What I Know Now
This has been a summer I will never forget. While I[image error]ve always been a writer, this is the summer I truly learned what that means to me. At one point last year, I was ready to give up on the dream.
It was too much.
Too hard.
But that little voice in the back of my head continued to wonder what if. What if writing didn[image error]t have to mean agents, contracts, and query letters. Could get this off the ground myself? Is self-publishing really something I could tackle by myself?
As soon as I started to embrace the thought, I received a newsletter from an editor I[image error]d been following, Jeni Chappelle. In this monthly newsletter, she encouraged any unpublished indie authors to consider entering Shore Indie, a Twitter-based writing contest. 
I took it as a sign, and vowed I would take advantage of every opportunity the contest and editors offered.
Sometimes you just have to leap.
Here are the highlights of my experience….
You can learn SO MUCH when you[image error]re open to receiving, even in 140 characters or less. #askeditor #askauthor
Freelance editors, especially the ones involved in Shore Indie, are beyond generous with their knowledge. I can honestly say I learned something from each one before the contest even started.
There is an entire world on Twitter just for writers, and the daily support for each other is like nothing I[image error]ve seen before. It doesn[image error]t matter if you[image error]re published or not. A writer is a writer.
A GIF is a respectable reply in Twitter. The funnier the better.
Hashtags are a lifeline in a chat.
My writing consisted of words like was, well, just, and clearly, all of which had to be deleted.
Show don[image error]t tell is seared into my brain, but I still tell all the time. #oldhabitsdiehard
Less is more. When in doubt, say it in as few words as possible.
Seven weeks can feel like a life time, but flies by faster than you can say deadline.
My editor, Katie McCoach, is a saint for reading my words as many times as she did. And for putting up with my over-active neurotic brain. Thank you for constantly pushing me to improve the story.
Tomorrow is the announcement of the winner and runner-up. And while I want nothing more than to see my name on Twitter (the prizes!!), any one of us can win. I[image error]m up against some great writers, and it[image error]s anyone[image error]s contest. Good, bad, or ugly I[image error]ve learned more this summer than I have in the 15 years I[image error]ve been writing. #winning
And the journey is just starting. The path is clear, and I only have to keep moving forward. Do the next right thing.
If you[image error]re a writer and don[image error]t know where to start, join Twitter. Put yourself out there. Take the advice. Learn from anyone who wants to share. Make friends. Find your people. Your tribe. And most importantly, you are never to old to learn something new.
And never stop writing.
Wish me luck!
XO, Mo
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