IWSG December 2024

Today is the first Wednesday of the month, which means that for me and many others, it is Insecure Writers Support Group day. This group has been going on for more than 12 years. We meet online on our own blogs by writing articles and then reading each other's articles.

All are welcome. Even if you aren't a member, you can definitely join by going to page with the list of links at the IWSG website.

Each month, several people volunteer to help out with the blog hop by checking to see if people have posted and reading posts, and commenting on posts. This month, those volunteers are: Ronel, Deniz, Pat Garcia, Olga Godim, and Cathrina Constantine! The founder, Alex J. Cavanaugh, also goes through the list and comments on various posts each month.

It's interesting to note that blog hops like this were very popular about 10 years ago. I think we are one of the rare groups that are still doing them. It's a good community.

We've helped each other build our platforms. We've helped each other build our knowledge. We've helped each other grow in our writing craft and in our business knowledge as writers. The Insecure Writers Support Group website has won awards and been named as one of the top 100 websites for writers.

Today I am skipping the optional question about cliffhangers, although if you've read my work, you probably know what my answer is to that.

Instead, I want to simply celebrate this community.

One of the keynote addresses at Author Nation this year in November focused on how writers who have a healthy professional network are 4.1 times more successful than the average author.

I talked about this in my podcast last week and went more in depth there, but mainly I want to focus on this community piece - the network we can build and how IWSG can help us build that.

There are three parts to it.

1. Building a network of peers.

That's something that the Insecure Writer Support Group has excelled at over the last 12 years. And I'm thankful for this group.

2. Building a network of mentors.

I have never entered a formal mentorship-type relationship with anyone, but I have been inspired by various members' success, their knowledge, and by their encouragement to others.

3. Building a small network of accountability partners.

While IWSG doesn't do this formally, it's possible to find accountability partners within the group, and it's possible to use our monthly blog hops as a massive sort of accountability network.

I think one of the strengths of IWSG is the way we network.

So all of this is to say, thank you, IWSG.

To all reading this, I want to wish you a Happy Holiday Season, a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

I hope your beverage of choice is exactly as you like it and your writing is strong.

I hope you have a wonderful, merry, loving, and joyful end to this year and beginning of 2025!

Stuff that I've been doing lately:

If you are looking for a new read, try Dark Blade Forged!

If you are looking for a writerly podcast, check out The Truth About Storytelling.

Looking for free reads, try Tales of Fellowship: Amazing Friendships & Found Family in Fantasy and Science Fiction