Life Changing Stuff Here

Hello, My Friends.

I need to tell you about the last month.

It. Has been. Life changing.

I made a new year's resolution to rededicate myself to my small copywriting business, The Bright Words.

I built a new website. I got professional pictures taken. I started looking for new clients. I attended a business conference. That's the life changing part. The speakers and presenters were phenomenal. It was the first time I've ever experienced true synergy - and I figured out what I'm supposed to do with my life!

Long story short - two of the speakers there are now mentoring me and helping me along. I'm learning a lot and I'm exhausted - but in the good way. And now it's time for me to do some major hustling.

So here it is:

 I Need A Small Army to Help Market My Business

I’m crazy. But you know that.

And I need the support of a small army of people who are even crazier than I am.

I’m putting together an Influencers Group to help me create a groundswell surrounding the launch of my business: The Bright Words. It’s already out there, and I’ve been in business for a while, but I want to take it to the next level. I’m in search of a dream team of authentic, dedicated, positive and proactive wave makers to help me spread the word over the next few weeks - in fact - my goal is to get 100 influencers to join this group in just 10 days.

It won’t be allllll fun and games (just mostly). I’m going to need a lot of help. It’s going to be work. There may be blood, sweat and tears. (Joke. Okay, half joke.). But, I promise you’ll get a glimpse into my brand of crazy, which is better than say, Kim Kardashian’s brand of crazy.

Here’s what I promise you if you join the Influencers Group:

        I will spread information about you, your business, product, or service far and wide - leveraging my unique strengths and avenues of influence.

       Access to me (and the other influencers in the group) in an exclusive Facebook group. This group may just turn out to create mutually beneficial relationships that could last a lifetime. You never know.

Here’s what you promise me you’ll do if you join the Influencers Group:

    Share information about The Bright Words far and wide—leveraging your unique strengths and avenues of influence.
    Join the Influencers Group on Facebook, and be an active participant and collaborator: sharing ideas together to help each other more effectively spread the word.
    Find other people - influencers - who you think would love to be part of this dynamic group.

Here’s the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1688969331329988/

That’s it!
Are you in? It may just help you out, as well.
Love ya.
Mean it.
For real.

Status Update

Have you noticed in the status bar on Facebook, it asks you some kind of question, like "What's on your mind today?" or "How are you doing?" I'm going to go ahead and answer that today.

I am freaking out, man!

Yeah. Just like that. There's a lot of good stuff happening, but it is also really stressful. The bank denied our loan one week before we were supposed to close on our new house. And it wasn't for any other reason than we were buying the house on a flip. We were told if we would bring them another $45,000, they would approve our loan. Um, I'm sure most people have an extra fifty large just sitting around, but we're not one of them. And that's the whole reason for going to the bank in the first place, right? Fortunately, I called my friend at City 1st Mortgage, and she had me a new loan the very next day. So we're back on track.

Which means that there is packing and sorting and prepping for a garage sale. There are paint colors to pick, and did you know that gray is an impossible color to choose? Fifty Shades of Gray? I don't think so. I bet I looked at 100 shades before I found one that didn't look purple or brown or blue or beige.

And did I mention the cleaning? The new house has been sitting empty for a year, and has accumulated a year's worth of dust and dead flies. Gross, I know. And I'm a firm believer in leaving the old house cleaner than you found it, so there's that.

In the meantime, there are clients who need blog posts and facebook updates and newsletters. And there are children who need dinner. Why do they always need to eat? And they want clean clothes, too.

And then. THEN! There's the big Amazon contest and we are 11 days away from finding out if I am a semi-finalist. Who can concentrate on ANYTHING when I am 11 days away from finding out if I am a semi-finalist?!?!? What? We're buying a house and moving? I had no idea, because I am WAITING TO SEE IF I AM A SEMI-FINALIST!!!!

People, I haven't done my hair once this week! Thank goodness for ball caps and ponytail holders.

To end, I will leave you with a little tip: if you're looking to invest in some stock, consider peanut M&Ms and cherry Coke. I have a feeling there is going to be a surge in demand.

Thank You!

As a personal rule, I believe in being positive. I really don't see the need for negativity; mostly because I'm lazy. It takes way too much effort to be mean and vindictive or an all-around sourpuss. It's just easier to be nice. Remember the penguins from the movie Madagascar? Smile and wave, boys. Smile and wave. 

Also, I believe that like attracts like. If you're generally happy and positive, you will attract generally happy and positive people into your life. Before you accuse me of being all Pollyanna-like, I also have a healthy respect for reality. Sometimes, reality does in fact, bite. Tough things come along and make you wish you were somewhere on a faraway tropical island, sipping slushy drinks on the beach.

