M.J. Compton's Blog, page 35

Pet Peeve

I tend to spend a lot of time on line at the local fast-food franchise’s drive thru. It’s close to my Day Job; it’s easy to grab breakfast on the way in in the morning, and it’s convenient for lunch when I’m in a hurry. Over the years, I’ve observed a lot of different behaviors, […]

#UpbeatAuthors: Self Esteem

I just finished reading The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck. In the chapter on self-esteem, the author examines the late 20th century trend to make everyone feel better about themselves about everything: participation awards, trophies, grade inflation, etc.  The mantra was “every single one of us can be exceptional and massively successful.” A whole industry […]

Just Me

I have a good life.  A good husband. Good children. Good job. Good friends. Actually, it is a great life. I get to spend my non-day job hours writing. I have written books that editors have thought good enough to publish, which is the culmination of a lifelong dream. I have attained my goals. How […]

Overcoming Fear

Fear can be paralyzing.  Keep you up at night. Be the root cause of illnesses. Some of my favorite ways of dealing with fear include: Reminding myself I have no control over anything except my emotions and reactions to situations. Journaling–writing out my thoughts about anything has always been a way for me to understand […]

Poem in Your Pocket

Today is National Poem in Your Pocket Day. Poetry has a bad rap. A lot of it is pretentious. More is sophomoric. I should know. I wrote reams of bad poetry as a self-indulgent teenager. I grew up on poetry. My mom had a book from which she read to us all the time. My […]

Listening To Your Heart

Human truths aren’t about facts.  The workings of an inner voice depend on our knowing that we do not know. Listening to the heart is a real thing. It is dependent on intuition and subconscious knowledge. Here is a great article on the subject. The author of the article suggests ten ways to learn to listen […]

Songs Behind the Story

I’m working on another werewolf book, with my good friends from Toke Lobo & the Pack. When I was on a writing retreat a couple of months ago, I had an urge to read a book where the plot hung on the blues–the musical genre. I realized I hadn’t created a sound track for the […]

Letting Go

We’ve all made fools of ourselves at one time or another. We’ve embarrassed and humiliated ourselves and done things we wish we could either undo or do over. Memories of those moments keep us awake at night, haunting us like the Ghost of Christmas Past haunted Ebenezer Scrooge. Or we’ve been angry and upset about […]

Happy Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day 2018

Yes! It’s National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day again. I’m still addicted, but I have changed my recipe a little since last year. Instead of using regular butter, I now use Chef Shamy Garlic Butter with Parmesan and Basil. Yes, I order this from Amazon because no store in my area carries it. One of my […]

Dealing With Rejection

There is only one thing in your life over which you have control: your attitude. That includes your reactions to events, including rejection. As an author, I’ve had to learn to deal with rejection. With poor contest scores. With bad reviews. One of my mentors told me, “You have 24 hours to mope. Then get […]