Wednesday, February 5, 2020

IWSG: February 2020

Welcome to another month's addition of Insecure Writer's Support Group blog hop. Thanks to all the great administrators for IWSG and Alex J. Cavanaugh for starting this amazing group. Find the entire list of participants here.

I'm going to skip this month's optional question and get right to some insecurities. And there are a few.

First, I haven't been very good at visiting my blogging friends the past few months. I promise to do better.

Second, I've been preparing my second fantasy series to send out to publishers I've identified who might take on a previously published book. As I've mentioned the first book in the series was published for a about a year by a small press and then they folded a few weeks before the second book was due to be released. Both books have been through extensive edits so I'm mostly refreshing my connection to my characters before I write the third book. The first book sold well while available. I sold out of every copy of every book signing I did for it. Now, I hope to get it back out there while I'm writing the third book. No matter how many books I've had published, the submission process is stressful.

Third, I'm so busy with the Pennwriters state-wide writing group where I serve on the board. So much goes on behind the scenes which I'm sure the masterminds behind IWSG will empathize with. It's been very time and emotionally consuming for a few months now, but I think I see a light at the end. If you're not too far from PA, I hope you'll consider our conference being held in Lancaster this May.

All this really makes me feel spread a little thin. A few concerns with the extended family including my baby sister finally leaving an abusive husband has added to a stressful end of 2019 and start of 2020. 

LOL. Thanks for the therapy session, IWSG. Really, I've very lucky and surrounded by a loving family and friends. My problems are small compared to so many.

Good things going on! My granddaughter is such a delight. She's is like my shadow for 8 or more hours per day. She is so well behaved and easy to take care of. Another blessing on my plate. My daughter is doing great in Boston and has been asked by one of her professors to serve as a editor for his academic book. This is the second time she's been asked to do this kind of work. The last book was in Arabic. Not sure about this one.

TV is in a blah period. How many times can I re-watch The Witcher? Supernatural is on break. Evil finished its season as did Emergence. Sometime in the next year, my husband and I are cutting the cable. I'm taking notes from those who have already. I already have Prime and Netflix. I'll need Hulu to get local programming. What else would you recommend?

What are your insecurities this month? Do you still pay for cable? Anything good I should check out on Netflix or Prime. You guys always give me the best recommendations.


25 comments:

Liza said...

Whew! Sounds like you have been busy. Wishing you the best of luck with your publication aspirations! Glad for your daughter's happy news, and truly, you don't want my TV recommendations! :)

L. Diane Wolfe said...

I understand juggling many projects. That's such a bummer that publisher went under.

Nick Wilford said...

Good luck with the submissions. Hopefully the publishers will recognise there's clearly a fanbase for your series that would be eager to read the next books.

Now watching The Stranger on Netflix. Very good thriller, recommended if you like that kind of thing. It's a British show, so hopefully it's available in the States already - not sure on the ins and outs of that.

mshatch said...

We have no cable tv at our house. We have netflix, amazon prime, and hbo and that's plenty!

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

I gave up on Emergence but still enjoying Prodigal Son. Looking forward to the new season of Survivor - I wasn't sure if I was going to watch this time around but I LOVE the theme.

We cut cable years ago and haven't really missed it. We have Hulu and Netflix, and we also use Apple/iTunes to sometimes purchase shows/seasons we can't get on the other two, like Survivor.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I hope you find a home for your series.
I highly recommend watching Picard.

Pat Garcia said...

Hi,
Sounds like you are thinned out but that will not be always. I get the feeling that you're handling it pretty well. I cut the cable a long time ago. I have Netflix and Prime and I enjoy both of them. What Netflix doesn't have, I usually find in Prime. So, I am satisfied.
Wishing you a great month.

Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange

Chrys Fey said...

I cut cable last year and only have Netflix. I always find something to watch on there. I plan to watch The Witcher and You soon.

David Powers King said...

