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IWSG

#IWSG Mar. 2023- Author Envy is a Thing #writingcommunity

Created and hosted by the Ninja himself, Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writers Support Group posts the 1st Wednesday of every month. Click here to learn more or sign up.

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Optional Monthly Question: Have you ever read a line in a novel or a clever plot twist that caused you to have author envy?

This happens to me all the time. I don’t know how anyone who loves stories doesn’t feel this from time to time. Even if you are an avid reader with no desire to write your name on the dotted line, I think a small part of you wishes you had the creativity to come up with some of the things that make you love reading.

On the flip side, I’ve also had moments when I thought, “I can do better than that.” For me, it’s all part of the reader/writer journey. If I stop being able to appreciate the writing of other people, that’s a problem.

Still, even with a bit of author envy, I’ve never taken it too far. Yet, I’ve heard of other authors who’ve tried to sabotage their perceived competitors. I hope these are just rumors. Personally, I feel that most writers are supportive of other writers, but that doesn’t mean all writers are friendly. There are writers in this world I don’t like but I can still acknowledge whether they have talent and or creativity. I can still be inspired by someone I don’t like if what they’ve written speaks to me, whether in a positive or negative way.

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The IWSG Book Club Presents:
Falling Down Rabbit Holes

by Toi Thomas, images by Ronel Janse van Vuuren – first appeared in the IWSG March 2023 newsletter, additional images added.

It’s the year of the Rabbit.

So, what does that mean for the IWSG Book Club?

Well, did you see that Tubi Superbowl commercial?

This next book club phase is all about discovering rabbit holes in your reading. We want you to discover or re-discover the joy of reading through exploration.

As an additional tool provided by the amazing Insecure Writers Support Group, the book club will never lose sight of its original objective to help writers hone their skills. Plus, we still like having the option to spotlight the talents of this dynamic group. So, while some things will never change, it’s time to shift gears and remember why we all started this journey- the joy of reading.

We’ve decided to place the book club in a position of comfort and support, giving each member a chance to shine their own light on what matters most to them as a reader. We are keeping our craft books and member spotlight books but will only be hosting discussions every three months. This is a perfect opportunity for those who’ve wanted to participate in a group read in the past but simply didn’t have time to join in.

As always, we set up our discussions in a way that’s easy for anyone to participate in, even if they haven’t read the books. We are returning to our three-question format because people seemed to like it better. Sometimes the discussion is a good place to ask questions and learn more before committing to reading the book(s) if you haven’t already.

In addition to quarterly discussions, we’ll offer monthly activities and encouragement for members to pick and choose from, and perhaps, fall down a rabbit hole or two.

Each month we’ll offer a themed reading challenge where you call all the shots. All we do is provide the theme and some suggestions (which you are welcome to ignore). This is another opportunity to be part of the crowd but on your own terms. You pick your genre, your platform, your medium- it’s up to you. You could take the challenge each month or join when the theme calls you. (Sooo hoping to see some memes on this one!)

via GIPHY

Each month we’ll host a discussion called, “What are you reading?” This will be an opportunity to talk about the books you are excited about, apprehensive about, or reading for work/education. Tell us all about it. We want to know. Perhaps we’ll add one of your books to our TBR or provide you with some encouragement to get through a tough read. So go ahead, get on your soapbox, and let us know, “What are you reading?” (Wouldn’t mind seeing a few memes here either.)

via GIPHY

Last but definitely not least, in the grand IWSG tradition, we’ll host a monthly check-in poll allowing members to update the group on their reading progress. Perhaps they are taking the Goodreads Challenge, the book club challenge, or some other personal challenge or goal. Tell us all about it and we’ll be there to root you on.

Our first quarterly read is starting a little late but that’s okay. We have to start somewhere. For those interested in our quarterly spotlight reads, the first official discussion will be on April 27, 2023 (Yes, that’s 2 months, not 3 months, away). The featured titles are:

IWSG Member Book:
Spiral of Hooves: Goodreads | Amazon

Craft Book:
Fight Like A Girl: Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop

The first themed challenge in the month of March is: Horse Crazy. Click this link provided to view the challenge and learn more:

So, whatever it is that you are or aren’t reading, The IWSG Book Club is here to offer you encouragement. Remember, you can participate as little or as much as you like, but we truly hope to see you around. We wish you all the best with every rabbit hole you dive into.

