And for some reason, I keep getting these reading app ads on my Facebook with snippets from the werewolf romance genre. I think it is because I watched through one of the ads for the Reel Short episodes for “Fated to my Forbidden Alpha,” and now that’s all that seems to pop up.

There is an upside and a downside to this. The upside is that I’ve run across some really good writing. The downside is that I’ve run across some horrible writing. Misspellings, poorly phrased sentences, and some of it looks like it was written by a child. No description. No imagery. Lots of missing words.

What I want to know is do they sell any of that trash?

The post What I’ve been reading lately appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

As for my writing routines, I decided to focus on those blogs that generate the most traffic and ad revenue. Once I grow those up to where I want them, I should be able to start to hire a team to assist. At this point, I’m not even close. Think of my traffic currently in the lower double digits. We’re talking another year or more before I reach that stage of growth. If then.

All of these changes means that I can now choose a day to focus just on writing, a day to focus on scheduling social media, and the rest will be for sewing or creating. I don’t have to worry about what I can and can’t do. I don’t have to worry about if I have time. I don’t have to pick and choose. It’s a lot to think about when you are trying to deal with 10 websites. It’s less when it is 8. Now, it’s better with 6.

The post New Writing Routines appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

This week I decided it was time to change my routine. I gave every day (including weekends) a designated work assignment. I would alternate between writing and sewing. On days where it was a writing day, if writing ended or I was unable to write for eight hours, I could stop and do a sewing related activity. That seemed like a winner, right? I would still be working on a business activity either way.

The biggest problem is not the day designation. The problem is I enjoy sewing. I’ll find any excuse to go sew. At least on days where my depression doesn’t seep in and cause me to be listless while my anxiety re-examines every awkward incident and event in my life.

So today is a writing day. If I can manage to find my thumbdrive (I don’t know why it isn’t where it is supposed to be) I may actually have time to work on my novel. That’s another reason why I needed writing days. I have much to write and finish this summer. My goal is to have my book finished by the end of July. I’m certain I can do it as long as I can stay focused.

The post WIP: Changing Routines appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

I started and launched a blog in February of this year. The content was generated using AI Writer which is a plug-in that is available in WordPress. Out of the posts on the website, I wrote only one. The rest were created using AI Writer. Most of the time, it takes a blog 6-8 months to be ranked in Google. In 4 months time, I have searches coming up in the top 10 pages of Google, and half are on page 1. That’s incredible! I have some blogs that are not even close to that with 10 times the amount of content that are more than 3 years in age. My mind is blown!

The conciseness of the writing, I believe, is key. It is formally written and lacks style. I knew that would be the case, but then I think that is a plus for the AI because it is not dealing in fluff, or side notes, or silly banter. You get the picture. It is straightforward and to the point.

The downside is that more complicated pieces or lists require you to complete. For example, I tried to create a top 5 post, and it created a post, but I have a lot to fill in the blanks for. It even created a table for me and everything. Apparently, listicles or top anything is out of its range. Mostly because the AI has no way to gather the best of anything. It can’t compare things unless it is given the parameters to follow and without a program to do so, it lacks in that department.

Overall, if you are looking to quickly generate content for a new blog and have very specific keywords or key phrases in mind, an AI bot could potentially help you fill out a new blog to get ranked quickly. However, due to the lack of programming, I wouldn’t rely solely on the AI to do all of the writing. You do want to create some authority and connection with your readers, and the AI lacks that connection.

The post The results of the AI experiment is in appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

Have I been writing? Of course!

Am I working on a new book? Well….

I know that I said that I was going to work on my young adult novel that I sat aside over a year ago, but while I have been working on it, I’ve not been working on it the way that I should. Mostly, I’ve been re-reading it and trying to familiarize myself with the characters and story again. It’s a long process. A slow process.

Will I have something to share? Sure!

My goal is to have new chapters by next week. Look for updates then.

The post What I’m Writing appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

Lately the headlines in my newsfeed has been about AI, and how it will be able to replace humans when it comes to creating written content. Is it possible that a computer program can create written content better than a human?

