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Archive of ‘Ultimate Blog Challenge’ category

The Good, The Bad, and The Writing

The Ultimate Blog Challenge is now over, and I succeeded and failed. The challenge is to do 31 blogs – one post per day for the entire month. I failed the challenge because I wrote 26 out of 31 blog posts. But, it’s okay. The days that I didn’t write were days that I had more important things to do.

One night, I finished work late and still had a blog post to write. But, my son passed his board of review for Eagle Scout, and people were going out to celebrate. How could I miss that?

I couldn’t. So, I didn’t.

I had many successes in last month’s blog challenge. Many more ups than downs. Here are some of the things I got out of it.

  • 26 Blog posts  – I am proud of that number. I wrote 24 more blog posts in December and 23 more than I wrote in November. My goal is always to complete the blog challenge, but if I don’t make it – at the very least, I have a new daily writing habit.
  • New Subscribers – Welcome to my new subscribers and those who found me on Facebook. I’ve been at this for a long time, but I don’t have much of a following. So, I greatly appreciate it when people sign up to receive an email from me in their inbox on a regular basis.
  • A supportive writing community – I participate in this challenge with about 40 other bloggers. I don’t know the exact number, but each is incredibly talented and passionate about their families, businesses, communities, and hobbies. I learned so much from everyone, and their support means the world to me.

The best thing about these writing challenges is that when they are over, I still love writing. I never tire of it; I’m inspired to keep going. Even though it can be lonely to sit in front of my laptop trying to come up with something to say, I feel amazing when an idea comes to mind. And when that idea turns into a post, I am excited to hit publish and put my voice out into the world. And when you like, comment, share, or text me to say how much you liked what I wrote, it’s an incredible feeling.

So, thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more.

XO,

Elisa

Paperwork

I was hoping to be incredibly productive on the writing front today, but that didn’t happen. Instead, I took two naps, listened to a few chapters of my book, and did some laundry. I also went through a large stack of papers that I’ve been shuffling around for months. There was a lot of trash and also a few gems that I am filing away for another day. Here are some of the things I found:

  • Class notes from a digital marketing class I took last year. There are many tips and tricks that could make my work life a lot easier to manage.
  • A list of writing prompts from January 2019. At one point, I must have made a list of things I wanted to write about. Some of them are no longer relevant, and others are evergreen. It’s a good list to keep around.
  • A holiday card from my writing coach turned friend. She wrote, “thank you for believing in me as much as I believe in you.” Love her!
  • Membership cards to Longwood Gardens. I will need those as soon as this cold weather breaks and the flowers start to bloom again.
  • Bed Bath and Beyond coupons – you can never have enough of them!

Maybe my day was more productive than I thought. I managed to fill up my recycling bin with papers I no longer need, which is always good.

And maybe tomorrow I’ll have a better writing day.

The January Book Report

When people say they are seasonal readers, most of the time, they are referring to reading scary books in the fall and beach reads in the summer. For me, being a seasonal reader has nothing to do with the types of books I read but how I read them.

In the spring or summertime, you can easily find me sitting on my patio or at the pool with a physical book in my hand. I love to sit in the sun and turn the pages absorbing knowledge and Vitamin D. In the colder weather, I love listening to books on Audible.

I think this is because I tend to busy myself with projects around the house in the winter, and instead of listening to music, I download a book. And, I go through these books pretty quickly. One productive day of organizing my kitchen can also yield several chapters of a great story.

Here is what I’ve been listening to lately:

We Are Not Like Them

From the moment I heard about this book, I had to have it. The plot centers around a lifelong friendship between two women, one Black and one white, who are forever changed by a tragic event in their neighborhood. Then, I heard it was written by two women, one Black and one white, and listened to a few podcasts about their writing process. I couldn’t wait to read it, and it didn’t disappoint.

The story is about the shooting of a Black teenage boy who is mistakenly targeted as a criminal they were trying to apprehend. The co-authors share every perspective of this incident from the boy and his mother (heartbreaking), the police officer and his family (frustrating), and various members of the Black community (intelligent, inspiring, and honest). The Audible version was so well done, and the story and characters are unforgettable. My first five-star read of the year and I finished it on January 2nd.

The People We Keep

After finishing one fantastic book, I wasn’t sure if I could top it with this one. But every book is different, and one doesn’t have to top the other. The People We Keep is the coming of age story of April, a 16-year-old musician who fights with her unfit father and decides it is time to hit the road and see where it takes her. She finds herself in town after town playing her guitar and meeting interesting people along the way. Some of them are kind and generous, others not so much.

If you like plot-driven stories, this may not be the book for you. This book follows April’s life, her travels, and how she survives it all. It is slow in some places, and there were times when I was impatient. But, April is a force to be reckoned with and not always the most likable character. But, I was rooting for her throughout the book and found the ending quite satisfying.

Project Hail Mary

This book was on many 2021 bestseller lists and won lots of literary awards and high praise. Podcasters who like to talk books raved about this one so much that I avoided it like the plague. Why? Because I don’t have good luck with books that are over-publicized. The hype never seems to deliver. See my review of Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins-Reid for proof of this.

Funny story – my sister has been talking about this book nonstop and begged me to read it. As a former lobbyist, my sister dug into her political science toolbox and came out swinging. She campaigned for this book to be voted to the top of my TBR pile. I tried to debate her by informing her of my aversion to science fiction, but she was a relentless opponent. I finally conceded and downloaded the book.

Unfortunately, when I went to listen to the book, I quickly realized I had purchased the Spanish version. Thinking it was a coup attempt on her reading tastes, my sister rallied, dipped into her personal funds, bought a copy, and presented it to me as an early birthday present. So, I’m finally reading it – against my will – just kidding. 🙂

And guess what?! So far, it is so good. I’m only on chapter 3, but I’m already hooked. I can’t wait to see what happens next. Maybe science fiction was a viable candidate for my reading list all along. Who knew?

If my reading life keeps going as well as this, I will be delighted. The next book on my list is The Personal Librarian.

So, what books are you reading lately? Are you a seasonal reader? Let me know in the comments. And don’t forget to support your local indie bookstore!

Happy reading!

Elisa

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