tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post7341535638160688747..comments2024-03-19T14:52:00.000-07:00Comments on Coming Down the Mountain: As I See It: Not Giving Up on the DreamKaren Jones Gowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11378428503220197256noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-22726380329449222772010-11-20T12:54:13.584-08:002010-11-20T12:54:13.584-08:00This post makes me feel sad, nostalgic, and inspir...This post makes me feel sad, nostalgic, and inspired all at the same time! <br /><br />I needed this today, thanks!<br /><br />You have a lovely family and I can't believe you managed to raise ten children and still have a mind in good enough shape to write =P Just Kidding! Really, you're an inspiration!The Words Crafterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14520267901489487512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-82563226677080206102010-11-18T04:06:57.750-08:002010-11-18T04:06:57.750-08:00Hi Karen,
Thankyou for the note you left on my an...Hi Karen,<br /><br />Thankyou for the note you left on my ancestry blog. I do have a few blogs and Followers on any are always good. I first set up a blog to put some of my books on and then ventured into putting up books I am writing as blogs; like my ancestry book; my malawi book and the book on spirituality. It makes the writing process less solitary I find. I am currently living in Malawi and write probably more regularly on that blog, Blantyre Street, but nice to think you are out there somewhere. <br />I thought your blogsite was great and think/feel it is so important for writers to have this form of communication, particularly when, like me, there isn't any other form of contact within sight. Then again, even when I am in Australia I never seem to find the time to join clubs to talk about things with other writers so the net probably suits me best of all.Roslyn Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700960108357035957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-51751945831866029192010-11-18T01:22:44.924-08:002010-11-18T01:22:44.924-08:00Ten...wow. I feel like with one teenager I'm ...Ten...wow. I feel like with one teenager I'm way out of my depth. I bow to your superior, rockstar Mom abilities...<br /><br />This is such a wonderful, honest post, and the timing for me was fortuitous in reading it. Thank you so much for it. <br /><br />~bruFebruary Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01078037856070486022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-14547846693258775502010-11-17T11:05:25.118-08:002010-11-17T11:05:25.118-08:00OMG, ten kids!! You are an amazing and strong woma...OMG, ten kids!! You are an amazing and strong woman and knowing this makes me admire you, even more! How on earth did you even find time to write? I only have two and they drive me batty, at times! lol You are such an inspiration to me!Margueritehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15846051579802335412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-28382760913299872452010-11-17T05:34:18.244-08:002010-11-17T05:34:18.244-08:00And I would add, putting the wellbeing of my famil...And I would add, putting the wellbeing of my family - my husband and children - before my writing is a decision I have never regretted. The older I get the more I know that 'success' is a qualified definition and ephemeral: people matter, particularly your family; everything else is things and stuff!Roslyn Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700960108357035957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-20406995276720691792010-11-17T05:31:59.620-08:002010-11-17T05:31:59.620-08:00Now that's impressive - ten children and two b...Now that's impressive - ten children and two books. I have been writing books since I was 40 - for twenty years and have six novels and one completed work of non-fiction, on my four years living in Angola during the civil war, plus poetry, short stories but only two children, born in my early twenties and still not published. Sigh. My excuse is working as a journalist and editor and concentrating on writing not on getting published while setting up home 34 times in 40 years in up to ten different countries.... most of them in the Third World where you don't get post offices or reliable phone connections. But it doesn't really matter. The writing matters and in this day and age of the blog we can put our writing up where someone at least can read it as opposed to languishing in a drawer. There is a lot of fate and destiny involved in getting published and even more involved in having any sort of lasting success as an author. Carpe Diem! And enjoy the moment for it is all you have; published, unpublished, successful (by someone else's definition) or unsuccessful!Roslyn Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700960108357035957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-71833620014008206462010-11-17T02:53:05.195-08:002010-11-17T02:53:05.195-08:00Lovely, inspiring post. I'm so happy to have f...Lovely, inspiring post. I'm so happy to have found your blog.Lucky Press, LLChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10819496666158854345noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-52537803542180840102010-11-16T16:19:12.414-08:002010-11-16T16:19:12.414-08:00Rock on, sista. You've accomplished so much al...Rock on, sista. You've accomplished so much already. :)Jennifer Shirkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16970585847385511795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-46006739880116802892010-11-16T15:35:49.418-08:002010-11-16T15:35:49.418-08:00I love this post! Thank you so much for writing it...I love this post! Thank you so much for writing it.Esperantohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12051691926591464516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-70730780131486975752010-11-16T11:05:29.778-08:002010-11-16T11:05:29.778-08:00Holy cow! Eight boys?! No wonder you were tired ...Holy cow! Eight boys?! No wonder you were tired in your 30s! I'm tired just reading about it! (and my two kids made me tired all on their own!) I'm glad you've managed to come back to it!Hart Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17599570189253229318noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-16948038363132171352010-11-16T05:23:53.802-08:002010-11-16T05:23:53.802-08:00I think we all want it to happen fast, make it hap...I think we all want it to happen fast, make it happen quickly, show ourselves that we are awesome. The more you move the more you realize life still trucks along and you've got to keep up with that pace of reality even when all you want to do is write.