This is an Insecure Writer’s Support Group Post post. (Sorry, got a bit carried away with my proper nouns there.)

Insecure Writers Support Group Badge

The IWSG meets up on the first Wednesday of every month to exchange judgment-free anecdotes about author life.

To check out the other blogs participating or sign up for the group yourself head here.

If you’re hopping don’t forget to stop by the co-host’s pages and say thanks. May’s co-hosts are E.M.A. TimarJ.Q. RoseC. Lee McKenzie, and our own Raimey Gallant who also runs the Author Toolbox Blog Hop (when do you sleep?).

Every month there’s an optional question to get you started. This month, the question is—It’s spring! Does this season inspire you to write more than others, or not?

And the answer is, yes. Definitely. Winter does have more of a lethargic feel to it. I still work through the cold months but, to be brutally honest, there are a LOT more excuses to take a break right around the holidays. And somehow even my brain starts to seem frozen after the second straight week of snow.

Spring, on the other hand, really does feel like waking up after a long nap. I’ve been submitting more to my freelance jobs, after a long drought. Story ideas are coming together better. I finally climbed over one big old writer’s block that was stumped in my way for months. That fresh green air sweeps through me and I’m ready to write again. I’d be interested to hear if that happens for you too!

Another great thing (probably not related to the fact that it’s spring, but it is a happy coincidence) is finding inspiration from other authors on Instagram. I’m a bookstagram junkie, it’s my social media platform of choice. Lucky for me a lot of other authors are also bookstagram addicts and we trade book recommendations, ideas, memes, fun, support, nerdy things, tags, and information. We are even there for each other when it’s time to find reviewers.

bookworm gif

visual representation of what bookstagram feels like

I was lucky enough to be able to read both of author Nico J. Genes’ books (Magnetic Reverie and Reverie Girl) and find a really unique take on losing the love of your life and finding her again in dreams. They were beautiful books, and I would have missed them without bookstagram.

The part I love the most about it is how worldwide it is. Only a few years ago Nico would have published in her country, Slovenia, and I would have published in mine. The odds of us ever crossing paths would have been amazingly small. Now, we’re both online, we both needed reviewers, voilà the path was connected.

And Nico is an inspiration. She doesn’t let the vastness of the world and the millions of other books out there beat her down. She got translators and editors and jumped in to share her stories. She put herself out there asking for reviews. Seeing how fearless she is makes me want to try harder, take a few more risks.

It’s been a pretty inspiring spring, so far.