This week, however, is not about the tough things. This week has been all about the good things; the highlight of which was seeing the word "author" next to my name. Author!!!! My novel made it to the quarterfinals, which is the most I was hoping for. Anything after this will be the icing on the cake.

Also, things are plugging away for us to move into our new home within the next several weeks. We've lived here in the beautiful mountain tops for five years, and we are excited to finally put down roots and have a place to call our own.

Beyond that, the weather warmed right up, and I got to take a drive in a convertible -- and there's hardly anything that makes me giddier than sunshine and a convertible (except of course, seeing the word author next to my name)!

BUT (and this is the biggest thing this week) as I shared on Facebook all of the good things that happened this week, I was utterly humbled by all of the friends who were genuinely happy for me; at how many people offered sweet sentiments of congratulations and well wishes -- even people who were possibly as ecstatic as I was. Texts, e-mails, hugs...I was the recipient of all of this positive energy this week.

And to all of them, I can only say, thank you.

What an affirmation of like attracting like.

I know, and I mean KNOW, that my friends would rush to my aid when the tough times hit. But how much sweeter it is to know that they are there in the good times, too.



P.S. I have dubbed 2013 "The Year of Yes." We're making good thing happen up in here!

Leap Day

Leap Day came and went last week, and leading up to it, I started thinking that there should be some sort of purpose for Leap Day. After all, it only comes once every four years. So this year I declared (as I am apt to do) that Leap Day should be a day that you do something you've never done before -- in other words, take a leap! I declared it, and so it became.

I had the good fortune of being on a cruise last week, so my options were somewhat more open than if I had been home, complaining about the cold weather. And what did I do? Thanks for asking. I went parasailing! It was incredible! Exhilirating! And yet very Zen-like at the same time. I flew, 600 feet over the Sea of Cortez, and loved every nanosecond of it. I can't post a picture yet, because I'm on someone else's computer. But as soon as I get home, I will post one.

Anyway, the point is this: because I gave Leap Day purpose, I had the best day ever (despite the fact that I had to report my son missing to Mexican authorities -- but that's another post). And you know what I got from that? Every day should have purpose. Don't just wake up every morning and do what you've always done. Except, do eat breakfast, because it IS the most important meal of the day, after all. But do give purpose and meaning to each day. Think about what you're going to do, why you're going to do it, and then DO IT! If you don't know why you're doing something, don't do it. Make things happen. Cause something -- even if it's just making someone else smile.

Go ahead. Take a leap.

I dare you.

The End

So I've been writing this story. And it's been a lot fun. But I got kind of stuck there for a while, and I just wasn't sure how my heroine was going to work her way out of a sticky situation. Also, the situation was not sticky enough.

And then last Wednesday, I was waiting in my car; waiting for my children to come out of piano lessons. I spend a lot of time in my car on Wednesday afternoons, so I usually pack along my iPad and keyboard so that I can write in between schlepping the kids to their various places. And boy, did the story start to flow! So I went home and kept writing.

I subbed on Thursday and Friday, so I had to impatiently wait to write until well after dinnertime. And then Saturday came. And you know what? I spent about 12 glorious hours type type typing away. Thankfully my husband was willing to keep everyone else busy. I did take a break to cook dinner, leaving my heroine in the most precarious situation, but I came back to her and she managed to save herself and the boy in the process. Before I knew it, it was 12:30 a.m. and I FINISHED MY BOOK! I actually got to type the words The End.

Granted, I have about 7 or 8 more drafts to go, but the story is done! The editing and the re-writing shall commence; but for just a moment, I can enjoy the sense of satisfaction that comes from knowing THAT I HAVE WRITTEN A NOVEL.

And just to make things a little sweeter, a fellow writer-friend, upon hearing the news that I finished, brought me this to celebrate:

It's my first you-wrote-a-book cake!

Thanks, Jen!

Ego Boost

So I'm lucky enough to live in the same community as a certain author who has published many, many books. Last month I found out about a writing class he was offering and immediately signed up. Besides the many wonderful things he is teaching us, we also have the chance to get our writing samples critiqued. It's always a little nerve-racking to have other people look at what I've written; especially when it's done by someone who has actually made a successful career out of writing, himself!

So when it came around to my turn, I braced myself for the impact. He asked others in the group what their opinions were. They offered some helpful insights and I, not being allowed to comment until the critique was over, wrote them down. The teacher joined in on the discussion pointing out a few things here and there -- all helpful. Then, at the end, he looked me in the eye and said, "You're already a good writer and you don't need me."

Wow. I'll be riding high on that one for a while.**

**Even though the fact remains, that I do need and will take all the help I can get!!

Finding the Magic!

I came across this quote this morning and immediately fell in love with it. Then I saw it was by Roald Dahl, one of my all-time favorite children's authors! (You know, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, etc.).