Cut cable years ago. Best thing I ever did. With a couple streaming services, there's MORE than enough to watch. Submission is stressful, hoping you come out on top! :)

emaginette said...

I suggest looking into a TV box that can manage things like Netflix. I use Kodi add-ons on my android TV box and love it. there is a learning curve though.

Anna from elements of emaginette

betty said...

How sweet it is I am sure to spend the time you do with your grand daughter! Sounds like your daughter is doing great too!! We cut cable almost 2 years ago; hubby got an antenna type of thing that picks up local stations. We had Netflix for awhile but I was the only one really watching it and then not much. We do have Prime now which hubby enjoys. I can honestly say we really don't miss cable too much if at all!

betty

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

Life sounds very hectic, Susan. Glad you're able to keep up. Yes, you are surrounded by friends. Take care. Smell the roses when you can. And one step at a time.

Mandy said...

It's so awesome that you get to spend so much time with your granddaughter! It also sounds like you lead a fairly busy life! Good for you for staying so busy and managing to keep up with everything! Hope you are able to accomplish all of your February goals!

With Love,
Mandy

Natalie Aguirre said...

I can't wait to have a grandchild to take care of too. But it'll be awhile because my daughter is 22. Good luck with submitting your book.

M.J. Fifield said...

We got rid of cable a while back and use Hulu for local programming. My significant other has been going through Netflix's series options to find one he likes. Dark, I think, is his current frontrunner. We haven't gotten around to The Witcher yet.

Best of luck submitting your fantasy series!

J E Oneil said...

You've had a lot going on! And real life stuff always has to come first. I'd like to hear about your adventures in cord cutting. My mom tried that but to her frustration couldn't get local channels.

Anonymous said...

We still have cable because of hubs sport viewing requirements. I watch the occasional program or movie on Prime. I loved the first two seasons of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. But season three was meh. I was pretty disappointed.

Good luck with your submission!

Loni Townsend said...

I haven't had cable since I moved out of my parent's house two decades ago. I don't get to sit down and watch many shows, though. We did binge watch the Witcher. My husband and I also made our way through Arrow, just in time to watch the new season as it released on the CW. That series is complete now. It does have some tie-ins to Flash and Supergirl, but I liked it on its own. I know you like fantasy and sci-fi, so Legends of Tomorrow might be a good one, also from the Arrowverse. New Amsterdam on Hulu is a real tear-jerker if you wanted to try something designed to pluck the heartstrings. You can also watch The Rookie on Hulu which is a cop show, but has our favorite Nathan Fillion in it. It also has Two from Dark Matter in it. And if you haven't watched Dark Matter, I'd highly recommend that (it's from SyFy and I think it's still on Netflix). Hopefully there's something in there that you'd like. :)

Pat Hatt said...

Yeah, many a show sure is winding down indeed. I haven't had cable for a good decade at least. Going every which way sure can keep one a hopping. Can get tiring sometimes indeed.

Jo said...

I still pay for cable but we don't watch much anyway so don't pay a lot. So long as I can get Jeopardy I'm happy LOL. So amongst all the things you've been doing, what about the Instant Pot. You just don't know what you are missing if you haven't used it yet.

Juneta key said...

We left cable behind and went to antenna and streaming. Happy IWSG!

messymimi said...

You are surrounded by life, so just keep writing. It's worth it.

Diane Burton said...

You sure are busy. Grandchildren are such a blessing. Good luck in the coming month.

Patricia Stoltey said...

Sounds as thought you've been in a bit of a slump, Susan, so I'll send warm, fuzzy vibes your way. In the meantime, write a great (funny) story about slumps...we all have them and laughter is the best cure.

Michael Di Gesu said...

Hi Susan.

Great news about your series. I know the third book will develop. So great that you have such a wonderful relationship with your granddaughter.

As for PRIME, if you like history and the arts, I have been binge watching Secrets of Archeology ... wonderful facts and gorgeous imagery of ancient cultures past.