Friday, November 25, 2011

Persistence and Crabbit Bats

It's Friday! It's sunny! It's warm! It's better than summer! (As sad as that may sound, if you knew what a normal British summer is like, then you'd know it's true.) Before I forget, DJ Kirkby's Kindle competition is drawing to a close soon, so head to her blog before it's too late.

It's been pretty quiet in blog-land, so I hope all my American friends are enjoying their Thanksgivings! In the spirit of warmth and fuzziness, today I want to share a post from a truly inspirational writer, Nicola Morgan.

Nicola blogs over at Help! I Need a Publisher, and if you haven't checked out her practical, no-nonsense, extremely helpful site, get over there and follow her now! She was one of the first writing blogs I happened upon when I first set out to write full-time, and I can't tell you how much her advice helped me through the years. I've had the pleasure of meeting her a few times, as well, and she's absolutely lovely (although she'd love you to believe she's the Crabbit Bat from Hell).

I could rave on for a bit, but Nicola's own words are much more powerful than mine ever could be. In advance of republication of her first novel, Mondays Are Red, Nicola has shared Part 1 of her writing journey -- a twenty-one year quest to be published. Yes, twenty-one years. Pop over and read it now.

Talk about persistence, huh?

How long would you persist? I have to say, I'm not sure I'd have the guts to go on for twenty-one years. Then again, maybe I would . . .

(I have a funny feeling I'm supposed to be posting something for someone today, but I have no idea what that is at the moment. If it's you, I'm very sorry!)
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37 comments:

  1. Tonya Kappes25 November 2011 at 14:03

    Twenty-one years? WOW!! I couldn't do it for five. . .and I'm glad I didn't wait. I self published and found great readers and finding my dream come true. I'll hop over to her blog to read her exciting journey.
    We did have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I'm glad to report that I didn't stuff myself with all the goodie sweet potato pies:) I wasn't on line all day so I hop the blogsphere is back to normal today!

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  2. Deborah Carr (Debs)25 November 2011 at 14:23

    I'd probably keep going for twenty-one years, but I'm sure I'd be exhausted at the end of it.

    Good for Nicola that she persevered and succeeded.

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  3. Manzanita25 November 2011 at 14:25

    Twenty one years is beyond my patience but congratulations to Nicola for having her persistence pay off. Yes, today all of America is putting the good silverware back in the drawer and making turkey soup.

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  4. Tricia J. O'Brien25 November 2011 at 14:38

    21 years--that's love.
    (by the way, was it Karen's blogsplash? that's not quiet) :D

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  5. Alex J. Cavanaugh25 November 2011 at 14:45

    That's a long time. I think I would've lost interest after a few years.
    Everyone here in the US is either shopping or eating turkey sandwiches. Or still sleeping off all that turkey!

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  6. Anne25 November 2011 at 15:03

    Twenty one years is a long time, but I give her a lot of credit for not giving up!

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  7. William Kendall25 November 2011 at 15:15

    That's definitely persistance!

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  8. William Kendall25 November 2011 at 15:16

    And Crabbid Bat From Hell sounds like a good name for a band...

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  9. Old Kitty25 November 2011 at 15:37

    Hooorah for Nicola and her amazing and fabulous writerly journey!!!

    And big wave to DJ Kirby too!

    Happy Friday! Take care
    x

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  10. Neurotic Workaholic25 November 2011 at 15:56

    How long would I persist? That's a good question. I have to admit that even I might be tempted to give up after a while. I know that I'll always keep writing, though. But good for Nicola that she didn't give up.

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  11. Suze25 November 2011 at 16:32

    Persistence is a part of who you are, T. I'd be willing to bet you'd endure!

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  12. Karen Jones Gowen25 November 2011 at 17:01

    I can use some motivation and encouragement myself right now, so thank you for the link. I really love Nicola's blog.

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  13. Flowerpot25 November 2011 at 17:09

    21 years is a long time. Good for her....

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  14. Sarah Tokeley25 November 2011 at 17:16

    The woman has tenacity :-)

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  15. Glynis Peters 25 November 2011 at 17:38

    Catching up on your posts. Sun in November in the UK? Wow, missed that one!

