly understood that I would not make much money from writing. At my age I didn’t have the energy, drive or ambition to do what it takes to be successful at this career. And frankly, even younger folks might have to adjust their expectations about making money from writing. Few become financially independent.

So why do it? And why do it at our age? Because if writing is your passion, if it feeds your soul, as it feeds mine, it is an important thing to honor and pay attention to. I am a firm believer in doing those things that feed us, that make our hearts do happy dances.

Writing makes me happy, whether or not I make money. If someone is touched by my words, I am content. 

Ann published her memoir at 71 years of age. It is a powerful story and an extremely well-written one. Think about the things you’ve always wanted to do and see if perhaps one of them is calling you. And you don’t have to wait till you have white hair, like we did, to do it.

What I Love About Self-Publishing: appeared on Whole Latte Life

Thank you so much, Joanne, for hosting me on my book blog tour. You’ve asked me to write about what I love about self-publishing. First of all, let me say that self-publishing was not my first choice. I’d tried to obtain an agent for almost two years. Perhaps my query letter wasn’t effective--I’ll never know. It’s just that I knew I had something to share about my life journey that just might help others struggling with similar issues and didn’t want my hard work to languish in a desk drawer forever.  Self-publishing my memoir is a decision I don’t regret.

Here’s what I love about self-publishing:

• Creative and artistic control over cover design and interior layout. My one thought on this is to hire a designer if you don’t have the skills to do this yourself. You want your book to look and feel professional--just the same as all the other books you find in bookstores.
• Owning all the rights as far as ISBN’s, e-books, etc. When you choose the self-publishing company, make sure you do own all the rights and materials.
• Freedom of choice in terms of content. That being said, I would caution writers to make sure and hire a good editor before self-publishing. I worked with several: one I hired prior to the query process and two editors at the self-publishing company I worked with.
• It’s losing it’s stigma. The publishing industry is changing so much, even agents are suggesting that an author who self-publishes will not harm their writing career by doing so.

I’m not advocating this for everyone. It’s a lot more work than writers who have been traditionally published. But when faced with the choice of self-publishing or not having your work see the light of day, it is definitely something to consider.

My Journey To Publication - appeared on author Pk Herzo’s blog

It’s hard to know where and when dreams begin and even harder to make them come true. It wasn’t until I was in my mid-forties that I allowed what was in my heart and soul to come forth. Until then, it had been so far out of the realm of possibility, it never entered conscious awareness. I’d lived most of my life on auto-pilot, emotionally, physically and spiritually shut down.

But the root of the dream was seeded 34 years ago. I was 28 years old and had just lost custody of my only child. Like other tragedies, such as a severe illness, or death of a loved one, unless you’ve experienced it yourself, it is hard to imagine. It was in the 1970’s, a time when women didn’t lose custody and it fueled an already rampant self-hatred that was burning in my soul. Gloria Steinem and Betty Freidan were fighting for women’s rights, and in later years, some friends thought my losing custody might have been a backlash to the women’s movement. I’ll never know.

But out of the depths of that depression and despair, I found a way to cope. I began keeping a journal. At the time, writing was a way for me to get in touch with my feelings. Over time, it became a therapeutic tool for healing.

Several years after the divorce, I helped a friend start a business—a public relations consulting firm for therapists in private practice. At first, he handled all the creative aspects of the business, and I handled administrative duties. But at some point, I learned to write--articles, essays, op-ed pieces, brochures, press releases, all with someone else’s name attached. 

Then, in 1999, my wonderful husband suggested I quit my job to write full-time, a dream I hadn’t allowed myself to imagine. In addition to personal essays and op-ed pieces, I wrote health articles for SAGE (a monthly supplement in the Albuquerque Journal) as well as for the Journal’s Health section. 

The very first essay I wrote was called “Following the Whispers.” It was a short piece about leaving Portland, Oregon and coming to New Mexico. My dear friend Clara suggested I submit it to a mutual acquaintance of ours who was in the process of publishing a second anthology of women’s stories called “Chocolate for a Woman’s Blessings.” It was accepted. I received a number of emails from women across the country, thanking me for sharing my story and telling me how much it inspired them. I began to think that if a short piece like that could help women who were going through similar pain, how much more helpful would my whole story be. I somehow hoped my pain could have healing potential for others.

Over the next 2 ½ years, I poured through my journals, an excruciatingly painful, but cathartic process. I ended up with a 700-page tome. To me, it was a nonfiction, self-help book. During those 2 ½ years, I was frequently overcome with self-doubt—who was I to think I could write a self-help book? To get past that dilemma, my working title for the book became “I’m Nobody…Will You Listen Anyway?”