Now, on to the personal updates.

Long story short- I wrote a little, read a little, did some stuff, but mostly I lost a bunch of email subscribers when my subscription plan ended without notice. You can watch my WIP Update video on YouTube if you’d like to learn more. If you were following me via email, you’re not anymore. Here are ways you can follow me if you’d like.

EMAIL | FEEDLY | BLOGLOVIN | WORDPRESS

BLOGGER– enter the URL- https://etoithomas.com

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Here’s an idea I’m playing around with. What do you think?

Ever had author envy?
What do you think of the book club changes?
It may take some time, but I promise, I will eventually stop by your blog.
My response time has gotten slower but I’m still making my rounds.

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After hanging out with Alex, be sure to stop by and visit this month’s co-hosts:
Diedre Knight,
Tonya Drecker,
Bish Denham,
Olga Godim, and
JQ Rose!

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Click here to visit other IWSG blogs and sites to receive and share more inspiration and support. (This month, I’m #28).

Thank you for making it this far down the virtual page. Kudos to you! I’d love to know what you thought of this post in the comments below. Stay safe and be blessed.

Categories
Book Club Books

#iwsgbookclub Oct. 2022 Poll & What I #read in Sept.

Please join the IWSG Book Club today on Goodreads for a short general poll. Aside from spotlighting two IWSG member books each month, we also want to engage in bookish whimsy and encourage others to have a healthy reading lifestyle. You don’t have to be reading or have read the 2 current featured books to be able to participate in this poll, so please, join in the festivities. Click the image below to see our fun poll. This month the topic is about audiobooks.

In Sept 2022, I read 4 titles, but only finished three. This month I will be focusing on lighter, silly, and fun reads.

2022 Reading Challenge

2022 Reading Challenge
Toi has
read 2 books toward
her goal of
60 books.
hide

Below you’ll find my star ratings and review blurbs for each title I completed in the indicated month. If you have not signed up for my newsletter, please consider doing so. That’s where I post an overview of what I’ve been reading, watching, and writing quarterly, as well as talk about my love of reading while offering tips for having a healthy reading lifestyle. You can also click the Goodreads links to see the thorough reviews. At the bottom of this post, you’ll also be able to watch a video of my monthly reviews, if that’s more your style.

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4-stars

Review

Unrated

Review

4-stars

Review

5-star

Review

So, did you read any good books in Sept. or did you try either of the IWSG Book Club Books?

What did you think of the ones I read? Any recommendations?

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords #blacklivesmatter

Categories
About Toi Newsletter

The Dreaded Newsletter part 2: Mistakes Were Made

You ever have one of those moments when you think something really cool is about to happen and you’re really excited, but then you find out it’s not what you expected? That’s what’s happening to me right now, but it’s mostly my own fault and I can totally accept that.

So, in my last post, I talked about my scheme to develop a Patreon page (which I still plan to do) instead of a newsletter. I had it all planned out but I didn’t have all the right information. Plus, I made some pretty broad assumptions along the way.

Patreon isn’t new to me. I participated in one a few years ago as part of a group effort. Needless to say, the platform has changed a lot since then and I didn’t take that into consideration. Then, I cited an article, that while very informative, was a bit misleading in its use of the idea “pay what you want.” Also, I came across a Patreon creator letting potential patrons know they could simply follow them for now if they weren’t ready to become a paid patron. It was totally my assumption that came with some form of benefit to the potential patron.

Basically, a feature that used to exist no longer exists and it throws my whole plan off. You can no longer offer content for free on the platform. And giving people the chance to follow a patron just means that person will see that creator’s profile whenever they happen to visit their own profile page.

So much for avoiding a newsletter. Time to come up with a Plan B that helps me develop my Patreon community ’cause I’m still moving on with that.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords #blacklivesmatter