The awesome Mishelle over at Secret Agent Mama recently presented me with an award that deemed me “worthy of recognition and esteem.”

I feel quite honored to receive this!! Thank you so very much!

The instructions are to share three writing tips and pass the award on to three bloggers that you deem “worthy of recognition and esteem.”

Three writing tips to share. Hmmm …

1. First and foremost - Relax and have fun. When blogging becomes a chore, it’s time to step back and take a break. If it reaches the point where you dread and fret over getting content up for the sheer sake of content, not only is your frame of mind going to suffer - so is your writing. So again, I emphasize - Relax! I discovered I do some of my most creative writing after I’ve had a cocktail, or two. It releases those creative juices, and the real me comes out because I’m less focused on grammar and spelling, and moreso on the story itself. Now, I’m not advocating becoming an alcoholic. I’m just saying find your own relaxation bubble.

(Note: Anyone wishing to fuel my creativity is more than welcome to supply me with some Señor Patron! Better yet, come do a shot or two with me.)


2. A picture says a thousand words. Or a video clip. Or an audio clip / sound effect. I try to incorporate as many interactive tools as I have at my fingertips to entertain my readers; to help visualize the story I’m telling. While a lot is left to a reader’s imagination, sometimes cognitive guidance helps fuel it a little more.

[audio:3s-hello.mp3]

3. Finally, Be true to yourself and your beliefs. “There are no stigmas associated with being free. Instead, we should hold firm to our inner beliefs and values, and not be swayed by the biases, beliefs and criticisms of others. And, if criticized, to consider them as jealousies of those stuck living in staid existences, incapable of seeing anything other than black and white.” If you have something to say, then by all means - say it. But! Do it with respect, with a degree of dignity, and with responsibility.

Three bloggers whom I deem worthy of this award, recognition, and esteem (who haven’t already received this award):

• The eloquent, brilliant (snarky), and beautiful Lisa (tresdoc)
• The equally beautiful and multi-talented Nichole (60 piggies)
• The equally beautiful, uplifting and talented (and fellow Jerseyanite) Stacey (RealWorldMom)

I’ve just re-opened the chatroom to the public at the SpeakEasy. It’s a pretty robust chat application that can open in a pop-up so you can continue to surf, or engage in other computer activity(ies). Go check it out - there’s also a link in the menu above - SpeakEasy. It requires a 1-time 2 click registration, but after that, you just log in and join in conversations. (I had to disable the guest login capabilities, sorry.)

Would you like to see regularly scheduled chats set up? To see if there’s enough interest, kindly pick a choice below. Results will determine interest and timing. Regardless of the results, please feel free to drop by anytime and strike up a conversation - even invite others to participate. There are no limitations (that I’m aware of anyway) to the number of participants. As well, you have the ability to create your own private chat room and send private messages, too.

[poll=3]


Thanks! Can’t wait to hear from y’all.

With a tagline of “be seen… be heard… be found,” cre8Buzz is the grownup’s answer to MySpace. Where the members welcome you warmly and invite you into their world. I’ve made a lot of new awesome friends there, and look forward to meeting and becoming friends with more as they join in the ranks of cre8Buzz. This is what networking is all about - with a dash of hip coolness and fun.

Throughout life, we have events and circumstances that alter the course of our existence. Some are good, some are bad. The good ones keep us propelled in the right direction, always striving for the next great adventure and happy moment. The misfortunes become lessons learned.