When I was finished, I hired an editor who said to me, “Karen, you have a book inside you, but it’s not on these pages. You have an incredible story to tell…you just need to tell it.” Well, I’d written journalistically for years, but had no idea how to “tell my story.” By this time, it was 2001 and we’d brought my 86-year-old father to New Mexico after my mother’s sudden death. I decided to go back to school. I’d only gotten an associate degree in 1969, then got married and had a child. I’d always felt unfinished. This was an opportunity to fulfill that lifelong dream and learn how to “tell my story.”

After taking every creative writing course UNM had to offer, four years later I graduated. It was December, 2005. For the next two years, I wrote. And rewrote. And wrote. And rewrote. Then I hired another editor. Dina has a gift of helping authors find what she calls the “golden thread” that runs throughout a memoir. This enabled me to select which parts of my life should be included and which could be left out. Several months later, I had a finished manuscript, now called “Following the Whispers,” the golden thread of my memoir—learning to listen to the voice of Spirit, rather than the voice of self-doubt or self-hatred or parents, or society. 

Over the next few months I sent letter after letter, hoping to find a literary agent to represent my book, but was unsuccessful. All along, I knew self-publishing was my plan b, but hoped I wouldn’t have to do it. I think every writer dreams of being a big publishing success.

The only way I felt I could get my story out, and I wanted desperately to do that so that other women might be inspired to begin their own healing journeys, was to self-publish. 

It’s been 12 years since my husband offered to support our household so I could write—an unbelievable journey of having a dream, trusting myself, my hubby, and the universe, questioning it every step of the way, learning to listen for the whispers and paying attention to the wisdom.

Pk, thank you so much for allowing me to post here today. I hope my story inspires those who have a dream to go for it. It is so worth it!

Making Good Choices - A Writer’s Journey: appeared on author Karen Gowen’s blog

Life is all about choices, so why should writing be any different? We choose our mates, what clothing to put on, whether to eat that chocolate cake or not. We choose in every moment.

As writers, we face so many choices. What adjective to use, how to describe that tree, should I change the dialogue (unless you’re writing memoir, of course, in which case, you don’t make things up). 

Choices get harder as we move along the writer’s journey. Once our story is down on paper and it’s been revised to our satisfaction (and hopefully our editor’s satisfaction), we face some challenges where choices need to be made.

• Am I going for traditional publication? 
• If so, I must first find an agent or small press - who will I query? 
• What do I include in my query letter?
• Should I ask folks to look at it first?
• Do I listen to what anyone suggests?
• How long do I wait to hear back from an agent?
• How long do I give the query process before choosing to self-publish?
• If I choose to self-publish, how will I do it?
• How do I pick which company to use?

I faced all these choices. It took me 2 1/2 years to pour through journals, deciding what to include. I ended up with a 700-page self--help tome. An editor told me to “tell my story,” which I didn’t know how to do. After a four-year stint to complete a college degree, I re-wrote the book, crafting a memoir. I tried to find an agent for almost two years, at which point I chose to self-publish.

There are so many options out there, it can be overwhelming. It takes patience, perseverance, and tenacity to bring a book into the world. We can all simply do the best we can in every given moment, making choices based on intuition and information gleaned from a variety of sources.

My best advice - stay tuned into your gut. It will help you more than anything else. Because ultimately, your journey is yours alone. Here’s to making good choices along the way.

Karen, thanks so much for letting me write here today. You are such a strong support for writers. Thanks for all you do.

Blessings,

Karen

The Liberating Effects of Writing a Memoir: appeared on author Jessica Bell’s blog

I wouldn’t have chosen to write a memoir if I felt I had a choice. Well, we always have choice. But I was compelled to write mine. I unexpectedly lost custody of my then 3 1/2 year-old son in 1978. It catapulted me into a deep depression; I was filled with self-hatred and despair. To save my sanity, I began keeping a journal. As a child, I’d fantasized about being a writer, like Jo in Little Women, but that’s all it was--a fantasy.

Keeping journals helped me process what was happening, sort through the complexity of emotions and feelings, and somehow make sense of my life. A seed was planted that someday I’d write about a nice, middle-class Jewish woman who wasn’t a prostitute or a drug addict but who somehow lost her child.

I had to wait until 1999, when my current wonderful husband offered me the opportunity to write full-time to begin that process. Probably the most difficult part of the writing was pouring through hundreds of journals, highlighting parts I thought were important, then typing them into the computer. There were times when I collapsed, sobbing on the floor, unable to continue as I relived my pain. It proved, however, to be extremely cathartic. 

