Wednesday, July 01, 2015

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group

It’s time for another edition of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group, founded by Ninja Captain, Alex J. Cavanaugh.

I’ve been rather stuck lately with writing. I’m working on four novelette length stories, the first two of which are done, but I had stalled on the third. There were a couple possible ways to play out the twist, but none of them seemed right. I finally discussed it with my husband during one of our walks and lo and behold, he came up with a plausible twist!

I need to ask him for help more often.


I’m also excited to announce that my series, The Circle of Friends, will soon be available in a boxed set!
You can preorder now at Amazon and other retailers. The set releases July 13th and it’s just $8.99 for all five books.



Those of you looking for the benefits of traditional publishing (credibility for the author, established distribution, publisher reputation, professionally designed books, early pre-publication reviews, royalties, etc.) with the benefits of self-publishing (higher profits, more control, etc.), then check out my post last month on Freedom Fox Press.


I was given the Infinity Dream Award by Chrys Fey.

Here are the rules for the award:
1) Thank the blogger who nominated you.
2) Tell us 11 facts about yourself.
3) Answer the questions that were set for you to answer.
4) Nominate 11 bloggers and set questions for them.

Here’s 11 things: I’m a vegan (total vegetarian), roller coaster junkie, can’t sing, have no sense of balance (which works in my favor on roller coaster rides), love cats, I get nostalgic when I drink wine, I’m a speed demon on the road, I have 10 Minion shirts, I have over 100 stuffed toys, I hate to dust, and I think Dunkin’ Donuts’ maple bars are the bomb.

Questions from Chrys:
1. What is something you’d do tomorrow if money wasn’t an object? Travel, starting with Spain and the theme park Port Adventura. (Their Dragon Khan is a dream coaster for me.)
2. What is your biggest, wildest dream? Visit every theme park in the world.
3. What are you goals for your blog for the next year? Continue with my publishing and promoting tips once a week. Plus throw in more fun stuff.

Since I think everyone has received this recently, I’ll refrain from passing it on.


Finally, a photo. A killdeer laid her eggs in our front lawn. Only one hatched, but it was really cute to see him running all over our lawn.


58 comments:

Denise Covey said...

Hi L Diane. I hope you get to visit every theme park in the world! We have some beauties in Oz. maybe you could make it.
Congrats on the published series. :-)

Natalie Aguirre said...

Congrats on your new series! And awesome that your husband helped you when you got stuck.

Shah Wharton said...

Wish mu hubby could help me !! Congrats on the boxed set too. :)

shahwharton.com

cleemckenzie said...

Circle of Friends looks great. Congrats on it!

Unknown said...

Congrats on the award! I enjoyed reading your info - awesome that you're such a coaster fan! The bird is so pretty. :)

Thanks for dropping by my blog. I don't think anyone can beat pics with an emperor!

TBM said...

My partner has helped me out of a writing slump as well. Sometimes it helps to talk things out. Oh my, the little baby is so cute.

Congrats on the award!

Rachna Chhabria said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Rachna Chhabria said...

Its cool that your husband helped you with a plot twist. You should ask his help more often. The Circle of Friends in a boxed set looks good :)

Sarah Foster said...

That's awesome that your husband helped you with the plot twist! I've tried to talk about my books with my fiance--he never comes up with good ideas but sometimes his horrible ideas get me thinking in the right direction. LOL.

Mason Canyon said...

Congratulations on the boxed set coming out. Cute photo of the killdeer.

Hart Johnson said...

Man, I wish my husband were helpful. He probably would be if I wrote more horror, but his suggestions are usually very morbid and typically out of left field, so they would not be coherent book additions. Those birds are really cute!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Denise, I would love to!

Lexa, some of his photos are amazing.

TBM, he was so adorable.

Sarah - LOL!

Chrys Fey said...

Yay to a boxed set! Congratulations!

