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stacey_dream · 10-07-2011 11:00 PM

I'm crazy about English, especially teaching and learning, and also about learning other foreign languages! I think it would be interesting to write about my experiences as an English teacher and a learner of Spanish

Apu · 10-07-2011 11:30 PM

(10-07-2011 10:54 PM)Tina Wrote: In other news, I got an e-mail from Writer's Digest yesterday saying I came in 90th place in the Magazine Feature Article category in their 80th annual writing contest!! Yay!!!! I get a certificate in the mail and my name will be listed along with the top 100 of each category in the December contest collection issue. So happy!! Just when I thought my writing wasn't going anywhere, this happens. There are other writing contests going on and I'm thinking of applying to those too.

Wow! Hats off to you!

Tina · 10-08-2011 04:38 AM

Thank you Apu!

Stacey, I think that's a great idea. It could be a big help to other people who want to learn different languages.

Moirawr · 10-10-2011 05:13 AM

The Writer's Digest news is pretty amazing. You definitely deserve it! You are moving close and closer to your dreams and I look forward to the day that you can quit over at your current job. I know that you are working towards that more than you think you are. It is amazing to watch your progress.

Tina · 10-19-2011 01:27 AM

Today I discovered I'm only 50 hits short of having 3,000 page views on my Life After Ex site. It's only been up a month! And I've taken a step to make sure even more people know about it. I sent a message to my university's alumni association about what I'm doing. They have a magazine that gets sent out the alumni every quarter, post updates on the website, and send e-mails spreading the news about what alumni are up to. Hopefully I can get something written in a university publication. (fingers crossed!)

I'm also having difficulty keeping the blog updated. I like writing in the morning so that way I have all day to send out links to the post on Facebook, twitter, e-mail, etc. But my job at my new location is making it very difficult. With the longer commute I have to leave earlier and this theater is open earlier than my old one. And when I open, by the time I get home I'm exhausted and I don't have the brain power to write anything that sounds intelligent. So I'm posting when I can instead of every day, but I'm still looking at other jobs.

In a perfect world someone would pay me to run the website and my student loans would all go away. But it's not a perfect world. My job and my life's ambition are not the same and it bothers me. Really looking forward to when I can say the two are one and the same. But how to do it...

Moirawr · 10-19-2011 09:51 AM

I have been peeking at your blog not as frequently as I would like but your content is really great. I thought I should mention that. You come off very well in your posts. I really cannot wait for the day when you can devote yourself more fully to writing and your dreams. You definitely deserve that and certainly are talented enough to pull it off.

Tina · 10-24-2011 10:04 AM

I'm currently working on another set of exercises for my website. This one is aimed at becoming independent. One day will focus on financial independence, another day will be about learning to rely on yourself and believe in yourself... I'm still working on putting it together so it won't be ready until November, but I want to try doing one challenge or exercise a month.

Now that I'm consistantly getting about 100 hits a day, even without me posting links online, I'm starting to worry about how far this will go. Not in terms of how big it will get, but in terms of protecting myself. What if someone takes my advice or follows along with a challenge and it doesn't work out for them? What if someone wants to sue me for it? Can they even do that? Should I get insurance? These are things I didn't consider before, but now I'm worrying about it. Is it necessary worrying? I have no idea. But it wouldn't hurt to look into it.

Tina · 10-31-2011 01:15 AM

Life After Ex is now up to 4,000 hits!! :dance:

Things are really moving along and I couldn't be happier. I'm planning out more things to do with the website and have ideas for books to write. I just have to figure out if I want to self-publish or try and get a publisher. Still working on that.

In any case, I haven't had time to actually write these books since my job at my new location is a bit more demanding. I'm still looking for work doing something else, but there's not much out there that pays well. I get told by family and friends that I just need to wait and something will come along. But what if it doesn't?

I feel like, if I could get my career on track my life would be much happier. I don't get paid to do the website and most of the jobs I'm interested are either part time jobs or are volunteer positions. I feel stuck. Any ideas?

change02 · 11-07-2011 12:35 PM

Hi, Tina!

I get easily distracted too when there is no one supporting me. But with positive people around us, we can uplift ourselves and work hard on achieving our goals.

Tina · 01-10-2012 05:51 AM

So I realized I hadn't posted an update in a while so here it goes...

My website Life After Ex (http://www.lifeafterex.com) has now passed the 10,000 hits mark! I'm soo excited about this! While I don't get the time to post every single day, my readers are still there. And I've found that when I do my week-long challenges that my readership skyrockets. That only encourages me to do more challenges that will help my readers move on after being in a destructive relationship.

This December, I was selected by Love Is Not Abuse to come of their annual Time to Talk Day event to interview other survivors for my website. Unfortunately my job got in the way so I couldn't go, but it was great to even be considered. I had to submit my website and give a brief bio to even be considered. Maybe another opportunity will come along.

I'm still looking for a way to get paid to work on the site, but in the past 2 months I haven't really had the time to go looking very hard. I plan on changing that in February. Right now I'm working on finishing up a draft on a book I want to publish. I had originally planned to have it done by Jan. 1st, but again, my job got in the way and it's no where near ready for publication. Speaking of which, I am still trying to figure out which company to go with when I publish it. I'm currently considering self-publishing, but I want to sent out a cover letter to a few big named places too. Anyone have any experience with this?

