3 Tips for Writing

This morning I was reading a bunch of writing tips on Pinterest and Facebook. At twice a week I'll be remarkably active on one or both of those social media sites, so there aren't many new things to come across.

Today I found one.

The tips on it seemed a bit off though.
1) Stop reading.
2) Throw out your TV.
3) Edit as you go, it saves time in the end.

None of them rang true for me. It made me think about all of those tips I've been reading and realize how contradictory one article can be from another.

So I decided to put together my own short list of tips.

1) Figure out your writing style. The reason there are so many different tips is because everyone has a different writing style. Goodness, my own writing techniques differ depending on my mood.

Are you a morning writer? Night writer? Whenever you have time writer?

Do you need to wait for the muses to hit or does a strict schedule help you?

Do you prefer to have large writing goals a week that you aim for as much as you can or do you like small goals so if you hit them and surpass them you feel productive?

Do you even have specific writing goals?

Personally, I write when I can. It generally happens later in the day. My muses hide out until I've been attempting to write for around half an hour (sometimes more).

2.) Find out what inspires you. Different things inspire different people in different ways. If reading is what inspires you, read. If watching your favorite shows inspires you, watch them. If going for long walks in the freezing cold while drinking a smoothie inspires you, don't catch a cold or anything but do it. Does attempting to find ways to contact aliens help inspire you? Then go ahead and try contacting them (but if you do make contact, please be careful).

It doesn't matter what inspires you, just figure out what it is and do it. Inspiration can come from anywhere and anything. And inspiration helps stories become what they are.

Story ideas come from inspiration.

For me reading is helpful, as is watching TV (Hello, Merlin and Charmed and Stranger Things and Game of Thrones and the Bachelor and Dancing with the Stars). At work, inspiration hits more often when I'm talking with customers or coworkers.

3.) Write. This is probably the most important, easiest sounding of the rules. But to be honest, it can be the most difficult. There is no way you can be a writer (or author) if you don't write. It's the key ingredient.

So do whatever you have to do.

Even if it's just a sentence a day. Or it doesn't follow with anything you're working on. Just write. Keep building those writing muscles.

In the past, I've tried editing as I go. For me, that didn't work. I never made it beyond 10000 words and hated every single word I wrote. It took me really pushing myself out of my comfort zone to stop doing that, but it's been for the best. Projects are moving along.

So, if you're like me and read a lot of different articles about how to write, them main thing to remember is if it helps you, yay. If it doesn't, oh well. Just move on to the next tips.

What is your writing style/technique? What inspires you? And how do you make sure you keep writing? Feel free to tell me in the comments!

Until next time,
Shelby

A Writing Plan for 2018

Hello,

I can't believe I'm at my fourth post already this year. You could say I'm off to a good start this year, hopefully I stick with it. 

In case you weren't aware, IHOP is currently prepping for international pancake day by having unlimited pancakes for just $3.99. It's wonderful. Not necessarily for my diet, but... seriously delicious. 

I've been keeping up with the Bachelor (of course) and so far this season, I'm not terribly impressed. Although I'm glad to know that Krystal was sick and she doesn't normally sound like that.

At this precise moment, there is a Great Dane drooling on my face, but she's so cute I can't help but be like "ohhhh Bri you're adorable." Her and I will be getting some bonding time while my dad is out of town, because we cuddle when dad isn't here. 

If you haven't had the joy of being tackled by a dog that weighs a similar amount as you do, you're missing out. It's wonderful. Unless you are like Annalise (sp?) from the Bachelor who has had traumatizing events with dogs (and bumper cars... and I'm assuming more things that we will learn on Bachelor in Paradise).

Many of you probably clicked on this to learn about my 2018 writing plan, not to know about IHOP or puppy. 

Writing is hard, Man. Especially in a day and age where it feels like everyone is writing and publishing things (whether it's worthy of publishing or not). While as someone who wants to publish good, well-written works, seeing the relatively poor things published is a tad bit confidence boosting, it still doesn't alleviate the fact that writing a story is difficult.

And so I have a plan. 

My original idea for the year was to write two chapters a week, and so far I've been okay at keeping it (I've written six chapters since the beginning of the year). 

