Blogging
Unbecoming and Creative Reinvention
by Lisa A Kramer
I started blogging years ago, before I started my own website. I embraced it fully. I posted daily, built a following, read other blogs, interacted. It became a focus of my life, and helped me through a very difficult transition period. I actually started it because circumstances led my family away from the home we had built in Durango, CO, and my friends there encouraged me to write as a way to stay connected.
A screen shot of my very first post years ago.
It helped me in so many ways.
Then life shifted again. I focused on finishing and publishing my first book. I started my own website (and through that lost some of my followers) and realized...
A screen shot of my very first post years ago.
It helped me in so many ways.
Then life shifted again. I focused on finishing and publishing my first book. I started my own website (and through that lost some of my followers) and realized...
The Power of Community
by Lisa A Kramer
Sometimes I think life would be so much easier if I could answer the question "what do you do" with one simple answer.
"What do you do?"
"I am a ________."
I can't do that though, because there are so many different versions of me. Each one of them takes priority in different situations, and there isn't really one that I can say I value the most. I value them all as facets of what makes my life rich, complicated, and very, very confusing.
Recently, the talented and hilarious writer/Mom/social media expert extraordinaire Sarah Cottrell (Housewife Plus) connected me with (in her words) : "A spirited group of clever ladies who sometimes drink and swear, always laugh, and - most importantly - need a place...
"What do you do?"
"I am a ________."
I can't do that though, because there are so many different versions of me. Each one of them takes priority in different situations, and there isn't really one that I can say I value the most. I value them all as facets of what makes my life rich, complicated, and very, very confusing.
Recently, the talented and hilarious writer/Mom/social media expert extraordinaire Sarah Cottrell (Housewife Plus) connected me with (in her words) : "A spirited group of clever ladies who sometimes drink and swear, always laugh, and - most importantly - need a place...
Celebrating Our Unique Powers: An Invitation
by Lisa A Kramer
" The book teaches that all women have unique gifts, things we often ignore by listening to criticism, by heeding our own flagging confidence, and by giving up too soon." --Andra Watkins, Review of P.O.W.ER
From Sarah's copy of my book. I signed hers on her dedication page.
Sarah takes after me.
Physically she is the perfect blend of the two of us, but fortunately she seems to have gotten Nathan's metabolism and will probably surpass me in height.
[gallery type="rectangular" ids="8530,8529"]
But emotionally . . . well that's all me. The good and the bad. The stubborn and the creative. The passionate and the caring.
Sarah sees all. She knows when I am being hard on myself, doubting myself, putting myself...
From Sarah's copy of my book. I signed hers on her dedication page.
Sarah takes after me.
Physically she is the perfect blend of the two of us, but fortunately she seems to have gotten Nathan's metabolism and will probably surpass me in height.
[gallery type="rectangular" ids="8530,8529"]
But emotionally . . . well that's all me. The good and the bad. The stubborn and the creative. The passionate and the caring.
Sarah sees all. She knows when I am being hard on myself, doubting myself, putting myself...
The Power of Community
by Lisa A Kramer
We live in a world where more can be accomplished if we work together than if we stand alone. That is a lesson that I am slowly coming to learn, and that more of us need to learn. It doesn't work, however, if we are working together for selfish reasons--if the goal is only about personal gain instead of benefiting self and others.
I know what I sound like politically, but I really do believe this. I believe that we can have both, individual success and mutual respect for one another. We do not have to step on one another's backs as we crawl to the top.
At the same time, this world has become so much more complicated when it comes...
Getting to Know You . . .
by Lisa A Kramer
Hello everyone! Welcome new subscribers!
I'm sitting here in one of my favorite summer coffee shop escapes, thinking about the life of my blog/website. My move over from the original Woman Wielding Words led to a HUGE drop in followers. Understandable, I suppose. I try not to take it personally. I have also noticed a general drop in posts from blogs I follow, and an overall drop in comments. So perhaps it's simply that blogging has its ebb and flow. That's okay too.
After all, it is summer and perhaps people are out living lives, enjoying nature and family, and avoiding technology. I'm all for that.
As much as I wish I could claim hundreds if not thousands of readers, I also realized something...
I'm sitting here in one of my favorite summer coffee shop escapes, thinking about the life of my blog/website. My move over from the original Woman Wielding Words led to a HUGE drop in followers. Understandable, I suppose. I try not to take it personally. I have also noticed a general drop in posts from blogs I follow, and an overall drop in comments. So perhaps it's simply that blogging has its ebb and flow. That's okay too.
After all, it is summer and perhaps people are out living lives, enjoying nature and family, and avoiding technology. I'm all for that.
As much as I wish I could claim hundreds if not thousands of readers, I also realized something...
Sometimes Dreams Require a Helping Hand
by Lisa A Kramer
Walking toward a dream. Photo by Steve Kramer
We all have dreams. We all have goals in life that keep us moving in some kind of direction, even if the destination lies in the mist ahead.
So many of us who write blogs dream of becoming published authors, but that's not the only dream that exists in this blogging world. Some dream of making a difference in the world; some dream of making connections. Some dream of finding a way to travel and share experiences. Some dream of hiking the entire Appalachian Trail to prove to themselves and the world that they are not limited by disabilities or anything else. Some dream of becoming journalists or public speakers....
It's Not About Me! A Morning Epiphany
by Lisa A Kramer
"All of them, the novelists, the story writers, the poets, desperately long to win. If there is a prize, then there is someone somewhere on earth who desires it. Grown men pace their homes and scheme about ways to win things, and small children hyperventilate over the prospect of gold-plated trophies for penmanship, for swimming, for just being cheerful." (Meg Wolitzer, THE WIFE: A NOVEL)
It seems inevitable. I wrote my post celebrating the magic that happens when you dip in the creative pool, and then I get sucked into a whirlpool of worry and doubt a few hours later.
Why do I do this to myself?
It started, I think, when I got an e-mail. You know that excited thrill you get...
Why do I do this to myself?
It started, I think, when I got an e-mail. You know that excited thrill you get...