I applied for a few more jobs last month and so far I haven't heard back from anyone, but at least I'm trying. I need my weekends back and a normal sleep schedule.

I think that's about it. I hope all of you had a great new years!

Matt · 01-10-2012 11:54 AM

Wow, Tina you are doing fantastic! Your drive and your passion really inspire me to do more and take more action.

Congratulations on the success of your blog. I just subscribed and I look forward to seeing what else you have inn store.

Tina · 01-11-2012 01:31 AM

Thank you! There's still so much to do, but I'm excited at the chance to work on it all.

Moirawr · 01-11-2012 08:47 AM

I am so proud of you. You are doing so well! I know you can find it in yourself to meet those challenges for yourself this year.

Tina · 01-18-2012 01:55 PM

Thanks Moira. I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere, but when I look back at where I was 6 months ago I'm in a much better place and I've acheived so much. My personal life could certainly use some work. I find myself in a position again where I'm waiting for someone to decide whether or not he wants to be with me and I don't have much time for my friends. I'm working on the friends part, but I'm completely lost about what to do with my sorta/kinda love life. The Life After Ex blogger in me says he can't make the commitment, just move on. But I really like him and we've been friends for years. I don't want to just give up.

It's sad that my career path, even though I'm making it up as i go along, seems easier than this. Otherwise things are looking good.

Moirawr · 01-22-2012 11:59 AM

I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing that with the guy in your life. Unfortunately there are times when the other person in your life isn't in the same place that you are. This doesn't mean they aren't good for you or that it wouldn't work out. It just won't work out right now.

My advice would be to use the time to explore your other options and if he happens to come around before you find someone good for you who is in the same spot, amazing. And if you just happen across someone perfect and amazing for you... even more awesome. It's sort of a win-win situation. Of course, there is also the possibility that seeing you open yourself up to other options might, ahem, settle his choice. I'm not suggesting this for that result though, because it's too close to ultimatum land and no one really wants to go there. Just be completely honest about it.

You may not feel like you are getting anywhere but we can all see the vast distances you have crossed since you first joined the forums here. And, as you pointed out, if you think about it logically you can see them too! Maybe you just need a reminder more often that you are doing so well and getting where you want to go.

Tina · 01-23-2012 09:25 AM

Thanks. I think that's what I need to do. As far as my personal life goes, I seem to be putting that on hold while I wait for him to figure out what he wants. But I don't need to. I can see what else is out there.

In terms of my goals, I am able to make money with my website through advertising. I don't have a whole lot set up right now, but I have been approved for it. I have no idea how much money I get through this, but it's a step in the right direction. Now if I only had time to work on my book. I had a goal for myself to finish a final draft of my first Life After Ex book by the end of the month and I've hardly worked on it. I'm going to have to push that back. In doing research to get a nonfiction book published, you don't have to have the entire manuscript finished, but you should have all the chapters figured out and have at least 3 sample chapters to submit. I figure I'll give finding a literary agent and finding a publisher a try before I go into self-publishing. By October, I know I want to publish the year's worth of challenges I've created in a journal. I'd like to have a hard copy of that so why not start off with my book like that?

I think my family is slowly starting to be supportive of what I'm doing. At first, my mom thought I should give up my online writing and just work on a book. It's funny how she's supportive of the writing thing, but felt I was wasting my time by writing online and not getting paid or not getting paid enough. She was also worried that I still wasn't over my ex. But I've explained that it's not about me anymore. The site is there to help other people and this is what makes me happy. I'm sure she would still rather I do something else, but she's starting to accept it. So making progress there too!

Tina · 01-24-2012 01:52 PM

I have officially started making money on my Life After Ex site! Ok, it's 97 cents, not even $1 yet, but I'm starting to earn money!

It's a small accomplishment, but I feel like I'm actually making progress. I'm also getting on average of 200 hits per day. Yesterday didn't quite reach that number, but two big football games were on tv throughout the day so Sunday's numbers weren't as high, but Friday I had 330 hits and about the same on Saturday. Today I am back up to reach past the 200 mark. That was a goal I set for myself for the end of December, so I'm just a few weeks behind. My next step is to get an average of 500 hits a day. I can definitely do this. My "likes" on my facebook page haven't increased lately, but I am slowly seeing more followers on Twitter @LifeAfterEx. More and more people are discovering the site and I'm more sure that this is something I want to do long term.

The book is still in the planning stages, but it's something I'm determined to do. I just need to create a new game plan and decide on some solid deadlines. Otherwise I'll keep putting it back and it will never happen. Once I get my plan figured out, I'll post it here and keep all of you updated on my progress. Plus, then you can yell at me when I slack off. Please do.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me thus far! I wouldn't have done this if it hadn't been for Celes and talking with all of you. : )

stacey_dream · 01-24-2012 03:08 PM

Tina I'm so happy for you, you're getting closer and closer to your dream, and I remember the time when you were afraid to start and didn't even know what to expect! I believe your website will soon become a great success, cuz you definitely deserve it! :hug:

Moirawr · 01-25-2012 09:34 AM

Congratulations on hitting your first hit goal! That's very impressive and it's because of all the hard work and effort you put into it. I know you can get to that 500 hits a day mark as well. Just keep plugging and certainly make use of the social medias. That definitely helps even if you aren't seeing the likes on Facebook.

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