Heather Johnson's Blog, page 9
June 25, 2014
Webinar Recap: Build Your Platform
Yesterday I listened to a webinar presented by Writer’s Digest titled “Build Your Author Platform Online: How to Build a Content-Rich Website that Builds a Massive Fan Base.” Author and copywriter Nick Usborne, in conjunction with American Writers and Artists Inc., hosted the hour-long webinar. I learned a wealth (pun intended!) of great information and wanted to pass it along.
The first glaring point Usborne made is that in the age of sharing, a traditional, static website is not enough. Due...
June 20, 2014
Yin Says We Won’t Starve
Howdy,
I came across this inspiring story from ASJA’s blog and wanted to pass along the positive words. Sandra Yin left a lucrative corporate law job to write poetry. She also wrote about career transition, which ultimately led to a new and more rewarding one.
This is exactly the sort of message I needed to hear today. That transitory timewhere we stand on the diving board, ready and wanting to leap, but scared to leave our safe spot for fear of landing wrong, hitting our head and ending up in...
June 16, 2014
Kurt Sutter on Google
Forgive me for finding this article a few months late. Author’s Guild, of which I’m a member, reprinted (with permission!) an opinion piece in their member bulletin from film/TV writer Kurt Sutter in response to Marvin Ammori‘sstance on current copyright issues. Ammori is a lawyer that has represented Google.
Sutter’s article, published in Slate in March 2014, can be found here.
As a writer and author with every intention of making a living from the words I write, I know which way I lean.
June 9, 2014
Galicia, Day Eight: End Notes and Reflections
What I said in the last post about Albarino wine? Scratch that. Although Galician wine cooperates with my system a little bit better than anything I’ve tried in the U.S. over the past year or so (when my body started rejecting alcohol), I didn’t get away scott-free. I woke up on June 5, my last full day in the Pontevedra area, feeling especially cruddy – a subtle reminder of why I pretty much stopped drinking last October.
For my final morning run, I ventured down the hill toward my tiny super...
June 4, 2014
Galicia, Day Seven: Portugal
Today I decided to venture out of Galicia, and out of Spain entirely, to Northern Portugal. I had read that Porto was an exciting city to visit, but 90 minutes is about the limit of my driving tolerance and Porto was beyond that. Fortunately, the Parque Nacional Peneda-Geres runs along the northernmost part of Portugal near Spain’s border. The park extends for hundreds of miles. I decided to make Castro Laboreiro, a small village nestled within the park, as well as the site of an ancient cast...
June 3, 2014
Galicia, Day Six: Loose Ends
It is only 9:30 at night and I am in bed. This is normal at home, not normal for this trip. People are just stepping out to dinner! But I started feeling run-down tonight, so I decided not to seek out more octopus or some other coastal treat.
The morning started with coffee and sin gluten toast with Nigel, who was heading back to the UK today. Note: the hotel makes great coffee: strong, just how I like it! After saying goodbye to Nigel, I headed out for my first substantial run of the week out...
June 2, 2014
Galicia, Day Five: Northern Exposure
The rest of race day was a whirlwind. We spent well over an hour mingling/recovering at the race site, where they had water, Powerade, apples and bananas. (Many folks complained about the lack of food. I was content with the fruit, but lack of food would be a problem later.) I eventually found part of my “Wolf Pack” of Jim Girand and Wolf Hilsheim, who graciously allowed me to stash my bike and backpack in their room and use their shower.
At 6 p.m., we walked over to the Team USA party for mor...
June 1, 2014
Galicia, Day Four: Race Day.
I woke up with a jolt at 7:55 a.m. I’m so used to racing at 8, that waking up at 8 feels like I’m oversleeping and late for something. I quickly fired up my electric burner to boil water for coffee and start eating. I ate what felt like my usual size dinner last night, but was hungry when I went to bed and hungry in the morning. Partly due to nerves and partly because I had four hours until race time, I ate a little more than usual, but not too much.
Thanks to my hotel camping configuration, I...
May 31, 2014
Galicia, Day Three: Resolve.
Today has gone much better. I rode for about 30 minutes in the morning to test the hot rod. It shifts fine, thank God. A little cranky in spots, but then, it’s always cranky, so the bike essentially works as usual. A group of Australian cyclists flew by me on the hill up to the hotel. Arg. Afterwards I ran for about 30 minutes, which also felt fine. Did my strides on a small street to the side of the hotel while two French cyclists got ready to ride. Athletes from all over Europe and Australi...
May 30, 2014
Galicia, Day Two: Peaceful Morning, Dark Night
Today started off well, at least. Technically, the training schedule said to take today off, but if I must do something, ride for 50 minutes. With my wheel in the shop, I decided to take the day off, but if I could ride later in the day, I would. With a free morning, I decided to visit the nearby Monastery of San Xoan de Poio, which was on my short list of things to do during my stay.
I slept in, again until a whopping 8 a.m. (usually I’m up before 5 a.m. during the week and no later than 6:30...
