At Last…I’m Going to Fettle my Posts in 2017 #blogging. January Result!

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For the last year my blogs have had a ‘scatter-gun’ approach; erratic, inconsistent and varied; without a theme, sometimes with neither rhyme nor reason … except for the sharing of reviews, interviews and other authors’ good news. Mostly, I think I’ve been lazy, relying on other bloggers and authors to do the work.

 This year will be different! This is not a New Year Resolution; this is me taking me in hand.

 So I said at the beginning of January. Did I succeed? Well… on the whole. I still get carried away when I see a post I like and reblog.

 But I’m well on my way with the editing of the prequel. Cover reveal coming soon!!

The Memory is almost ready to go to my Beta Reader

I’ve posted another Holiday Lets tale: http://bit.ly/2klXhmR

Posting and sharing reviews of other authors’ books on my blog on Sundays as #SundayBlogShare has been a bit erratic as we’ve been away most Sundays.

 I have two reviews to post in the next week and am halfway though a third.

But… I have interviewed Seven#familysaga authors and will be posting those over the next three months. These are fascinating writers with brilliant books so I’m looking forward to spreading the word about them.

So… all in all, not a bad start, I think.

 

sevencandles

 Seeing a little light

Now for February!

 So… what started all this?

It was Tina Frisco’s question, “Tell us what you envision for your blog in 2017, ” that made me stop and think. This is what I wrote in answer to http://bit.ly/2iJWGdz

 Tina’s question made me remember Hugh W. Robert’s post in 2015:  http://bit.ly/2jcwdSA. I’m embarrassed to show my reply but here’s an edited version:

‘ Each day I come here to write my WIP … but I keep popping back to emails to see what I’ve missed of  my favourite and most friendly bloggers.And then I’ve shared randomly. It’s been a problem, But today, your post has made me think…’

Hmm…

But, in May 2016 I was still doing the same things even after I read Rosie Amber’s Wednesday Wing – #TwitterTip Part 3 Retweeting and Post Sharing #wwwblogs @TerryTyler4  POSTED ON MAY 4, 2016 BY     http://bit.ly/2iReO5t,   

 Here’s a section of what Terry and Rosie said:

“A few tips on post sharing:

  • Don’t automatically share every single post that comes into your email inbox. Check them out first to make sure it’s something you actively want to share.

  • Overkill: if virtually all your tweets are shares of others’ posts, be aware that these will get re-tweeted rather than tweets about your own posts/books, most of the time. If you’re happy with that, that’s okay!”

How some people manage to write Daily Posts yet still write books is beyond me. I am a slow writer/ thinker/ reviewer.

 SO,THIS IS IT! I HAVE A PLAN:

Notebook, Plan, Dates, Coffee Cup, Break

Yes, it has taken coffee and chocolate and messy doodling in my diary to decide.

Here goes:

 I need to say first and foremost that  I will editing the prequel to my trilogy during these next months. The working title is Foreshadowing but this will probably change. Anyway it’s due to be published in August by http://www.honno.co.uk/, the publishers of my other books

Pattern of Shadows by [Barrow, Judith]

                                                                 http://amzn.to/1onvi4R ,

Changing Patterns by [Barrow, Judith]

http://amzn.to/1JPSOuX ,

Living in the Shadows by [Barrow, Judith]

                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                                           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                   http://amzn.to/2fFqUfE

 

I’m also tidying up the last book I have written, called The Memory, which is due to be looked at by a couple of author friends of mine before I send that off to the publishers. Oh, and I have another half-finished saga which has been on the back burner for two years.

RIGHT… NOW FOR THE BLOGGING:

In 2017  I will be  getting up to date with reviews of books I have read. I will also read and write reviews for Rosie Amber’s Team (http://bit.ly/2hYNbYG ) #RBRT. I love being part of this group and have read some wonderful books (both Indie and traditionally published) over the past two/three years. 

