While I could make an endless list, including anything you all chime in with, here's my realization today of what is not working.
Writer's Digest emails.
Holy shit.
Why did I sign-up for these emails? A free e-book. That I haven't even read yet. Hell, I don't remember the name of it. Actually, I don't think it's even a book, more of a list of one-hundred-something resources for aspiring writers.
What have I gotten? Not what I was hoping for. What was I hoping for?
.... okay, you got me there. But I can sure as hell tell you it wasn't 3 to 5 emails per day.
A large portion of the emails is an ad for a class available to register for. While the class sounds great, and I'm sure I would learn a lot, I don't have $99 just laying around for a class that I'm not very confident I'd have the time to dedicate to it. Yes, some are cheaper, but the lowest I've seen is about $60 which is still beyond my budget.
If there's one thing I have learned in my I-want-to-be-a-writer-for-real endeavors, it's that I can find just as many informative free "guides" and the like as there are ones meant to pull money from my strapped pocket.
A few more of the emails, also aligned with things requiring cash better spent on more urgent matters, is about that Barefoot Writer/AWAI group. Just $49 for a year's membership? AWESOME! Oh wait, the Google Gods worked to my advantage on that one. I'm not going to go into details here (as proponents of AWAI are very diligent as far as saying how great they are), but Google it yourself.*
The rest of the emails have SO MUCH information in them that my eyes begin to roll behind my head and I switch over to The Sims because telling someone they should build a garden gnome is easier than figuring out what the hell is useful in that email.
My routine and brain are both extremely comfy to the method I follow currently: blogs. Sure, if a great blog I'm following shares another article, of course I'll check it out. I like being spoken to like a person, which most blogs rock at. If I wanted things barked at me like an algebra textbook I wouldn't have dropped out of college.
In other news, I've joined up for the Blogging from A to Z Challenge this April.
I know. Dara. The one who can't stick with a regular blogging schedule.
I like the idea of having a theme, but as I'll be a challenge virgin, I'm gonna stick with the safe route and just use the theme of the alphabet. I know. Totally original.
Any of you participating in the challenge this year?
* Really, any comments that show up here from any AWAI member I'm gonna go ahead and remove. That is not the main topic of my post today, nor do I want it to be. Calm the hell down.
My spam folder is stuffed with emails from Writer's Digest. I never even bother with them anymore. Just too damn many.
ReplyDeleteI've done A to Z three times now, and it's a lot of fun, but a ton of work. Or, that could just be because I do everything very last minute. There's really no way be sure about these things, though... I've signed up for this year's challenge, and I hope my schedule will work out that I can actually participate.
It wasn't until after I posted this entry that I finally went into my inbox and unsubscribed from their emails. They won't get the dignity of my junk mail folder. ;)
DeleteI'm DEFINITELY going to try to plan out my posts, schedule them ahead and such. Though not too far ahead.... something about that feels like cheating.
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ReplyDeleteI dislike Writer's Digest, I'm not sure they're really doing anything good for writing or writer's. It's all about the money for them, and if you want to make money, you probably should find another profession. There are other, and better ways of learning and improving writing that don't cost a ton of money.
ReplyDeleteThe A to Z challenge for example :)
Yup, exactly! I follow/read/stalk so many other resources for writers that fit my time better, and most importantly, free. Call me a cheapskate but hey, it's still better quality info. :)
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