When I think of writing, I think of something personal, whether that personal is pen-to-paper or fingers-to-keyboard. I’m not certain that AI could possibly generate a post or even a book with the similar emotion that writing can convey. Is it not the writer’s word choice, voice, and style that make a text worth reading as it stirs the emotions of the reader?

Today as I sat in my counseling meeting (I’m not ashamed to admit that it is truly helping me to work through the loss of my parents that I pushed down so many years, but that is another post entirely), I talked about how I had started picking up my journal and scribbling down my feelings and frustrations. I told the counselor that I started writing and learning to close it up in an effort to push aside any anxiety I had been having. My son’s wreck has been frustrating, and I felt like I had suffered loss all over again. The extra pressure of being a caregiver and helping him left me feeling burdened again when I was just in the process of finding my place and where I fit in the big puzzle of life. I was working to create an independent son, to lessen the amount that others depended on me to pull my weight and theirs, and to free myself from overthinking. The wreck did not help. I felt like I spiraled back into old habits, so I found the journaling to be cathartic as I released, reassured, and sorted my thoughts. Is a program capable of producing this kind of emotion?

I suppose that the AI programs could produce stale, formal writing. I suppose that it could translate thoughts into an essay or article. However, I think that we would be able to identify the AI content from that of a living, breathing human. While it may be the next big push, I will remain skeptical.

The post Is AI the next big author? appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

I’ve been extremely frustrated lately with the fact that when I sit down with every intention to write in the evenings, I can never find that spark of inspiration. What’s the deal? All day at work, I mull over ideas in my head and I’m certain that as soon as I’m home I will put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard, but what follows is anything but productivity.

This has been a weekly occurrence, and I’m frustrated about the writer’s block that seems to happen at the end of my normal teaching work day. [If you are unfamiliar with what I do for my 9-5, you can visit my blog: Teaching ELA in the Middle. I sometimes chronicle my life as a middle school teacher there.] Why must I have writer’s block at the end of the day?

Then, something miraculous happened. I realized that my most productive writing times are in the morning after I first wake up and late at night (closer to midnight). What? How can this be?

My ideal writing time is not lining up with my daily Monday through Thursday schedule. Now I am at a loss for how to work this new information to my benefit. Do I get up extremely early during the week, or do I stay up extremely late and risk not being at my best for teaching?

I don’t mind this kind of schedule on a Friday night or Saturday, but I have no choice while school is currently in session to comply with my creative needs.

Ugh! I feel like my students right now: Ms. Thurrrrrstonnnnnn, this is tooooooo harrrrrrrd! And yes, it sounds just as whiney as it is written and with eyes rolling, pencils slapping desks, and frustrated children sliding down in seats.

How do you overcome writer’s block when you have to write?

I’m certain that in some alternate perfect paradise where I no longer teach, but I have freedom to write whenever the mood strikes, or I can write for as long or as late as needed, I wouldn’t have such severe writer’s block. Right now? It is horrible! Even with the multitude of beautiful journals, notebooks, smooth writing utensils, and gorgeous planners, I can’t manage to focus. Even my idea document is not benefitting me lately.

I need something to change.

The post The Frustration is Real appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

This morning when I sat down with my cup of coffee in hand, I had every intention of tapping out several posts across at least 3 blogs. Instead it is almost midnight, and here I am writing my 2nd article of the day while sipping my night time cup of tea. I suppose that is production, just not the type of productivity I was searching for when I woke up this morning.

I started my morning like I do all weekend mornings: planning for the day ahead. I made out my list of things that I needed to accomplish today, and I even numbered them in order of importance. Since I did not finish those labeled in priority at 4 and above, those become my number one priorities in the morning. In fact, I have already cut out the fabric and made a plan for attaching the fabric to my jeans to extend the length. Sad to say that I have been trying to lengthen these jeans for 3 months. They are the only pair that I own that actually fit me in the waist since losing weight. The only thing that didn’t fit were the length. They apparently shrunk once washed and dried.

My least favorite chore- laundry- is currently finishing its round in the dryer. I still have about 2 more loads tomorrow, and of course folding, but I will be finished for another week.

