It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.
The awesome co-hosts for the January 5 posting of the IWSG are Erika Beebe, Olga Godim, Sandra Cox, Sarah Foster, and Chemist Ken!
January 5 question - What's the one thing about your writing career you regret the most? Were you able to overcome it?
Probably that I didn’t begin sooner or that I am such a slow writer. I did begin although I have never sped up my writing.
The Seventh Annual IWSG Anthology Contest Winners!
The genre was sweet romance and the theme first love.
Thanks to all who entered – it was a record amount of entries this year.
Now we present the authors of First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts:
The Art of Making Doughnuts - Linda Budzinski
Paper Faces - Sylvia Ney
The Real Thing - Sammi Spizziri
My Heart Approves - Melissa Maygrove
Oliver’s Girl - Michael Di Gesu
Clyde and Coalesce - Kim Elliot
My First Love(s) - Templeton Moss
How to Save a Princess - Katie Klein
The Castle of Ohno - SE White
Marmalade Sunset - Denise Covey
A special thanks to our official judges:
Author Nancy Gideon
Nancy Gideon is the award-winning bestseller of over 70 romances ranging from historical, Regency, and series contemporary suspense to dark paranormal and horror, with a couple of produced screenplays and non-fiction writing books tossed into the mix. She’s also written under the pseudonyms Dana Ransom, Rosalyn West, and Lauren Giddings.
Agent Caitlin Blasdell, Liza Dawson Associates
Caitlin Blasdell has been a literary agent with Liza Dawson Associates since 2002 with a focus on commercial fiction. Before becoming an agent, she was a senior editor at HarperCollins Publishers.
Author Susan Gourley
Susan Gourley is traditionally published in fantasy and science fiction romance using the name Susan Kelley. She is currently serving as the President of the Pennwriters writing group renowned for the annual conference.
Author Jennifer Lane
Jennifer Lane writes sports romance and romantic suspense with a psychological twist. She has published nine novels and two short stories, including Behind the Catcher’s Mask as part of the IWSG Masquerade Anthology.
Author Meka James
Meka James is a writer of adult contemporary and erotic romance. A born and raised Georgia Peach, she still resides in the southern state with her hubby of 16 years and counting. Mom to four kids of the two legged variety, she also has four fur-babies of the canine variety. When not writing or reading, Meka can be found playing The Sims 3, sometimes Sims 4, and making up fun stories to go with the pixelated people whose world she controls.
Author Loni Townsend
By day, she writes code. By predawn darkness, she writes fantasies. All other times, she writes in her head. People call her peculiar with a twisted sense of fashion, but don't let those understatements fool you. Her behavior is perfectly normal for a squirrel disguised as a human.
First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts will be published by Dancing Lemur Press' imprint, Freedom Fox Press, later this year.
This is our seventh anthology! Previous titles include Dark Matter: Artificial, Voyagers: The Third Ghost, Masquerade: Oddly Suited, Tick Tock: A Stitch in Crime, Hero Lost, The Mysteries of Death and Life, and Parallels: Felix Was Here.
#IWSGPit is this month!
If you’ve never participated in a Twitter pitch party, this is your chance.
Dozens have signed book contracts as a result – you could be next.
Visit the #IWSGPit page for the rules and hashtags.
And then join us on January 26!
Goodbye My Brother
On Monday, January 3, I lost a dear friend – Jeremy Hawkins.
Jeremy and I had been good blogger buds for twelve years. His blog was Being Retro / Hollywood Nuts and he was a producer for Howling Wolf Records. He also interviewed many celebrities over the years and visited many cons.
He also designed the t-shirts for the IWSG and A to Z Challenge and many more, sold at his NeatOShop.
This is a huge loss and we will miss Jeremy tremendously. He was a very giving person and did everything he could to help his fellow creatives. May we never forget him.
To find out more about Jeremy, you can read about him About - HERE.
Spider-Man: No Way Home Review
Spider-Man ask Doctor Strange to make the world forget his identity, but when the spell goes wrong, villains from other universes begin to appear.
This is the third of the Tom Holland films and definitely the best.
Tough review to do as there are so many spoilers and surprises. (At several points, our audience clapped and cheered.)
The movie hits on every level as it deals with the multiverse, portrayed well in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. It tugs at the heartstrings, zings with action, and delivers a great story.
Only complaint – ten-fifteen minutes could have been shaved from this two and a half hour film.
But this is the ultimate Spider-Man film and you just have to see it on the big screen. And as always, stay for the two bonus scenes.
Highly recommended!
January Movie Preview
Here are the upcoming theatrical releases for January. Descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snark provided by me.
21 –
Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre
Special agent Orson Fortune and his team of operatives recruit one of Hollywood's biggest movie stars to help them on an undercover mission when the sale of a deadly new weapons technology threatens to disrupt the world order.
Director: Guy Ritchie
Stars: Cary Elwes, Jason Statham, Josh Hartnett, Aubrey Plaza
Statham is really growing as an actor – apparently in this film, he punches a lot of people.
28 –
Morbius
Biochemist Michael Morbius tries to cure himself of a rare blood disease, but he inadvertently infects himself with a form of vampirism instead.
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Michael Keaton, Adria Arjona, Jared Harris
Morbius trades one incurable disease for another…seems silly, doesn’t it?
What do you regret and did you overcome it? Excited about the IWSG anthology? Ready for #IWSGPit? Did you see Spider-Man? Seeing any movies this month?
