Villagers, I have missed you so. I’ve missed writing. I’ve missed promoting. I’ve missed talking about this love affair I have with words, characters and plot. During July I took a really great vacation and an unintentional break from The Village. If you’ve followed this series/blog long enough, you know I have a tendency to get distracted/stressed/overwhelmed. Thankfully, I know the way back to the things that center me — like family and my writing. As proud as I am of my debut novella, I haven’t given it it’s due. It was like this 10 year birthing process, that once it happened I was A. EXTREMELY exhausted and B. Clueless and afraid. Deer in headlights.
PIN IT! Me in front of my beloved freshman dormitory at UGA. Poor building looks out-of-place on the campus full of new, shiny things. Good times, funky cooking, bad study sessions were had between these brick walls! #GoDawgs
I needed to plan a book launch party and sign, sign, sign. I needed to execute the PR/marketing plan and get more Twitter followers and Facebook fans, because hey you’re only as good as people THINK you are. I also needed to get to work on the next project, because they say the more works you have out the greater your books will be received. I needed to make some money, because this is a second job and then some. I needed to get more reviews, because the magic number is 10 and I’m 5 away. I needed to sell more books because that’s what success is measured by right?
On top of that, I thought that I could just put this book out & keep my author self compartmentalized and separated from my ‘professional life’ and even some parts of my personal one. I was as they say/used to say: Doing the most. In the process I wasn’t producing much of anything at all.
I decided to ‘go back home.’ I spent a few days with my mother in my hometown of Sandersville, GA. We visited museums, ate, talked and relaxed like we never had before. We also took a day trip to my second home, Athens, GA. We reminisced on my days at UGA. It was all very inspiring and a reminder of how far we’d come. I say we, because my mother is my BFF and she was my rock throughout college and still is today. I realized that it is so easy to get caught up in the future and what you WANT TO DO, that you don’t take the time to REFLECT and appreciate the things you’ve done, the present life you have. I’m incredibly blessed. Things have not gone the way I expected them to at all. There is always some random obstacle that seems to pop up at the most inopportune time. But in the end I’m still here, so that must mean there are still some things I need to do!
There are still a lot of things to figure out with this author/publishing role I’ve taken on. I’m still learning how to ignore the fear in my heart that paralyzes me routinely. I’m experimenting on how to roll together all of my talents to bring you stories with excellence. I’m falling back in love with this craft, this gift that certainly has a purpose. In the coming weeks, you’ll see more promotions and blog posts. I’m going to continue to work on book number two at a realistic pace that doesn’t make me groan at the thought of writing. In the end I just hope it makes you proud.
I created the trailer above and the ACTION (vs. just talking) of creating gave me the energy boost I need to do all the above and more! I hope you enjoy and share.
'On the Scene' in Sandersville - Lakeshia Poole
[…] very proud of where I come from. Sandersville is a small town in the heart of Georgia with rich moments in history, unique natural resources and colorful people. I’m easily inspired by the environment and am […]