I've noticed my "The Write Life" board on Pinterest has been growing and growin, but I've done nothing with it since creating it. It was created in 2013. 

So over the next week or so, I'm going to put all the prompts from the board into a container and do a free write each month. Just to exercise my writing muscles. I think I had this idea at some point last year but didn't go through with it them. Most of this year is about following through with things, so it's going to happen. 

I would say a prompt a week, but that would be biting off more than I can chew. Hopefully this will grant me 11 short stories by the end of the year (hopefully my 10 days in Belize won't put me too off track).

Until next time,

Shelby

A New View

Sometimes it seems as though the world is passing me by and I'm just stuck in one place, one time, nothing changing, but everything changing. 

I know I've been working pretty diligently at growing and becoming the best me I can be, but it recently hit me. One of the simplest things I can do I've not. 

As a reader, books have really shaped who I am as a person. But I rarely step outside of my comfort zone of sci-fi/fantasy. Don't get me wrong, I do read other things every so often. But it is always fiction. 

The last nonfiction book I read was for college. I've been out of college for... Almost four years now. Wait. No. I read Stephen King's On Writing a couple years back. But didn't finish it. 

So each month this year, I plan to read a nonfiction book. Subject doesn't matter, although the first one is going to be a history book. On my Facebook, I recently asked people for their favorite choices and if I can get my hands on them, I'll likely read the options. 

I do want to read a couple self help books, but there are so many I've no idea where to start. But I've got an idea I want to pursue with that (but I'll talk about that if I do actually wind up doing it). 

It's such a simple way to break out of my shell and take a step out of my comfort zone, I've no idea why I haven't thought of it before. 

If you have any suggestions of your favorite nonfiction book, please feel free to comment on here! 

Until next time,

Shelby 

A Warm Welcome for 2018

Welcome everyone to this very frigid beginning to the New Year.

I would have posted something yesterday, but I was driving home from Fort Worth (and complaining about the cold). It is currently a whopping 30℉ outside and I as a warm-blooded Texas summer girl am not pleased. At all.

So the warm welcome to the year is going to have to come from ourselves, not the current weather.

By the end of last year, I was really struggling with a lot of things, both physical things and mental blocks. I needed a break.

Desperately.

So, thankfully, despite the freezing temperatures and threat of ice, I was able to travel to Fort Worth to celebrate New Year's Eve with some old college friends.

It was really nice and definitely needed.

Although I didn't get to see everyone, it reminded me of how much I miss the DFW.

The past few months I've really been slacking on healthy eating and working out, basically since I started attempting to, you know, have a life. And my writing definitely took a back seat to things.

So my main focus at the beginning of this year is to get back on track.

Technically I started last week, and it took my weight from 145.7 lbs back down to 137 lbs. Which is really nice.

No longer am I focused on actually losing weight, because I am right smack dab in the healthy range for my height, but instead, I want to focus on being healthy, building muscles, and becoming more lean.

Despite the fact that Lindsey's voice (from the IdealShape Up challenge) still bothers me, I am going to restart that challenge at least until I think of something else. And since it is a 12 week program of course I doubled up the workout today so I'm not on day two on January 3rd. That'd bother me so much.

Writing-wise, my goal in the past has been to write 2000 words a day.

That obviously didn't work out, so I am trying something new this year. I plan to write two chapters a week.

And I hope to update this blog more consistently than last year.

Something I started last year that I plan to continue is stepping out of my comfort zone.

I will participate in Make-up-less March again. In May I am going to Belize.

I am still working on other ways to step out of my comfort zone, so if you have any ideas, feel free to tell me in the comments!

Although it isn't part of stepping out of my comfort zone, though, if all goes according to plans, I should be done paying off a specific grouping of my student loans and I am pumped. No joke.

That's all for now, folks.
Until Next Time,
Shelby

P.S. I was going to have a quote picture, but the thing I usually use to make them seems to have vanished from my computer. I'll figure that out later.

P.P.S. The new season of the Bachelor is on and I'm pumped.

A Year in Review

2017 is almost over.

I can't believe how quickly this year went by. Obviously, I wasn't terribly observant of the day, weeks, even months.

Hopefully everyone has had happy holidays.

