Self-publishing

 Are you writing your memoir?  Do you plan to include pictures?   Recently, I self-published my memoir and during the time between turning in my manuscript to the printer and approving the final proof, I had sleepless nights over the photographs placed in the book.  I was continually notified that many of my photographs were of low resolution.  Especially the color photos that were decades old and faded.  To me, the original photographs I held in my hand looked fine- - but digitally they were a disaster.  Some of my photos were nearly 100 years old, so I took pictures with my iPhone, but found out that even though they looked great on the iPhone, the resolution was far below the 300 dpi required for the printed book.  I tried everything.  Scanning the photos with my fax/scan/printer.  That didn't work at all.  Very grainy.  More notices from the printer.  I went outside in natural light and took pictures of the pictures with my camera.  That gave me 300 dpi and enough to get the book finalized and printed.  BUT - - when I received the actual printed book, the pictures were not as good as I had hoped for, but I accepted the fact that I did the best I could with the knowledge I had.   

Now, for the next book, I am ready.  A good friend introduced me to her photo scanner -- - I had never seen or used one - - and voila!  What a difference.  I immediately purchased one just like hers.  I'm not an influencer on YouTube, of course, but I will tell you that the Canon Image Formula RS40 is amazing.  Easy to use, doesn't take up a lot of space on the desk (about one square foot) and produces beautiful results.  OH!  If I had only known!  

 New Post, same day.   Have you tried setting up a blog?  Some days are easier than others!  Blogs have a mind of their own.  Don't we all 👀

Are you writing a book?

 Writing a book is no less than running a literary marathon - - sometimes without shoes!  Yikes!  Life would have been so much easier if my first book was my second book?  Does that make sense?  Your first book is the one that keeps you up at night, makes you crazy as you edit and change passages, and gives you a feeling of euphoria that you haven't had since 8th grade graduation!  I can conquer the world!

 It's finally happening!  Through the encouragement of family and friends, I have finished my memoir and it will go to the publisher momentarily and be out on the market sometime in early summer!

Now, the interesting part of this blogpost is that when I first thought of writing a memoir, I still had no idea of who my birth parents were.  Yes, I'm adopted.  At birth.  Through a private physician.   It's been a lifelong quest and in 2017, I joined Ancestry.

That's all for today.   Stay tuned!

Inspiration: Part 2

Here I am again thinking about that word:  Inspiration.  The word keeps rising up within me, asking to be expressed.......breath, air, wind, spirit....John Denver's 'Windsong' comes to mind.....'the wind is the bearer of bad and good tidings'  or Donovan's 'Catch the Wind'......(can you remember any of the words?)

Each day the inspiration to write must be savored, appreciated, but most importantly, acted upon.........

Share what inspired you today.....

Finding the history

Part of writing a memoir includes digging up your past - - and in this case, writing a frienship memoir means going through boxes & boxes of memories of your life to find those precious moments you are writing about.  You can get sidetracked, as I did, and spend an entire evening, like I did, savoring the times you had forgotten about........it can be heartwarming, tearjerking, and thought-provoking all at the same time!