I will be posting more blogs about our Holiday Lets (here’s one post on that: http://bit.ly/2hYOHdc ). I’d like to get these into a short anthology sometime. But, for the time being they’ll stay as posts.

In February and March, I’m looking forward to interviewing other authors who write in the same genre as me: family sagas. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do for a while.

 Around July, I’ll be starting my usual interviews with the authors who will be attending the annual book fair that I organise alongside my friend and fellow author, Thorne Moore   (http://www.thornemoore.co.uk/).  Alex Martin ( http://amzn.to/2hZCgt2)  was with us in the past but has been taken over by’real life’, unfortunately.  It’s a lot of work but great fun and will take place on the 23rd September. This year we’ve changed to a bigger venue so will be hosting around forty authors at the Narberth Book Fair. There will be talks, free workshops and readings. And the whole event will be filmed by http://showboat.tv/

I tutor creative writing three days a week, and every now and then, I post something one of my students has written. 

I will post and share reviews of other authors’ books on my blog on Sundays as #SundayBlogShare.

 Reading back on this, it does all seem slightly ambitious. But, as I said to Tina, as long as I can manage on four hours sleep each night, who knows; I might succeed in doing it all.

 What I do know is that I will be more organised. The housework can wait!!

49 thoughts on “At Last…I’m Going to Fettle my Posts in 2017 #blogging. January Result!”

  1. Pingback: At Last…I’m Going to Fettle my Posts in 2017 #blogging | Judith Barrow

  8. fettle your posts? Sounds more like getting your garden sorted but I’m glad for you and if you do more holiday lets I’ll be cheering for sure! These are excellent; my sort of humour/disaster stories.

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      • Yep, the theory doesn’t always match the practice. I know I spend way too much time reading posts. I’ve been doing my accounts for my tax return – that’s what I tell people but if I’d just switch off my email I’d have finished them days ago. I think I should also disable spider solitaire.

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      • Ah, the dreaded tax return, Mary. Yes, I’m in the throes as well. I love reading posts but I have to have some self control this year so will try to save them until Sundays. luckily I don’t play any online games – otherwise I think I’d be holed up here in my study forever and never see the light of day.

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  14. That does seem ambitious, Judith, but I’m always amazed at how blogger/writers juggle so many priorities! Maybe it’s in the genes. I just put my head down and charge full speed ahead without any plan whatsoever. Ha ha. Have a wonderful new year and happy writing and blogging and living ❤ 🙂

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    • Ah,thank you, Tess. And yes, we can only do our best.Still ignoring the dust though! House thoroughly cleaned after all the Christmas decs went away. That’ll do til Easter (joking, in case the quality control police hack into this!!) Jx

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  17. Judith, you are a gem. I’ve been following the “housework can wait” philosophy a little too long, methinks. o_O To be perfectly honest, I still can’t understand the need to post daily. Once a week is all I can manage. Then I feel bad that I can’t visit everyone who feels compelled to post something every day.
    Focus on your prequel. It will be lovely. Mega hugs.

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    • Teagan YOU are a star, thank you… it is the guilt isn’t it? Wonder how many others feel the same. I couldn’t blog every day to save my life! I will concentrate on the prequel and will post when I can. Just need to get a few reviews of books I’ve already read, out of the way in this month and then slow it down. Saying that I do have another ‘holiday let’ post to go out Monday. Love from Wales. Judith x

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  18. Oh dear, I’ve never managed to be this organised about my blog! I review books after I’ve read them, if I’ve read more than half way, and I’ve done organised stuff in the past like The Zodiac Files, but my main blog is very much ‘as and when’. Right now, it’s ‘when’ – ie, when I’ve finished writing two books; until then, there won’t be much going on there at all!

    I look forward to answering your family saga questions ~ now, I’m cheating too – doing guest posts for others means I don’t have to write any of my own blog posts! The only way I keep even half way on top of stuff is to do my morning hour on Twitter before I do anything else. It just about keeps things ticking over 🙂

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