I'm a vegetarian too. :)

10 Minion shirts? That's a lot!

Your dreams and goals are wonderful.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I knew you would want to hit all those rollercoasters. I see so many killdeer when I'm out for my jog. They always run away from me instead of flying. Good luck with the box set.
Susan Says

Unknown said...

Talking with my honey always gives me great writing ideas as well :-) Here's hoping you get to visit every theme park in the world (or at least, the most awesome ones)

Yolanda Renée said...

My hubby will do that for me too, half the time he makes jokes and irritates the hell out of me, but the other half he'll have a suggestion or two that really does help! Of course his punishment is that he has to listen as I read him the results!

Congrats on the award, roller coaster's - you are daring!

Tyrean Martinson said...

That's a wonderful picture of that beautiful baby killdeer and parent killdeer! :)

Congrats on your series book!

And, way to go with all your work with Freedom Fox Press - I think it's an exciting option!

And hooray for help from your husband on that plot twist! :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Cute bird!
Congratulations on your boxed set.

Jenni said...

My husband is great for figuring out plot problems too. Maybe it's the distance? It's nice when you have someone to bounce ideas off of.
Congrats on the award!

Karen Lange said...

Congrats on the award and the upcoming book set release! It's fun to learn more about you.

H. R. Sinclair said...

Congrats on the box set. Oh, that birdie and her baby are cute.

ELAdams said...

Sometimes if you're stuck, just talking through the problem with someone else is the best way to find a solution!

nashvillecats2 said...

Congrats on your boxed set, sure to be a success.
Loved the picture of the bird.
Yvonne.

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

Your book series looks great. Congratulations, Diane!

Cherie Reich said...

Sometimes talking out plot with a person can help you figure out where to go in a story. Congrats on the upcoming boxed set and the award! I'm a cat person too and hate to dust. And the baby killdeer is adorable! We have 4-5 eggs in a nest in our Internet satellite dish. I don't know what kind of birds they are, but we're anxiously awaiting for them to hatch.

Kimberly said...

Since my kids have flown the coop, my husband has been my go to guy now for brainstorming. He's pretty darn good at it. :)

I love maple bars, I'm going to be craving them now!

M Pax said...

It'd be fun to visit every theme park in the world. Yeah, I have a few sounding boards when I get stuck or am unsure which way to go. It does help to talk it out.

Tara Tyler said...

hubs do pan out gold sometimes!
congrats on the books and the award - all worth celebrating!
and cute birdy, sorry not more survived, but what a strange place for a bird to have a nest!

visiting all theme parks would take forever! but travel sounds wonderful!
happy july!

Bish Denham said...

Asking my hubby for help on my writing doesn't work so well. He wants to tell me how to do it all.... :) I used to have have that many stuffed toys. Sometimes I miss them. I still do have a few, including one I've since since I was 6 months old.

Sharon K. Mayhew said...

Oh, the photo is so sweet!

I detest dusting, too! Congratulations on the boxed set. I hope many sales come your way and that you have a super 2015.

J E Oneil said...

I guess husbands can be useful, huh? :) And congrats on the release.

That little bird is so cute. I wonder why it's called a killdeer. What an interesting name.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on having your books in a series. Yay for that! The baby bird is too adorable. Glad to know your hubby helped you out of a writing rut. :D Have a great day. Eva

kimlajevardi.com said...

Congrats on Circle of Friends and good luck on your novelette.

Diane Burton said...

How great that your husband helped with your story. When we're in the car for long hours, I'll run an idea past my husband and he'll always give me a different slant. It's great to bounce ideas off another person.

Anonymous said...

Yay on the box set.

Discussing my story problems with my critique group does wonders--they either come up with something or I do just from talking it out.

Donna McDine said...

Congratulations on the forthcoming box set...very exciting. Thanks for visiting well wishes for my husband!

Robin said...

I love roller coasters, too. Have you been to Cedar Point? If not, you MUST add it to your list of theme parks!

