IWSG: Friends From the Blogosphere

 It’s the first Wednesday of the month and so it’s time for another Insecure Writers Support Group (IWSG) post! In an IWSG post, we writers bring our writing challenges and problems out into the open to share with each other and try to offer solutions.

IWSG Question of the Month

A lot of times blogging is referred to as a kind of social media. And it often is that. We don’t only post our content to show to other people and gain exposure but we also inspire and contribute to discussions. We reach out to each other to share our thoughts and exchange knowledge. We also form friendships even if they mostly remain online. As this month’s IWSG question puts it, “Blogging is often more than just sharing stories. It’s often the start of special friendships and relationships. Have you made any friends through the blogosphere?” And my answer is yes. 

I’ve met plenty of people in my blog’s comments box. However, not all of them are frequent visitors. I think what has helped me make friends, and not just one-time commenters, is this very blog hop of IWSG’s. I’ve met and conversed with more people in this blog hop than I have simply posting on my own time. One person I’ve met and consider to be a friend, even though we have not met in person, is IWSG’s founder, Alex Cavanaugh. 

Alex gets hundreds of comments from fellow bloggers, especially through IWSG. So, I had at first not expected him to respond to my blog posts either in or outside of the blog hop. But even though his blog is often loaded with visitors’ comments, he’s always made time to respond to my blog posts both IWSG and my own weekly ones. Doing this has been very encouraging for me because I know there’s someone out there who cares about my blog enough to read it almost every time I publish a post. He always has something great to say about my articles, not that they’re always that great but he always seems to respond to them and so add to the discussion. 

I’ve met and talked with plenty of other fellow bloggers who contribute to my posts’ conversations and we’ve had some really good discussions. But I understand how it’s almost impossible to regularly respond to everyone’s blog that you have on your reading list. That’s why I think Alex is so outstanding in his frequent responses to my (and others’) posts because, and I’m not sure how he does it, he seems to always find time to read them. 

So, thanks, Alex, for supporting me and the many other bloggers in the IWSG with your responses to our posts and adding value to our discussions!

Newsletter News

The status of my newsletter, “Night Creatures’ Call”, that I’m getting ready to launch: I’ve chosen a template for it at MailChimp. Also, I’m coming to the final sketch for the newsletter’s logo. As soon as I draw, ink and maybe even paint it, it will be ready to scan and be added to the front page of the newsletter. The logo consists of an ape-like claw lifting the receiver of a vintage rotary phone. If you want to get a glimpse at some of the concept sketches, you can find them at my Patreon page for a relatively small fee under the Tier 3 membership, which I call Portal 3. When you join a tier on my Patreon page you’ll get monthly benefits ranging from exclusive book discounts to ad-free content such as many of the blog posts you see here at the Fantastic Site, only without the ads. You can also get swag, concept art--such as that for the above mentioned logo--and even work-in-progress of my fiction. Go here to join. If you want to subscribe to my newsletter for updates of my fiction work, blog and Patreon page, click here for the sign-up form. 

Have you made any friends in IWSG? If so, how do you think they have helped or encouraged you with your writing? 

Today’s IWSG is brought to you by these super co-hosts: Louise - Fundy Blue, Jennifer Lane, Mary Aalgaard, Patsy Collins at Womagwriter, and Nancy Gideon! IWSG was founded by awesome author Alex Cavanaugh, writer of the Cassa Series of novels! 

Until next time . . .