Mama Diaries

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Happy New Year and ISWG

 


Happy New Year!  I wish you all a very happy, healthy, and productive 2022!

So, let's see. This month's IWSG question is, "What's the one thing in your writing that you regret the most?" Well, that's a tough question to start the New Year with! I don't know that I actually have anything I regret. If I had to say something, it would be that I started my writing journey not knowing enough about the craft or the business. It was a spontaneous, unplanned thing. If you've read any of my interviews from some of the book tours I've done, you know that it was my 3-year-old daughter who encouraged me to get my stories published. Being in the sleep-deprived state I was in, I didn't do much in the way of research. If I had, I probably would have revised my work a little more and waited for a traditional publisher to publish my first book. It's been 17 years since That Baby Woke Me Up, AGAIN was published. I've learned a lot along the way and made some great connections. And yes, I did get traditionally published. So, in spite of my ignorance in getting started, it's turned out well. (Now, if I don't finish writing the last of my Bubba and Squirt books, I may have regrets. Two manuscripts are ready to go, but the last one is a little slow on getting out of my brain. Better get working on that!)




  

And here is big boy, Klaus. Today is his first birthday (January 5)! It's been a year of chaos and mayhem. But he sure is cute!

50 comments:

  1. Hi Sherry, even I started writing journey knowing nothing about the craft or the business. Now I have learnt the hard way.

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  2. Happy Birthday, Klaus:)
    Wishing you a wonderful writing new year, Sherry.

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  3. Happy New Year and happy dogday to Klaus!

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  4. Happy New Year Sherry, a great post to start the year, most interesting to read,
    Take care.
    Yvonne.

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  5. That's great you have no regrets. Happy New Year!

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  6. Happy New Year and continued success in 2022! It's always a good idea to listen to our kids, isn't it?

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  7. Hi, Sherry!

    Happy 1st Wednesday and first week of 2022, dear friend! Your answer to the question of the month is similar to the answers of other authors around the circuit. It's like parenting. No one knows how to do it until they jump in and learn from their mistakes. You've already enjoyed a long career as an author and have an established name, reputation and track record. You have every reason to be proud.

    That's an excellent picture of you in the foreground with rascal Klaus sprawled on the sofa behind you. Happy first birthday to him and many more. I think he is bound to start mellowing as time goes on. He certainly is a handsome dog.

    Have a wonderful month and a happy, healthy, productive and successful year, dear friend Sherry!

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    1. That's a good analogy. Publishing can be a bit like parenting.

      Happy New Year to you as well!

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  8. Happy New Year and yay for no regrets! Happy birthday to that big gorgeous boy too!

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  9. Happy Birthday, Klaus! And woot for no regrets!

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  10. I love your Bubba and Squirt books, Sherry. All the luck with this last one. You can do it! Looks like Klaus could pull the children on a sled! All the best in 2022!

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    1. Thanks for the support!
      Klaus probably could pull a sled!

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  11. Seventeen years a published author - well done!

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  12. It all worked out in the end. I love that your daughter got you started. Congratulations on all your successes!

    The Warrior Muse

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  13. That's a long time you being a published author, here's to many more.
    Take care.
    Yvonne.

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  14. I'm glad that you don't have any regrets and that things worked out in the end. :) Happy New Year!

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  15. Klaus is sure big for a one-year-old ;)

    I think jumping in is better than doing all the research and figuring things out when it comes to publishing. It can be easy to spend all your time thinking, "I don't know enough to do this". Just me?

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    1. Yes. It's like that for a lot of things. You can think yourself out of doing something instead of just taking the leap of faith.

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  16. happy birthday to Klaus....

    Hope, it will be wonderful in 2022

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  17. Wow, Klaus looks like big fun. I bet most of us didn't know enough or everything we needed to know when we started.

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    1. I think you're right. A lot of us just jumped right in.

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  18. I hope 2022 is a good year for you, Sherry. Klaus is huge!

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    1. Happy 2022 to you, too. Yep. Klaus is a big boy!

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  19. Happy New Year, Sherry!

    The word regret is not the word I’d use when referring to my journey because each writer’s journey is highly personalized and really unique. So, no regrets from my side.

    I finally got around to reading Bubba and Squirt's Big Dig To China! It's a wonderful book.
    Happy Writing!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed reading Big Dig to China! Thank you!

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  20. Happy New Year to you and the family and Happy belated birthday to Klaus (cute boy). So glad you listened to your daughter and began writing.

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  21. Happy New Year to you and your family. I'm still on hiatus but slowly returning to online life. Klaus is such a handsome boy!

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    1. Welcome back! Klaus is a good looking dog. But a bundle of trouble!

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  22. Likewise, a happy new year to you and yours. And a happy first birthday to Klaus.

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  23. You've learned on the way, and it's worked out well. We can plan, but things often turn out differently to what we planned - it's all a learning process. Happy New Year (a little late!)

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    1. It's true. Things do turn out a little differently than planned. But somehow it works. Happy New Year to you, too!

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  24. Happy New Year and happy writing. I am hoping for a great writing year myself. The last two have been a little slower. Klaus is a cutie!
    ~Jess

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  25. Oh my besty wishes toy you darling

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