WoW! We're both posting about imposter syndrome today. Weird. We both have July birthdays. Weird. We both show off our natural hair color. Weird. (In my world weird = cool.) Synchronicity rules!
Typically, liberal thinkers are more intelligent. I don't know how to test that empirically; however one cannot help but observe the blatant evidence. I was raised in Texas in the Southern Baptist tradition but don't be surprised. I have two degrees and 20 years experience as a bedside and homecare nurse.
.I've lived in the trenches, and I've discovered some things about humanity.
Congratulations on your book release getting closer and closer and your HuffPost essay. (Geesh! I feel for your sister.)
I started letting my hair be gray last year at age 42. The grow-out felt awkward but I like having the silver. I discovered it shows up silver on Zoom only when the screen is backlit by natural light. So usually it looks dark on calls, but last weekend I was in a new place and first I thought “this woman will think I did something really weird.” Two seconds later I thought, “90-minutes of protected weekend writing time. Not wasting any of them explaining my hair!”
Happy Birthday, Victoria! l hope you have a lovely day tomorrow! And thanks for yet another informative post and for the work you do. I'll be one of the first to try to get my hands on your YA novel coming out in 2025. Such a terrific accomplishment and a wonderful way to connect with people. Congratulations again about that, your recent published essay, and the interview you include here!
Thanks! I think you’ll like the YA novel in that the characters learn they need outside help and they figure out how to connect with outside people. I imagine you will bring your essays into a memoir when you are done? I love your journey because, hard as it is, you are writing the escape points—and that is going to help a lot of people!
Do you follow Sarah’s Fay’s Writers at Work? She has a post about serializing a memoir (she did this). I think it might be behind a paywall. I think people will buy a memoir in book form after reading serialized parts because it’s nice to have it all together. @Tia Levings has a Substack, but I originally found her through IG (I’m not on IG much at all now—it wasn’t good for me). She just had a book out about being an exvangelical and escaping an abusive marriage. But before that, she garnered a following with reels about her situation. So—I definitely see that as a possibility. Also @lyz lenz has a Substack newsletter, found a following and when she published her exvangelical book “Ex-wife,’ it was a bestseller. It’s a topic people are definitely interested in! (Including me!)
WoW! We're both posting about imposter syndrome today. Weird. We both have July birthdays. Weird. We both show off our natural hair color. Weird. (In my world weird = cool.) Synchronicity rules!
And we’ve both edited the Inlandia Journal! Synchronicity indeed!
I love Weird= Cool !!!!!
Typically, liberal thinkers are more intelligent. I don't know how to test that empirically; however one cannot help but observe the blatant evidence. I was raised in Texas in the Southern Baptist tradition but don't be surprised. I have two degrees and 20 years experience as a bedside and homecare nurse.
.I've lived in the trenches, and I've discovered some things about humanity.
In the trenches is exactly how we discover!
Congratulations on your book release getting closer and closer and your HuffPost essay. (Geesh! I feel for your sister.)
I started letting my hair be gray last year at age 42. The grow-out felt awkward but I like having the silver. I discovered it shows up silver on Zoom only when the screen is backlit by natural light. So usually it looks dark on calls, but last weekend I was in a new place and first I thought “this woman will think I did something really weird.” Two seconds later I thought, “90-minutes of protected weekend writing time. Not wasting any of them explaining my hair!”
We call my sister ‘the pit bull’ because she is tenacious and achieves a lot of her goals. I’m glad she has that sort of personality.
I’m glad you protect your writing time! That’s the only way to get through, it seems to me.
I should get an author photo taken that shows my hair color, but that will take some energy.
Happy Birthday, Victoria! l hope you have a lovely day tomorrow! And thanks for yet another informative post and for the work you do. I'll be one of the first to try to get my hands on your YA novel coming out in 2025. Such a terrific accomplishment and a wonderful way to connect with people. Congratulations again about that, your recent published essay, and the interview you include here!
Thanks! I think you’ll like the YA novel in that the characters learn they need outside help and they figure out how to connect with outside people. I imagine you will bring your essays into a memoir when you are done? I love your journey because, hard as it is, you are writing the escape points—and that is going to help a lot of people!
In some cases, its not knowing you need help, it's instinct.
Thanks, Victoria! l wasn't sure if l could combine my essays into an actual memoir since i've posted them on substack, but I'd like to!
Do you follow Sarah’s Fay’s Writers at Work? She has a post about serializing a memoir (she did this). I think it might be behind a paywall. I think people will buy a memoir in book form after reading serialized parts because it’s nice to have it all together. @Tia Levings has a Substack, but I originally found her through IG (I’m not on IG much at all now—it wasn’t good for me). She just had a book out about being an exvangelical and escaping an abusive marriage. But before that, she garnered a following with reels about her situation. So—I definitely see that as a possibility. Also @lyz lenz has a Substack newsletter, found a following and when she published her exvangelical book “Ex-wife,’ it was a bestseller. It’s a topic people are definitely interested in! (Including me!)
Plus, people love watching series, it's the same concept as a serial memoir.
Thanks so much for this info, Victoria!
You’re welcome! I actually put my review on Levings’ book on my School Library lady blog because I think high school girls should be aware. https://schoollibrarylady.com/2024/06/16/who-are-the-helpers-anyway/. (Basically my Substack post moved over to that blog.)
Oh, terrific!