Anxiety & Fear - it's all part of growing.

Family/Friends, 

I've always been aware that in order to grow one needed to take risks, but yet I spent many years of my life shying away from risk, particularly because I was afraid - there I said it!  Yes, mainly afraid of how I would measure up to expectations of family, friends, and peers.  So I fell back, flying under the radar in the ‘safe zone’.   

Fast forward to 2007 and major changes occurred in my life, I took on a job that required me to handle greater responsibilities, a job that required me to mentor others as well.  But how could I do this effectively when I myself needed guidance?  This became a key time for growth and a pivotal time for self-discovery.  No longer was I going to sit on the sidelines and just be a spectator, no; I was going to be an active participant.  I would go on to set attainable goals and strive to meet them.  If I didn’t, I’d rework the plan and start anew. 

Fast forward to present time; though I’d love to say that the last five years have been the most wonderful of my life and that all has been peachy, this is not the case.  The last five years have been the most intense, the most trying and perhaps the most difficult years of my life professionally and personally.  That said however, the last five years have also been the most productive and the most rewarding years yet.  Point in case my writing career may have never gotten off the ground had it not been for my commitment to take risks. 

In closing, I hope that wherever you are in life that you don't take as long as I to realize that in order to grow as a person you may need to make bold choices and make even bolder decisions :-)

FYI - If you haven’t visited my site yet, please stop by http://www.mywritingden.net/.  Feel free to leave a comment, those are always appreciated. 

Well folks have a story to finish, so gotta run.  Take care and until next time!

Maria

Book Reviews

Family/Friends::

Now that I have a couple of books under my belt I've begun looking at book review sites.  As you can imagine having books reviewed is a very important step in becoming a great writer.

Two weeks ago I created a profile on Goodreads and uploaded an excerpt of my book, to date I have not received any reviews.  I'm considering uploading an entire short story instead so reviewers can have something more substantial to critique. 

On a side note, I want to mention that my Twitter following has increased by 10% in the month of June! Now if we only could do the same for my eBook sales and FB Fans :-)

That's all for now folks.  Until next time!

eBooks and other exciting stuff!

Family/Friends,

As busy and hectic as things have been in my professional life the last two weeks it's also been an exciting time.

As some of you already know, I've recently published two eBooks on Amazon (http://amzn.to/Nygmv8) and will be publishing a third via Barnes and Noble by the end of June. Also, this past week I was the featured author at www.hotlitbooks.com you will find me there next week as well (6/18-6/25). Drop by and read my bio and interview questions, you may learn something about me you never knew before.

For those following Erotica Tales on my site (www.mywritingden.net) you know that this section has been suspended for the summer, but in its place I've incorporated a new section called Flash Fiction Friday. Flash Fiction Friday (http://www.mywritingden.net/flash-fiction-friday-2/) an exercise that writers undertake to help them draw out a story/scene in short format; 6 words/6 sentences - in my case 6 paragraphs or more :-)  So if you have not had the opportunity to visit just yet, please drop by and leave me a comment, I'd really appreciate it.

Well folks that's all I have for now.  Until next time!
Maria

First eBook PUBLISHED today!

Family/Friends,

My 1st eBook (Love and Lust) went into circulation today at Amazon.  This is a long time coming for me, so I am extremely excited.  Should you be interested in previewing my book, please click here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0089E10KS. Please note thatt although this book is a novellette (indicating is a short read), by summer's end I will be publishing a full length novel, so stay tuned for that.

Also, HotLit Books (http://www.hotlitbooks.com/) will have me on their main page as their featured author for two weeks (6/11/12 - 6/25/12) and I am certainly excited about that.

Well that's all for now folks.  Take care and until next time!
Maria

eBook Sabbatical :-)

Family/Friends,

As of this past week, I have made a decision to finally publish an eBook on Amazon - the goal is to have two eBoooks published by 8/31/12.  As such, I will be in hiatus from Erotica Tales for this summer working on content. I have also put the the manuscripts (for two online publishing firms) on hold to focus all my energy into the eBook/s. I will be active on my FB Fan Page https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Writing-Den/368907206455014# throughout, but other forms of Social Media (Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) will be kept to a minimum.

A quick update on recent events:

--Blogging Contest finished 5/28 and it yielded ten more fans on FB and three more followers on my Blogspot (here) along with a few other followers on my site http://www.mywritingden.net/.
--Woman's World has sent me the 'thanks but no thanks' letter and although it was disappointing, I'm moving on quickly.
--I have gone back to attending the Romance Writer's of America - Desert Rose Chapter monthly meeting, along with Phoenix Writers Club and Scottsdale Society of Women Writers.

Well, that's all for now folks.

Take care and until next time!
Maria