The memoir began as a story about losing custody, but after several drafts, I realized it was more about having grown up in a dysfunctional family, been sexually abused at seven years old, and how those kinds of events shaped the person who ended up divorced and without her child at 28.

Writing memoir is not for the weak. It takes courage to face your past--to look deeply at your life and the choices and decisions you made that may have hurt others and probably hurt you. And it takes even more courage to put those out for the world to see. 

But memoir serves an important purpose--it shines a light on a life in a way that helps us look at our own lives and perhaps learn lessons we need to learn. That is why I was compelled to write my story. I knew there were others who suffered the same kind of pain for similar reasons. Mine is a journey towards healing and I am content now--something I didn’t think possible. And I think that writing my memoir played a key part in that happening. 

Finding Balance While Juggling Life: appeared on author Elizabeth Spann Craig’s blog, Mystery Writing is Murder

I became a mom in 1973. We’d been through the Civil Rights Movement, the Womens’ movement, the Viet Nam War. And the Mommy Wars--which, unfortunately, still exist--although it doesn’t seem to be as much of an issue as it was back then. 

When I gave birth, I was 24 years old chronologically, but not in maturity. I didn’t have a sense of self, so trying to juggle my own needs with that of a baby and a husband and friends, etc. wasn’t even in my consciousness. I was pretty much on auto-pilot, trying to keep my head above water.

Today, it is common for women to either work outside the home, or, as writers do, work at home, while raising our children, caring for our husbands, and maintaining a household.

The key to juggling all of the above is balance. They tell you when you are on an airplane to put your own oxygen on first, before helping anyone else. There is a reason for this. If you become unconscious, you are of no use to anyone. We must put our own well-being first. I wish I’d known this years ago--it would have saved me years of misery.

When we have kids, this can be most challenging, because we all know, if a child needs something, we drop everything to deal with it. So it becomes a matter of priorities. And the ages of our children and what they can manage on their own versus what needs our immediate attention.

The way I find balance is to only have a few key things I want to accomplish each day. That way, I don’t overwhelm myself and can feel successful, rather than a failure because I didn’t do what I wanted to do. I make priorities of those few things. On some days, only one or two things get done. The next day, the priorities shift so I can focus on what didn’t get done the day before.

Another key to finding and keeping balance is learning to say no. Even to our husbands. And yes, even to our children. Because saying no to someone else is saying yes to ourselves. This is not selfish, as we may have been taught. It is crucial to inner peace and well-being.

To summarize, get clear about what is important to you. Make the time to do it. Say no to non-crisis distractions. And learn to balance your priorities so that you feel successful.

Elizabeth, you seem to juggle your life beautifully. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to blog here about such an important issue.

Finding Success as a Writer: appeared on Thoughts in Progress

According to Merriam-Webster, success is: 1. The accomplishment of an aim or purpose; 2) The attainment of popularity or profit. What does it mean to you?

I had to think hard about this when I decided to leave a 30+ year career in public relations where I had been successful according to this definition, in order to write full-time. That was in 1999. It took until 2009 for the memoir I was working on to get published. And it didn’t happen the way I’d intended. So, was I a failure?

I don’t think so. And here’s why. I write because I feel compelled to share stories about things that happened to me and how I overcame the obstacles life presented. It has been a painful journey, yet I am now 62 years old and have achieved a sense of inner peace and contentment--something I didn’t think possible.

If my goal had been to write, publish traditionally, and make a great deal of money, I would consider myself a failure. But when, after two years, I couldn’t find an agent and chose to self-publish, my goals changed. It became more about how to share my story and help others. Based on that goal, I am successful.

I haven’t obtained fame or profit, but in my own little blogging community, I am becoming known and books are being purchased. When I ask myself what it means to be successful now, I still have to say I’d love to be published traditionally. In society’s terms, that would make me feel successful. But society doesn’t tell us to follow our hearts and feed our souls. Society is all about making the most money and having the most toys. And since that is not who I am, I guess I can say I’m successful.

So please, take the time to ask yourself what you would need to feel successful. Be as realistic as you can about expectations versus reality. And by all means, go for your dreams. Just understand, they don’t always happen the way we want. And sometimes, they happen they way they need to, even if it doesn’t make sense at the time.

Thanks, Mason, for all you do for authors and for hosting me on my blog tour. You’re a success in my opinion. Big time!

Do’s and Don’t’s of Writing Memoir: appeared on Arlee Bird’s blog, Tossing it Out

Writing memoir is not for the faint-hearted. I think one must have a compelling reason to write and publish their own story. In my case, I’d learned some valuable life lessons I thought might help others struggling with similar issues. Some want to write just for their family--that’s not the kind of memoir-writing I’m talking about. Here are my thoughts on the do’s and don’ts when writing memoir for publication.

