Sunday, September 05, 2010

My Lucky Life ? ?



Ambition is a dream with a V-8 engine.


- Elvis Presley



All the faithful readers of my Castlelady blog are probably wondering about where I've been lately since my castle entries have decreased dramatically since March. I have a very good reason and no excuses. The main reason for the seeming abandonment has been a financial situation which has become intolerable and I've tried to turn the situation around since April with only a little success and a big waste of my precious time. It has been frustrating and there's no sense in trying to put up a positive front in this particular case because the financial need is so great. I can't honestly say I've ever made scads of money doing anything- manicuring and nails (for nearly thirty years !), bank teller jobs or my current self-employed salesperson status. However, I have always been able to pay my bills, live reasonably well and travel on what I made before I became a published author.(Don't let anyone think they can quit their day job just because they've had a book published by a major trade publisher, had articles published on the internet for pay or have self-published a book!) Self publishing is a great way to get in print but it won't make you rich unless you pitch your product towards other people wanting to get their books published. The subject of self-publishing is booming on Amazon dot com and Barnes and Nobel but guess who's making the money? I'm being gut-level honest with you when I say that the trade publishing game is absolute cut-throat. (Trade publishing is when someone else publishes your book- not a book you pay to have published !) During the current economic woes, which everyone is experiencing, this situation will probably get worse before it gets better.
Recently, the Live Space ™ team made changes again which didn't make anything particularly better and took out a valuable research tool I use frequently which gives statistics such as which pages have been viewed and the link from which it came, etc. In my case, often, it was a Google question for castles. When we had this feature, I checked them everyday no matter what else I did on the internet. It has been my first agenda for years! Now that this feature is gone I am completely cut-off from the public who haven't a Live Space™ or even people in my network, for that matter. It makes me too reliant on fielding questions in my comments. I feel that many people who don't subscribe to MSN™, Hotmail or their many services such as the Live Space blogs will also suffer since they may be in need of the information I impart on my castle entries.

To be be perfectly honest, though, I did not start a castle web site or my Castlelady ™ blog to please anyone but myself. My interest in castles began in my teen years and gained momentum with reading books on the subject and then, finally, - a short ten years ago- researching them on the internet. My fascination with castles and architectural history has kept me at it long after opposition and circumstances started to make it nearly impossible to continue. My livelihood always came from being a beauty professional- not as a writer. However, I have been a writer for a longer period of time. As you can see by my latest entry on my Castlelady blog http://castlelady.spaces.live.com/

I have not given up nor will I be quitting for any reason. I have been asking God, for some time now, how to go about the business of writing and also go back to a livelihood that any able-bodied adult professional can expect to make. So far, I haven't seen any solutions materialize true success in this area, despite my greatest efforts. I haven't given up on God at all- I wish I could say the same for people. I'm just being honest. There are times I relate quite well to Socrates whose epitaph basically reads: He tried to make the people think so they killed him.
My request to all my Christian friends and contacts would be to pray in the area of my finances, stamina for all the work I will be doing and favor with publishers and the media, in general, for getting on with my vision for the books and the web site: http://www.ilovecastles.com/ Just lately I have been experiencing deception going on around and toward me which means that satanic forces are in force in almost every area of my life. I need clear direction from God in what to do next. Should I continue in my writing efforts ? Should I be seeking a grant and from whom ? These are just a few questions I need answers directly from God alone. I covet your prayers but not necessarily advice unless you're certain that God is saying something to you on my behalf. Your prayer efforts are priceless to me right now and I'm going to thank everybody ahead of time for doing so. God bless you and your household for taking the time to read this and pray on my behalf. If you leave a comment please also leave a prayer request and I will pray for your needs as well. That's how this whole thing really works.

Blessed kisses from The Castle Lady !






3 comments:

green said...

Oh, Castle Lady, I wish I could take from you your financial burdens and your stress. I was at church this morning and the subject was Timothy 6:3-5 and the pastor talked about coming into the world empty handed and leaving empty handed. He said something profound today too which was that the giver will always provide for you.
He also said this quote which has stuck hard: "the proof in the root is in the fruit". All day I have thought of those words and find that it means different things to everyone. I wish you the best in whatever comes of your decisions and I know that you will be just fine.....

My big thing about the mosque is that it is not "at ground zero" it is 7 blocks away and there are already mosques in the area. I completely feel for those people who have lost someone close and understand the pain they feel, but I feel they are being told to feel this way rather than coming up on the issue on their own path.

green said...

by the way, this in antibloggedy from bloggedy blog blog, I started a second blog and just realized I answered you from it. If you check this one out (and have little ones, I did more of those book readings and....I must say...I am getting better with the editing.)

Anonymous said...

You know, I think I've heard that quote before (ie the proof in the root is in the fruit) but I think this is reversed. In other words, the proof in the fruit is in the root. I think it means that overall we are a product of a good beginning and this is very true and very biblical as well. In the old testament it states: teach a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it. I find myself clinging more and more to the basic things I was taught as a child. It's amazing how when you simplify everything seems to improve. Complications are often unnecessary. You are right about the mosque. I don't know why someone would be offended by people taking full advantage of our Bill of Rights. Take that away and what have we got ?
Thanks for your input !