Change at JamiFairleigh.com
Even though I’ve been thinking about change for a while, this post has been incredibly hard to write.
For the past three years, I’ve written a weekly blog. I started posting regularly a year before I published Oil and Dust. It was a way to make sense of the firehose of information I was consuming as a new indie author. Not only did writing the posts help me process the information, I enjoyed sharing what I’d learned with you, too.
Plus, the world was on hiatus, so I had three days each week I could focus on my writing. Day 1 was always the blog, and I reserved Day 2 and 3 for my fiction.
But change happens. And as the world has reopened, my calendar is no longer mine to control. Between work, family, and social obligations, my writing time has shrunk from three days each week to one.
The day I currently use to write this blog.
Oh, come on, a blog post can’t take that much time, right? It’s just a simple essay!
It is… and isn’t. Most posts take me between 5 and 9 hours to craft. From content planning, to research, to finding images or creating graphics, drafting the message, formatting the html… it’s not nothing. Moreover, it’s time that I’m not spending on my fiction… and you guys, a writer writes.
Non-fiction writing requires a different mindset than fiction, but I haven’t found a way to write a blog post and then switch to fiction, either. After all, as many of you know, I am not good at juggling projects. Bottom line, I have too much on my plate.
Change is scary.
I’m a little afraid if I stop the blog entirely, my hard-won non-fiction muscles will atrophy. Plus, as you guys know, I’m an avid reader of fantasy. Each month, I share one independently published book and one traditionally published book I’m reading in my monthly newsletter, but I read a lot more than I share.
Honestly, some of my favorite posts to write have been the booklist roundups, like Fantasy Featuring Art-Based Magic, Cozy Fantasy Reads, and Hopeful Post-Apocalyptic Reads.
So…
“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “To talk of many things: Of shoes – and ships – and sealing wax – Of cabbages – and kings- And why the sea is boiling hot – And whether pigs have wings.”—Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking-Glass
Instead of stopping cold turkey, the plan is to transition most of my blog posts to book reviews. Not only do I think writing book reviews will take a lot less time, I’m hoping this shift in focus will help me tackle my terrifying to-be-read piles of books!
But… is the blog going away?
Nope! I’m leaving all the past content up, so please continue to share the posts you’ve found useful.
Listen, I’ve loved sharing what I’ve learned. Even better, the weekly blog has allowed me to “meet” those of you who have reached out to share your stories or ask questions. Plus, I’m sure I’m going to run across new tools and resources I’m excited to share with you. But those posts will get sprinkled into the overall body of work, instead of being the focus of the blog.
For those of you who were here primarily to talk shop, I have two resources for you to check out; Janice Hardy’s blog, Fiction University and the blog authors Ruth Harris and Anne R. Allen write. Both blogs are amazing resources for authors.
For those of you who were here for my writing updates, I’d encourage you to subscribe to my newsletter.
And for those of you who are just here to hang out, let’s chat books!