This will be my last blog post of the year.

Don't worry, I'll be back in 2018, hopefully much more on top of things.

At the beginning of this year, I had 16 goals for the year, not necessarily resolutions, but 16 things I hoped to accomplish.

This year, I did get my passport. I did go on vacations. I even got out of my Texas bubble by going to Miami and New Orleans. I even participated in make-up-less March.

Although there were plenty on the list I didn't do, there were also quite a few things not on the list I did.

Such as I got back out into the dating world. That was odd, but nice. My obsession with dragons increased. At one point I got my weight down to 129 lbs. It was only for like two day, but still. I got to see my sister for thanksgiving and it was the first time in seven long years.

I even signed up for a trip to Belize. It's crazy. I'll be there from May 10-20th! I'm saying it's my birthday gift to myself.

(Although I am paying for it on my own, if you want to donate a little bit to the "get Shelby out of the country" fund, go to This link. Any contribution will be very much appreciated and every dollar counts.)

Towards the end of this year there have been a few negative things. Harvey, my grandmother (Dad's mom) going into the hospital (she's dramatically better now though), and my PCOS acting up again.

Of those, the PCOS was something I could do something about and since it caused me to have a 2.5 week period, I went to the doctor. Got put on a new medication. Had a horrible reaction to the medication (seriously, I thought I was dying for a couple of days). Thankfully it calmed down and I'm still taking it.

I'm not sure if it is the medication or the weather (it has been cold and I'm not a huge fan of the cold), but I've been feeling remarkably down recently. I keep switching between caring about getting things done a lot, to not caring at all. There's no in between. I keep wanting to be around a lot of people and wanting to be all by myself. I want to open up to everyone I meet, but I also want to push everyone away. I feel as though everything I do matters a lot and doesn't matter at all. Also, my emotions seem to have a mind of their own right now.

Basically, I feel like I'm going crazy. I can't decide if I want it to be a reaction of the medication or the fact that I can't hibernate through the winter. Either way, I hope it balances out soon. I was hoping that a trip to Fort Worth for New Years and seeing some of my old college friends would help me refocus on things. But thanks to the possibility of ice, I might not be able to do that anymore. Hopefully my dad doesn't try too are to keep me from going because I think I really need this trip. Mentally and emotionally.

I'm for sure going to write next week about the goals and such for the year 2018, so keep an eye out ;)

Until next time,
Keep safe and warm,
Shelby

Part of Why There Wasn't an Evacuation for Harvey

Growing up in the Houston area, I've grown accustomed to hearing the name Houston on the News. Whether it is because of athletes or a school doing something.

Even in my four years away while at college, Houston was mentioned at least once or twice a month for something.

That's the thing about it, Houston is the fourth-most populated city in the country. So percentage-wise, people here will be doing things.

But it's not just the city of Houston. It's the Greater Houston Area. A lot of people who aren't from Houston don't seem to realize that when Houston is mentioned on the news, generally it's talking about the GHA, not just strictly the city of Houston.

This area includes nine separate counties:
- Austin
- Brazoria
- Chambers
- Fort Bend
- Galveston
- Harris
- Liberty
- Montgomery
- Waller

Within these counties, there are countless cities and areas that each has a culture and personality of its own.

Growing up around here, although it wasn't terribly noticeable, there were still the simple prejudices of each different area. "Oh, you're from Tomball?" "Oh, you're from Dickinson?" "The Woodlands?" "Katy?" (Note: These were the first four places that came to mind; I have nothing against any of these places.)

This past weekend, any and all of those boundaries and borders fell.

Hurricane Harvey came in and drenched everyone.

There are a lot of people out there who don't understand why no one evacuated.

First off, up until Wednesday, Harvey didn't seem like he was going to be a big deal. He had been a Tropical Storm the last I had heard. Then he intensified (obviously). On Thursday, I was at work thoroughly unmotivated to actually do anything, because it has been years since a hurricane has hit. But news stations were starting to predict this being a much bigger deal than anticipated.

So why wasn't an evacuation ordered then? Let's look back a few years, for a history lesson.