The problem: Writing.

I have so much writing to catch up, yet I can never find the time. I have sat down at the laptop multiple times today, but even going over all of my lists of ideas, nothing seemed to jump out at me with inspiration wanting to be placed on the page. Maybe it is stagnant thinking? Maybe it is lack of inspiration? Maybe I can only churn out writing after I first wake up? If the latter, that makes so much sense. I do feel more inspired to write first thing in the morning. By the middle of the day and into the afternoon, I start to become mentally fatigued. I also haven’t read in the genres I want to write about lately. Don’t get me wrong. I love my topics and niches, but I haven’t come across any news nuggets.

They say that in order to be a more proficient, and daresay better, writer one must be reading. Always reading. There were times when I spent much of my lunch breaks scrolling through the news and reading interesting articles, or sending them to myself so that I could read them at a later time; however, I haven’t read much. The few articles I have clicked on have all been about the government, and I don’t write about the government. Writing, money, food, and business are my topics of preference.

So how will I manage to get caught up on all the writing that needs to be completed?

I guess I will just have to find the time to read at night and write in the morning. I set some very lofty writing goals for myself (3 articles for 3 blogs each day). I don’t think I’m going to reach that point. I had big intentions. I just don’t see me making it.

The post Playing Catch Up on My Writing appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

It has been some time since I wrote or things have been normal for me. We have been currently displaced and will be for some time, though I do hope by next week we will have some sense of normalcy until we can find a permanent place to call home.

I didn’t think that I’d ever crave the normal I had. I had such huge pipedreams of what I wanted- of things that were different from what I had. Now, I just want to go back to that or some version of it.

In order to find something that felt normal, I decided to wake up and write today. Writing has always been my outlet for working through things, even if those things are a struggle.

The fun in all of this is finding something we like. What is it that we want? Part of me wishes that we could buy, or that I could even help my son buy something. I’m still burdened with student loans, so there’s not much that I can do. It lessens my purchasing power. My son doesn’t have that problem. Perhaps he will be able to have what it is that he wants for him and his children.

Until we can find that, we are just searching. Searching, watching, and waiting for things to settle from the dust into a normal life.

The post In search of normal appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.

This week I allowed something to sidetrack my progress. Everything was going well. I made two sales, and I sent those out early, but when I decided to create some new items, it completely stalled my progress.

I had several new items that needed to be embroidered, and I woke up Tuesday thinking about my favorite No-Show Stabilizer. Considering my recent orders used up much of the cut away stabilizer I had, I knew I needed to order some stabilizer, so I went on to Amazon to place an order. It was then that I realized I had just ordered a roll in February of this year, and I had only used it once. So where is this roll of new stabilizer?

This is the perplexing mystery. I have spent the last 4 days searching the house for this stabilizer. I have not found it. I can’t remember where I put it, because to be honest, it entered into the house the same time I had my stroke. Many things are fuzzy about February. I even went through photos that were taken during that time period to try and jog my memory, but I still can’t remember anything. Even the pictures mean nothing. This one thing has derailed everything, and I am stuck, unable to move. I could still do what I need to do, but I can’t push myself to do it. I don’t know why.

I know this is just a temporary sidetrack. I know that I will soon merge back into the activities I was focused on, but right now, I am burdened with this loss of consciousness that surrounds that time period of my life. It’s like a huge blinking sign pointing out the fact that it was serious while I had been trying to downplay everything.

How do I solve this problem? First, I plan to organize things better. Second, I plan to focus my priorities on something else. Last, I plan to follow through. It’s temporary. The main goal is not. It’s the same with writing. When you think you have written yourself, or your character, into a corner, leave it. Skip ahead to something else and go back. I have left my character in a corner for some time now. I’ve gone back and fleshed out their story more to see how they would fully handle this. I needed more for their character. When I find what motivates him, I’ll know how he will solve the problem. Until then, he is in that corner. The same with me. That stabilizer is tucked into a corner somewhere. I’ll find it. Until then, I’ll keep organizing until I find where I thought was the best place for it.

The post Sidetracked appeared first on Martha L. Thurston.