So I'm off to find the magic for today... I hope you do the same!

Ready, Set, Go

My husband gave me a watch for Christmas. I love watches. The watch he gave me is a designer watch. It's soooo pretty. It's gold and shiny and it has lots of pretty little dials. So this watch got me to thinking. I'm not someone who usually cares about designer-type, fancy-schmancy things. I'm just as happy with a ten-dollar watch from Target as I am with the one currently on my wrist. I know people say things like that all the time, but I really mean it. I was completely shocked and awe-struck at this fine gift. Dan simply said, "you deserve it." I guess that's the part that got me thinking. I do deserve certain things life. Don't we all? At the very least, I deserve to go after the things I want. And the thing I really want is to write books. So I have been writing and revising, editing and submitting. I've heard back from two publishers, both of whom said something to the effect of, we like it, we think you're publishable, it's just not for us at this time. And so the hunt continues. But that's okay. It's nice to be told by multiple publishers that I am publishable. It would be nicer to be told they would like to publish me, but that will happen eventually. Hopefully soon. So I signed up for a conference. A big one. I'm excited. I know of a few writers who got their breaks as a result of this conference. One of them is teaching the class I will be attending. So look out Book Industry. I'm coming after YOU!

Flying Shoes and Motherhood

So my son is on a big kick lately that he is going to invent flying shoes. He's serious.
"Do you really think I can do it Mom?"
"Wouldn't it be cool if I invented them as a little kid?"
"I could get to the bus stop in a microsecond!"

I, of course, am nothing but supportive.
"There's nothing you can't do if you focus."
"I would be so proud to be the mom of a kid inventor!"
"Why don't you just fly to school?"

Today he came in and immediately told me of all the naysayers out there. "Michael said you're just saying those things to be nice."
I wanted to punch Michael in the nose. He'll see what flying shoes look like then.
"All the kids at the bus stop laughed at me and said it was impossible to invent flying shoes."
Those bus stop kids? I'm not sure what their biggest ambitions are at this point, but I'm sure it involves manipulating their way into the latest DS game.

I am not going to dash the dreams of my seven-year-old, no matter what his dreams may be. I get to foster and support and nurture and encourage him because THAT'S my job. And if and when you commute to work in your flying shoes, you can thank me for believing in my kid. Everyone else can take the bus.

One Step Closer

School has been out for a week and a half now, and I have been waiting for a day to be able to something because I WANT to and not because I HAVE to.

The have-to's on today's list included holding a Primary Presidency meeting and feeding my children. That's a pretty easy day, if I do say so myself.

So for the want-to, I just completed the final draft of a story I have been working on for a year. It's done. Chiseled. Sculpted. Until, that is, an editor says to fix it. The trick is getting it into the hands of an editor who also happens to think it worth fixing.

As luck would have it (and I don't believe in luck so much as seeking out the right opportunities) I met a woman this week who owns a publishing business. She told me to call her next week to show her my manuscript. She said if it's not something she can publish, then she's got connections and can point me to the right people. Isn't that great?

Wish me luck!

Counting Down

I realized today that this will be my 93rd post. Just a few to go until that magical #100. So I thought it would be fun to count down by listing a few bucket list items. We all have them, right? Things we want to do before we, uh, meet our Maker?

Today's Bucket List Item:

I want to be an extra on a Star Trek movie set. I know. I'm a nerd. And proud of it. But how cool would that be? I have been a Star Trek fan since I was a kid (converted by my dad). Sometimes I'll watch a movie and say to myself, See! If people could just get past all the boloney in this world, look at what we could accomplish!

Idealistic? Far Fetched? Absolutely.
Possible? Definitely.

But for now, I'll just dream of smaller aspirations, like being an extra. They could shave my hair off and paint my scalp purple. I'd do it in a heartbeat!

Dreams

If you know me at all, you know that my little brain is capable of some pretty crazy dreams. It's been that way since I was a kid. I quit trying to analyze them long ago, because I'm afraid the result would be, well, frightening. Last night's was a doozy (yes, I said "doozy").

Here it is:

I was driving my car to Kansas City (not sure which one). My husband was driving behind me. Along the road were fields and pastures full of bison and buffaloes - you know, the ones with the big fluffy heads. Before long, my daughter and I were enjoying the bright-blue buffaloes leaping alongside our red Tahoe. Once we got to Kansas City, there was a ladder you needed to climb up and over to get into the city. As I swung my leg over the ladder, it began to tip. I woke up right before I hit the ground.

By the way, I've never been to either of the Kansas Cities. But I'm pretty sure neither of them require entrance by ladder.

Are you plagued by loopy non-sensical dreams? I'd love to hear about them!