Back in September 2005 (you know, the record breaking hurricane season that gave birth to Hurricanes Katrina, Dennis, Emily, Rita, and Wilma), Hurricane Rita was making its way to Houston.

This is just three weeks after the devastation that was Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana.

People panicked. No one wanted a repeat of Katrina in Houston. Houston's has flooding issues for major rainstorms and no one wanted to deal with that.

This panic led to a Mass Evacuation. Between 2.5 and 3.7 million (yes, million) people evacuated.

My family was among them. Although we left either the day or two days prior to the major evacuation.

Now, we have family up in Dallas who normally take us in during hurricanes and such, so we're lucky in that way. It normally takes about five, maybe six hours to reach them depending on traffic.

It took us over eleven.

Two vehicles, three dogs, a cat, six people. I don't remember much about the drive out except my cat nearly having heat stroke because we had to turn the air off to conserve gas (because there was no gas to get to) and having to go to the bathroom so badly.

We didn't even have it bad compared to some people. I've heard of that same drive taking two-plus days.

And this was with both sides of the road open to people going north, and north only.

Not my Picture (Got from the Weather Channel)

Over 100 people died during the evacuation.

From what was reported at the time, total deaths, including those in the evacuation, from Rita was placed around 120-130. Seven of which were directly related to the storms. More people died due to the evacuation than the storm.

Granted, there was a lot of damage. Enough so that the name Rita was retired from the Hurricane list.

With little time to evacuate for Harvey, if they had, then people would likely have been stuck on I-45. And there were lots of places on 45 that were underwater.

Harvey was a horrible, freak occurrence. Yes, it was catastrophic and devastating. But can you even imagine how much worse it would have been if flooding streets were covered in gridlock traffic of people trying to escape?

I can.

Until Next Time,
Shelby
P.S. I'll probably post later this week about Harvey again. But my thoughts and prayers are with everyone in Texas and Louisiana that is suffering because of Hurricane Harvey

A Little Bit of Catch-up, Please.

Oh dear.

I have been completely failing on keeping this blog updated this year.

Please accept my apologies for that.

If it means anything, I've been out, you know, attempting to have a life.

This post is in hopes of doing a little bit of updating on my life and hopefully I'll be able to get back on track with it.

First off, I've not been doing nearly as much writing as I should be. That's going to change. There's no hopefully about it. If I want to be an actual author with a book out in the next couple of years, it HAS to change. So I'm making sure it does.

Weight-wise, I've been pretty consistently sticking between 131 and 135 lbs which I am very happy about. I am almost at the point where I am able to constantly use 8 lb weights (I am on week 9 of my second round of the IdealShape Up challenge and when I started it the first time I could barely use 2 lb weights).

Since a couple friends and I will be doing a 5K in a 10-11 days (it's September 2nd), I have been attempting to start running but it is rough. Like. Really rough.

Leigh and I FINALLY floated the river. And made some new friends while we were at it. Oh, and I got to play some Giant Jenga.

On the weekend of July 4th, I went to Miami with Leigh and a couple of other people and that was a blast. A few weeks after that, Leigh, Margaret, and I had a girls' night. Followed by a friend from college visiting (and I failed at being a wingwoman) and then the week after that my little sister from TBS visited.

South Beach

Party Boat

Next time Margaret is in town, plans are to attend Turtle Racing at Little Woodrow's in Midtown (I've attempted to go every time someone was available but without fail mess up which day of the week has them). Then in November, Leigh, Margaret, and I will be going to New Orleans. Woo! Super excited!

I am also part of a Sci-Fi book club now. Although I failed to finish the first book (oops), I'm almost done with the second one (All the Birds in the Sky). And if you're interested, there will be a book club blog!  There isn't much on it yet, other than the summary of the book we are currently reading.

Oh, and I recently got a Bumble account. That has provided me with a handful of... interesting conversations. Some in a good way, others earning an immediate unmatch and block. Not sure how long I'm going to keep the app, but for now I guess it is an attempt to step out of my comfort zone and talk to new people.

My family got a Great Dane puppy and named her Lady Brienne (of course after the Game of Thrones Character) and she's so delightfully clumsy, I just can't handle it.

Note: she's not this small anymore.

Until Next Time,
Whenever that may be,
Shelby