Dean K Miller said...

Nice about the boxed set! Sometimes it's a good idea to ask an "outsider" for ideas. They have a different point of view. Did read last month's post about the new publisher and am keeping that post close by.

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

Congrats on CoF!! Isn't it great when the hubby comes up with great ideas?!

dolorah said...

I hope the circle of friends set picks up some new readers for you. And I did check out the Freedom Fox link; thanks for the info. Those Killdeer birds look pretty harmless. To bad only one survived.

Michelle Wallace said...

I can picture you rocking all those theme parks around the world... having loads of fun!
I'm imagining what shenanigans a character who is vegan, cat-loving, a roller coaster junkie and speed demon with an obsession for Dunkin’ Donuts’ maple bars, would get up to...
Sounds like fodder for a super adventure story... (Just joking. Lol)

Rhonda Albom said...

We seem to have lots in common - like a hubby with good ideas, getting the infinity award for Chrys and adding it to my IWSG post. Congrats on your book series.

Michael Di Gesu said...

Hi, L. Diane,

Such a cute baby bird!

Looks like life is on track for you... YAY.... always good to get advice from another source. Congrats on the award.

Here's to a FUN ROLLER COASTER of a SUMMER!

Maurice Mitchell said...

What a cute Killdeer L. Diane and congratulations on the boxed set! It seems to be the thing to do nowadays

Tamara Narayan said...

It's such a relief to know I'm not the only adult with stuffed animals. MIne are now in my children's rooms, but that's okay. I can go visit while they're at school.

Loni Townsend said...

Congrats on your upcoming series! That's awesome!

Vanessa Morgan said...

We could all use a husband like that ;-)

Beverly Stowe McClure said...

Congratulations on the boxed set and on the award. Traveling sounds exciting. The killdeer is precious. I also have a menagerie of stuffed animals. Looks like you've had an exciting spring.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Chrys, I am crazy about my Minions.

Tyrean, it is exciting.

Emma, I've learned that now.

Cherie, that's a crazy place for a nest.

Tara, I guess they always nest on the ground. I just hope not in the middle of our yard again.

JE, it's supposed to be the sound they make, although I don't think it sounds like "kill deer."

Robin, I have been to Cedar Point. It was way too crowded though and I missed riding 5 of the coasters. My favorite park is Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Michelle, lots!

Tamara and Beverly, there is nothing wrong with having stuffed toys, is there?

Stephen Tremp said...

Diane, you lead an interesting life. Good luck with the box set!

Sherry Ellis said...

How nice that your husband helped you! Is he a writer, too?

Jemi Fraser said...

Great pic! So cute :)
I'm the purse/bag holder at the theme parks - way too much of a wimp in the roller coaster department :)

cleemckenzie said...

My husband is my go to guy for details about cars and tools and stuff I haven't a clue about. He also often tells me when my stories aren't working. That took a while to get used to. :-)

Carol Kilgore said...

Your baby bird is precious! My husband is a plot magician. I never ask unless I've spent several days with no luck. Then he comes up with the perfect solution. I love that! And him, too, of course :)

Nas said...

Congratulations on the published series!

Misha Gerrick said...

Lot of interesting things I never knew about you. :-)

Ella said...

Congrats, L.Diane! This looks amazing~

Darn you, I am now craving a maple bar, a coaster and well, I am leaving soon-so I can get my Nascar dream on the road. I, too am a speed demon. I hope my ESPP-Extra Sensory Police Perception is working-lol.

So, cool your walk with hubby helped you out. I love that~

Ella said...

Hi L.Diane,

How exciting-Congrats! So, cool about your hubby helping you-I love that~

I love the cute photo-so sweet, I mean tweet.

Darn you, I am now craving a theme park, a maple bar and driving-lol.

I hope my ESPP is working. I need to run across the border and get some art supplies. Extra Sensory Police Perception~

Happy Friday to you and hubby!