• Do tell the truth. If you don’t remember something clearly, say so. If you are changing names, say so. Whatever you choose to do,it’s okay as long as you let your readers know.
• Don’t just take whole pages from your personal journal and think that constitutes writing a memoir. Journal writing is a whole different thing than crafting a story from your life events.
• Do use fiction techniques in your writing such as: scenes, complete with dialogue; lush descriptions, specific details, use of literary devices such as metaphor and simile. Just don’t write fiction.
• Don’t just put things in chronological order because that’s the way they happened. Craft your story the way it works the best. Here is where you can really utilize fiction techniques like flashbacks.
• Do make sure you grab your reader’s attention and craft your story to keep that interest throughout. 
• Don’t make anyone in your life out to be totally evil. Make the people in your story rounded characters. Everyone has both good and bad traits. Even if someone did you great harm, they still have some redeeming virtues. 
• Do make sure family members and friends are okay with what you are doing before you go ahead and do it. In my case, I needed to wait until both my parents were gone before publishing my memoir. I just didn’t want to unintentionally hurt them with my perspective on my life.

There is so much more to say on this subject, but this is a good start for anyone thinking about writing memoir. 

Thank you, Lee, for hosting me today. I hope you and your readers found this informative and useful.

Writing Memoir Versus Writing Fiction - Is There a Difference?: appeared on author Helen Ginger’s blog, Straightfromhel

If I had been asked this question before I began writing a novel, the answer would have been a resounding, “Yes,” because I didn’t think I was a fiction writer. I’d been writing non-fiction for 30+ years as a public relations professional. And it took 10 years for my memoir to bring my memoir into the world.

With memoir, I didn’t need to dream up characters--they were the people in my life. There was no plot invention--it consisted of actual events. No creating scenes with dialogue. I simply had to remember.

Good memoirs read like novels. You care about the characters. The story moves forward with the main character facing obstacles. There is a beginning, middle and end. The difference, then, is that the memoir is true. I won’t get into the controversial issue of truth in memoir--that’s a whole other blog post.  So, for the reader of memoir versus fiction, the fact that it’s a true story may be the only difference.

For me, the writer, however, the difference has been huge. With memoir, I had my entire life to draw upon. Yes, I had to choose which events to include, whom to leave in and out, what snippets of dialogue would convey what I wanted. With a novel, one only has their imagination and some research.

You might wonder why I chose fiction now, rather than stick with a genre I’m familiar and comfortable with. I didn’t. It chose me. I was vacationing in Ireland when a voice asked me to tell its story. I’ve been discovering who and what the voice is ever since. I’m not ready to talk about the story yet, but I can say it isn’t easy opening up, allowing it to emerge.

Memoir isn’t easy either. I opened in a different way, willing to speak my truth about bad choices and tough decisions. Being a fiction writer is a different kind of tough. Whichever genre you work in, the craft similarities are there. It’s the emotional journey, I think, that makes writing them so different.

Helen, thank you so much for allowing me to guest here today. You are such a gift to writers of all genres

10 ways to keep sane while writing: appeared on author Alex Cavanaugh’s blog

1. Even if you feel like it, don’t pull your hair out during revisions. You will need it while waiting for responses to your query letters.
2. Keep a journal of your feelings as you write, re-write, query and wait. Your family and friends will be forever grateful that you have another outlet for your whining and crying.
3. Even if you think you are finished, remember either a critique partner or an agent or an editor will most likely find more revisions, so don’t throw away the valium just yet.
4. Did I say valium? I don’t drink or take drugs, so I stay sane by stuffing my face. Oops, no, I don’t do that anymore either. Sheesh, I’ve run out of addictions to keep me sane.
5. Do take mini breaks throughout the day. Not kidding here, folks. Mini-breaks really do preserve sanity and help creativity and energy flow.
6. Honor your distractions: TV, blogging, computer games, doing laundry, defrosting the refrigerator, whatever will keep you from pulling out your hair because you want to listen to #1 above.
7. No matter what anyone tells you, Spider Solitaire is not an addiction. It will keep you sane. I promise.
8. Listen to your inner voice, but make sure it’s the wise one, not the one that screams at you, “Who do you think you are that you believe you can write?” 
9. The way you know which voice to pay attention to is your insides feel calm when one is speaking and they usually churn upside down when the other shouts.
10. All kidding aside, get yourself a good, solid support system--this online community is great for that. Sharing with others is the best way to keep sane.