Let me begin with a blessing for the secular new year to all of you. I’ve been away from my blog for some time thanks to family duties over the holidays and a transition to a new position at my work that was an imposition rather than a promotion. Needless to say, I’ve been going through an adjustment period.
I’m hopeful that the new year will bring changes, and though I’ve long ago stopped being a person who makes resolutions, it still feels like a great excuse to turn a fresh page on things. With that being said, I’m putting a lot of my energy into my will, in an effort to diversify my life experience a bit more. Maybe I’m inspired by the example of what Rhyd Wildermuth (now publisher of Gods & Radicals website and A Beautiful Resistance journal) has manifested in his life, through hard work, no doubt, but his path has been an inspiration to me, someone who loves to spend time writing and reading and dreaming of being a published author. I’d love to be able start my own magazine, especially now that Circle Magazine is shutting down, but there’s only so much time in the day!
So this year, I’m looking to shake things up, I’ve been putting some things in motion and now they’re beginning to show signs of progress. My personal practice of witchcraft has really progressed thanks in large part to starting the Temple of Witchcraft’s Witchcraft I course in their mystery school. I’ve learned so much, and my personal practice has gelled in a way it never would have otherwise, thanks to it. I can’t wait to complete my first year and move into the second, which is slated for the fall.
Towards the end of 2015, I helped get a more grounded, regularly meeting pagan group in my community going. I’m only one player in the game, so all credit to where it’s deserved, but knowing that there are people who have actively come together in the spirit of community here is such a powerful feeling. Communities are not something that can be put together and then set aside though, they require regular maintenance. I know that there will be a lot of work going into keeping things humming this year.
On my work front, I’ve long been dissatisfied with my career. I don’t want to get too much into specifics other than to say that the passion has gone out of it for me. It has become as fulfilling as some other jobs that I’ve worked in the past where the inciting reason and the ultimate result are to do little more than pay bills. I understand that to even complain about this is a luxury that I enjoy. However, I’m ready to move on to the next phase of my life.
With that being said, I’d like to make a request. If there are any regular readers of my blog who are interested in reading a draft of my novel, please contact me. It’s in rough form right now, which means that I’m looking for helpful suggestions on big picture things. For example, ‘why does character X do this in chapter 2? Wouldn’t it make more sense if this happened in chapter 5?’ I know, I know, it’s not for everyone. But if you’re someone who likes to get into the nitty gritty of storytelling, it would help me enormously. Maybe in exchange I can give you a beta reader credit or something? I’ll try to come up with something else as an incentive too.
In addition to book editing, I’ll continue to work on my blog, and hopefully by the end of the year will have a collection of poetry to share. I’m also beginning to create some products to sell, more on that soon.
Finally, if you are in need of web services, I’m up for hire. I’ll help you build out your blog or website, but the thrust of what I’m offering is for business owners. If you’re a business owner who needs help with social media and search engine referrals, please contact me. I can help you get more people to your pages and ultimately, increase your online sales. I have a ton of experience with this stuff and I’m willing to start slow and build up, working with your budget as we go along.
I hope your year has started off well and wish you all the best.