    Good luck with your new novel!

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  16. D.J. Kirkby25 November 2011 at 17:43

    Thank you so much for mentioning my Kindle giveaway in the same post as Nicla! *basks in glory by proxy* *tries to absorb some crabbit batness*

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  17. Heather25 November 2011 at 18:29

    Wow, 21 years, that is amazing. Good for Nicola for hanging in there! We never fail until we give up. :)

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  18. Empty Nest Insider25 November 2011 at 18:37

    I really admire Nicolas's perseverance! Enjoy your lovely weather! Julie

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  19. Lenny Lee25 November 2011 at 18:40

    hi miss talli! im just getting past all that good stuff i ate yesterday on thanksgiving. it sunny and warm here too. yikes! for sure it took a looooong time to get her published. that almost two time as old as i am. but im way happy she stuck with it and that says she loves writing. for me i dont care bout getting published i just love writing stuff.
    ...hugs from lenny

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  20. Teresa F Morgan25 November 2011 at 18:56

    I really don't want it taking me 21 years... I'm certainly not that patient, and besides, would like to see even a dribble of income from writing.

    Gosh... it's a scary thought.

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  21. Christina Farley25 November 2011 at 21:44

    I used to wonder how long I would write until I gave up. I think I came to a crossroads and then discovered that I could never give up on my writing because that was a part of me.

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  22. Golden Eagle25 November 2011 at 23:37

    That's a long time . . . I'm not sure how long I'd persist, but probably not that many years!

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  23. Carol Riggs26 November 2011 at 00:15

    I would probably persist. I've already waited 10 years! :) If something is important enough, years don't matter. Congrats to Nicola!

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  24. Anonymous26 November 2011 at 01:26

    I think you woul persist for 21 years, Talli. You're very determined! But I'm glad you didn't have to battle on for that long before getting published. I don't know if I could go for 21 years. I haven't persisted with anything for more than a few years, but that's more to do with the nature of the jobs I've had. Let's see if I'm still writing in a couple of decades!

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  25. Anonymous26 November 2011 at 02:16

    I'd keep going. Twenty-one years seems like forever, but it's worth it to fulfill a dream.

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  26. Rebecca Bradley26 November 2011 at 09:58

    I follow Nicolas blog and have her Write to be Published book. It's a great book indeed. I'm really not sure I could persevere that long. That's some going.

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  27. Rosemary Gemmell26 November 2011 at 11:31

    Thanks for posting that link, Talli - we all need a bit of that perseverance!

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  28. RHYTHM AND RHYME26 November 2011 at 12:13

    I wish her well with her book, after all those years she certainly deserves it.

    Yvonne.

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  29. Rosalind Adam26 November 2011 at 12:53

    Nicola was one of the first writing blogs I came across too. But 21 years! Gosh. I shall pop over and read all about it.

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  30. Joyce26 November 2011 at 13:04

    We've been loving too much food, family, and the gorgeous weather so not a lot of blogging...enjoy your little piece of summer in November : )

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  31. Jemi Fraser26 November 2011 at 15:04

    I've been following Nicola's blog for a long time too - she is brilliant! :)

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  32. K.C. Woolf27 November 2011 at 15:11

    Thanks for pointing me to Nicola's post. Good timing. ;-)

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  33. Donna Shields27 November 2011 at 15:16

    Wow. That certainly is a long time, but shows her dedication to writing. I don't know if I could have gone that long.

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  34. Anonymous27 November 2011 at 16:56

    I need at some some minor victories along the way. Persistance is hard and time can erode away at your confidence. So some mini-successes are necessary. Even if you have to force one now and then.

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  35. Romance Reader 27 November 2011 at 20:40

    That's new definition of persistence!

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  36. Olga28 November 2011 at 01:48

    Persistence is my middle name. But only as far as pleasant things :)

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  37. Christa Desir28 November 2011 at 04:11

    Hmm...21 years??? Yeah, that'd be tough. But in some ways, we've all been writers that long...just not all of us "actively" doing it all the time.

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Coffee and wine for all!

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