Blog 5: Shake it up!

Well, hello there, and welcome to month two of my blogs. Yes, it’s week FIVE and we are now in February! Wow, that went quickly, considering it was January a minute ago, and none of us like January, do we? Christmas has left and taken those shiny balls with it, and the weather is freezing. Woah has it been freezing, brrrr.

The reason the time has probably whizzed by so speedily, is I’ve just been so ridiculously busy. To the point where I’ve seriously considered getting a clone to share the load! If anyone knows where I can get one by the way, please let me know. I would call her Super Angie.2 and she could take over all the driving and housework, leaving me so much more time for editing (imagine a satisfied sigh here). Because I do love editing. And when you are so busy, you tend to get stressed. Which is why it’s important to do the things that you enjoy to help you relax and recharge.

I have one of those Fitbit thingamajigs (don’t you just love that word?) and it shows me that for a large portion of the day I’m … well, pretty stressed. But at the times I’m editing, I am at my most relaxed! It feels so good to just sit down and take my mind off everything else that is going on around me for a little while and leap into the writing on my screen.

But that isn't all. I’m finding it fun getting to know and collaborating with numerous authors, reading various genres in different styles, watching my clients succeed, and being inspired by them. If you have kept up with my social media this week, you may have seen that one of my clients has been accepted by a Literary Agent and another is about to launch her book next month! I don’t know who is more excited about this, me or them!

I also love how varied this job is. For example, each project I do requires me to have four documents up on my screen at one time. One for timekeeping, a style sheet, the report and of course my favourite document—the story! When I start and finish, I fill in the time, when I find a new character or an important detail, I make a note of it on the style sheet and if any improvements are needed, I add it to the report as I go along. And this freelance game means I’m not just an editor; I have so many hats; I’m an advertiser, networker, administrator, oh, and a blogger! I also have a woolly hat with a pompom on the top, that has been well used in this chilly weather. I don't need this for editing—unless the heating goes off... What I'm saying is the challenge of doing all these things keeps me on my toes and I get the added satisfaction of all the things that I’m learning and accomplishing.

We all need to be challenged. There is nothing worse than being stuck in a rut, doing all the same things day in and day out. As the saying goes “A change is as good as a rest.” Do you know what I’m going to say next? Go on, have a guess. Are you challenging yourself with your writing? Do you always use third person limited or a linear plot? Maybe you tend to have the same type of characters. If you do, then perhaps it’s time to take a leap and challenge yourself. I’m talking about stepping out of that comfort zone. Write in second person! What? Yes—do it! Or a story within a story. Ooo I love those. You could even have the point of view from a dog. Or maybe just do what you've been thinking about, but have been procrastinating because you aren’t confident if you can pull it off.

Well, no more! Grab that keyboard and flex those creative muscles, people. It’s time to push yourself, test your boundaries, put a whole packet of Mentos in a lemonade bottle, strap it to your back and see if you can fly. Okay, maybe don’t do that one. But you get what I mean. Try something you haven’t done before and see what happens. And finally, sign in to the comments section at the bottom of this page and give me all the juicy details about it.

Go on, what are you waiting for? Catch you next week, you creative lot!