Write every day. You’ve probably heard this advice before. You’ve probably heard this advice from me before. But chances are you have yet to actually follow it. And I think I know why.
“Because Javacia told me I should” is never going to be a good enough reason to write every day. That reason alone isn’t going to be enough to motivate you to write when you’ve had a terrible day at work and you just want to spend your evening watching Netflix or when your bed feels really, really good and you don’t want to get up early to write before your kids wake up.
So today I’m offering you much better reasons to write every day, reasons I hope keep you motivated today, tomorrow and beyond.
Kind. Nice. Sweet. These are all adjectives people often use to describe me as I mostly move through life with a smile on my face and words of encouragement on my lips.
My alarm sounds at 4 a.m. playing an instrumental version of Beyoncé’s “Yonce.” When my alarm goes off the message on my phone reads “Beyoncé would get up.” Sometimes I set my alarm message to read “Be writeous, babe,” a nod to my old blog. Other times the message simply says, “Write!” But when this alarm sounds I get out of bed and start my morning routine.
Because I teach full-time, write part time and run a blog and business people often ask me how I do all the things that I do. My morning routine is the answer. If you’re struggling to find time to build your blog, finish your book, or launch your freelance writing career, creating a morning routine may help you finally make time for your dreams.
Today is International Women’s Day, and though I certainly don’t need a holiday to celebrate women, in honor of this day I’d like to share five ways I think women writers can celebrate International Women’s Day every day.
I believe that we women who write need to accept the charge given by writer Nora Ephron: “Above all, be the heroine of your life.” And we should do all we can to encourage the women and girls around us to do the same. We must also do the work necessary to create a world where women and girls actually can be the heroines of their own lives.
If you’re not sure what all of this work looks like here are some ideas…
While some people dream of being six-figure earning Instagram influencers others are wishing the word “influencer” could be banned.
Tom Godwin, the head of innovation for ZenithMedia, told AdWeek at the end of 2018 that he hopes influencer marketing will die out in 2019. Though he acknowledges it’s a good tactic for some industries, Godwin says influencer marketing has quickly descended into “hot people holding things.”
To be honest, this is how I had come to define the word influencer, too. So when I was invited last month to attend a luncheon for local influencers I wasn’t quite sure what to think. First of all, I don’t have a gazillion Instagram followers, which I often feel is a requirement to bear that title. And secondly, if you scroll through my feed you’ll see that “hot people holding things” is hardly my theme.
But the title of this event caught my attention — #UnSelfie2019 Influencer Luncheon. Presented by United Way of Central Alabama and hosted by social media and public relations pro Maree Jones, this event was all about how to use your social media influence for good, for positive change in your community and beyond. So my BBF marketing guru Jacqui Jones of One Degree MMM and I headed to the event.
