The many hats of Jeni

As I’ve said before, I’m a mom, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, and a volunteer. Oh, and a writer. Did I forget to mention that? Probably.

Life is a delicate game of Topple where I try to balance all of my jobs equally without letting the board spill, scattering all of the pieces all over my dirty hardwood floors. Yeah, dirty hardwoods.  Because I forgot I also am supposed to clean. Let’s not even talk about the chef hat that is buried somewhere beneath the frozen foods in my deep freezer.  I guess what I’m getting at is that on any given day I wear multiple hats. Some I can find easier than others and some I enjoy wearing more than others.   

I’ve recently added a nurse’s cap with taking care of my mom during her cancer battle, but as she says, “You were meant to be a writer and the only way you’re going to be a writer is to write, so get to it!” Needless to say, I’m not going to argue with my cancer-ridden mom (Her words, not mine. She’s getting really good at playing the ‘cancer’ card…) Far be it for me to upset her, so I’m taking some classes to help me along in the 'getting published' realm of things and I’m scheduling a week’s worth of writing at a time.

So far this week I’ve made what I like to think is progress. I finally got myself signed up with the Romance Writers of America, which was a goal of mine for a while that I kept postponing thinking I wasn’t ‘good-enough’ yet.  However, I have a finished short sitting here on my hard drive that begs to differ and I am about 10,000 words or less away from a full-length paranormal romance that agrees with the short. In the cliché way of thinking, it was more than time to shit or get off the pot (that gem is courtesy of my grandmother).  So today I bit the bullet, pulled the trigger, or whatever else sounds better than ‘got off my ass’ and did something that terrified me.  I joined a professional organization for writers. WOW!

Honestly, it feels like a weight I didn’t even know I had has finally been lifted off my shoulders. Once I finished a writing assignment for a class I’m taking, I will be completing a submission packet for my short.  My short that another publisher was interested in if I would consider making it a full-length.  So, I need to get over my horrible nerves and just suck it up and submit the darn thing.  Why?  To prove it to myself that it’s good?  Well, sure.  But also because the only way to go from being a writer that just writes to a writer that gets published, is to actually submit works for publication.  

Wish me luck, my friends, because this girl is planning on making it happen this year. As my mom keeps reminding me, she’s not gonna live forever and she really wants to see my name in print. (I told you she was getting good at playing that cancer card, didn’t I???  lol  )

Until next time-- Jeni