blog changes

One thing I had decided several months ago is that blogging so much has been draining my fiction writing energy. The political campaigns probably did too as instead of thinking of my characters, debating what they would do next, researching what was historically happening at the time of the stories, I was reading political articles and figuring out my own analysis. It involved a lot of reading and a lot of thinking. It was very important to me to do that, but it was a detour that was not helping finish my books.

So Rainy Day Thoughts is going on a once a week schedule (most likely a Saturday). Although I am not sure what I'll write about, the topics which currently appeal are genetically altered food and seeds, global climate change, getting old, environment, religion/spirituality, preparing for disasters, where our culture is heading, philosophy of living, and I'm sure more will come to me.

It will not be political so much as social and physical regarding issues I think humans need to be thinking about-- as these are around the world issues. There might be a little US political push once in awhile as I do believe Americans can't afford to take the next two years off. We need to be informed and express our opinions if we want to see anything positive happen on a lot of important issues. It takes pressure from citizens despite citizens wanting to hide in a hole after this long and intense campaign cycle.

Less frequency here will enable me to put more thinking and time into my two historical romances (first time ever that I have had two books unfinished-- ack!). I also hope to write regularly in my creative/marketing blog, Rain Trueax where I will aim for one every two or three days. Writing professionally is a mix of creativity and marketing. Anybody who has actually put out books (ePub or traditional) knows this.

There are assorted reasons for having that second blog. I felt Rainy Day Thoughts didn't start out to sell my books. It was about ideas and life in general. It can still be the latter; but if I write about the books, my struggles with marketing or plots (a big part of my life these days), comments here dwindle into nothing, and I suspect it feels like spam to long-term readers. I've had that happen when a blog I had been reading suddenly turned to selling. I didn't like it either.

Independent writers of eBooks must have places to have their work seen as they aren't on any store shelf. My Rain Trueax blog is one of those for me. My goal for it is to see it develop a readership of those interested in creativity and/or are working on their own projects-- which could mean writing, painting, crafts or any of the many creative arenas. The problems aren't a lot different if you want to go beyond the hobby phase to actually selling.

There is a cost in cutting back on the frequency here as Thoughts has had a nice sized readership which I expect, with less frequent postings, to be reduced; but I need to balance life with the writing. Actually I have noticed a lot of bloggers, who've been doing it a long time (I began in 2005-- old posts are on a blog called Age Old Beauty), have also gone to less frequent postings-- if they are even still doing it.

I hope regular readers here, who would like more frequent entries and are interested in the life of a creator, will give Rain Trueax a try. I recognize that romances are very politically incorrect, not exactly the elite thing to write, but they are what I write. The blog, however, is about more than them. It's about creativity in all its moods and aspects. The blog list here will always have it with its latest topic. I'll mix my art in with it and openly invite other creative people to put up guest blogs.

Whether someone is aiming to write memoirs, sci fi, flash fiction, chick lit, romances, adventure stories, non-fiction, or the great American novel, I think sharing the work can help.

Much to my surprise, I've learned that I enjoy writing about writing and the philosophy behind my work-- and yes, romances can have a philosophy behind them. Mine express a lot of my cultural and political views-- although you're unlikely to ever see the words Democrat or Republican in them (never say never but I can say never to date). Not all romance writers cover controversial subjects as it does turn off a certain percentage of possible readers, but I wouldn't even write if I had to write pablum. I just hope gradually to find readers who also like something more than a happy ending with their romances.

Photo on top is from CanStock where I purchased the rights. It fits into one of the books I will be putting more energy into-- an historic romance set in Oregon after the Civil War. It got stopped, after getting about 20,000 words into it, by a need to re-edit my contemporary stories as well as do further research on a little known Indian War. I thought I'd get over to the area where it was set but summer was way crazy and it didn't happen. Maybe in the spring.

The other unfinished historical, the one likely to get my energy first, is set in southern Arizona of 1885-- another very interesting time. It follows a book, which is edited, ready to go and will be on Kindle the first part of December-- maybe :). It would be an apropos time as last December is when my publisher (Farm Boss) and I put out the first of my ten contemporaries. I will have opportunity for more photos of that area as I get back to Tucson in December.

So don't give up on Rainy Day Thoughts as it'll still be here, just less often.

Rain Trueax

El Tiradito, a Tucson wishing shrine (a plot factor in both Arizona historic romances).