<br /><br />I commend you for having 10 children, post-poning the dream and at the end coming out with 2 novels to tell the tale and show the success. It's quite the accomplishment and I'm sure we'll see many more from you!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03667521490706435608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-62013651041902309532010-11-16T04:59:54.254-08:002010-11-16T04:59:54.254-08:00Wow, I now feel like a lightweight for being wayla...Wow, I now feel like a lightweight for being waylaid by three kidlings. Bet you could teach me a thing or two...<br /><br />Good thing you didn't put an expiration date on your dream!Vicki Rochohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07381089434014961076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-16080696519607094972010-11-16T03:19:00.289-08:002010-11-16T03:19:00.289-08:00Holy... TEN children? Wow. Now that's an achie...Holy... TEN children? Wow. Now that's an achievement! But two books isn't bad either. It's more than many others have managed! Never give up - that's very true. Great post, Karen. Very touching and great points.Privatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03018596012893869692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-25135648121372722542010-11-15T21:19:40.159-08:002010-11-15T21:19:40.159-08:00The biggest thing here is never giving up.The seco...The biggest thing here is never giving up.The second biggest thing is believing in what you write, in your own talent. With those two, you can conquer anything, even getting published again and again.Trish and Rob MacGregorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02846270474176860924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-31682629977815655102010-11-15T19:47:43.512-08:002010-11-15T19:47:43.512-08:00You laugh when I complain about being a future mot...You laugh when I complain about being a future mother of one, don't you? Ha. But really that's pretty awesome and inspiring that you could even still be awake enough to write with ten kids! Kudos!Maganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14045036129073244749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-18855627218100804812010-11-15T17:30:30.891-08:002010-11-15T17:30:30.891-08:00p.s. The "light" is to have raised such ...p.s. The "light" is to have raised such a wonderful family as yours!!! (If that makes sense; I don't know if I'm making sense tonight. It's been a long year LOL.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-33860216537824946532010-11-15T17:29:02.133-08:002010-11-15T17:29:02.133-08:00I've never given up the writing/publishing dre...I've never given up the writing/publishing dream; but I've come to realize, the older I get, that in the eternal scheme of things, it's not the light at the end of the tunnel (to use several cliches!!).<br /><a href="http://annbest-jen.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow"><i>Ann</i></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-67172880327319942042010-11-15T16:49:39.478-08:002010-11-15T16:49:39.478-08:00Keep running, Karen :)Keep running, Karen :)Joannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03972054718663959694noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-68251706587902788452010-11-15T16:18:52.791-08:002010-11-15T16:18:52.791-08:00Agreed. I was 54 when I realized the dream, and th...Agreed. I was 54 when I realized the dream, and though I am only a pebble in this large ocean, I love it. <br /><br />And I only have two children as my excuse along with a LOAD of procrastination.Cheryl Schenkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14941301706545139287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-28191948942258208122010-11-15T15:37:55.279-08:002010-11-15T15:37:55.279-08:00Even though it took a long time, I'm glad you ...Even though it took a long time, I'm glad you accomplished that. Wow, 10 children! That's a lot. I have one and low energy, I have no doubt you had little.<br />CDAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160669603997465454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-36778693726186790742010-11-15T15:36:17.652-08:002010-11-15T15:36:17.652-08:00I think the dream is to succeed at something we...I think the dream is to succeed at something we're passionate about, not how long it takes. Good for you for making it happen. We all will, if we keep at it! :)<br /><br />Angela @ The bookshelf MuseAngela Ackermanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808259088625142389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-259058725207562022010-11-15T15:34:43.048-08:002010-11-15T15:34:43.048-08:00"No other success can compensate for failure ..."No other success can compensate for failure in the home." (David O. McKay)<br /><br />That, my dear blogger buddy, is one heck of quote. I love it. And I am amazed that you've raised 10 wonderful kids. THAT is success. <br /><br />This is one of those posts that puts it all in perspective. A wonderful family is the real dream (or thankfully, the reality), and the rest is gravy!Julie Musilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02150454913885915017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-70532479160067898652010-11-15T15:28:25.904-08:002010-11-15T15:28:25.904-08:00Jennifer, Susan, Nicki-- Do you Omnific authors al...Jennifer, Susan, Nicki-- Do you Omnific authors always comment in clusters LOL?<br /><br />Terry, Amazing enough to win one of your autographed books? That's one contest I don't want to miss!<br /><br />Fran, If I don't get with it, my next book won't come out until I'm 90.Karen Jones Gowenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01153821980625034810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-19297011811398234072010-11-15T15:02:56.913-08:002010-11-15T15:02:56.913-08:00*jaw drops* TEN kids? That's so awesome! I lov...*jaw drops* TEN kids? That's so awesome! I love that you kept pursuing your dream (I love Beverly Cleary as well!)Jennifer Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13300124780126853962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852800943772489474.post-34495777270222608942010-11-15T14:07:54.292-08:002010-11-15T14:07:54.292-08:00WOW!!! I'm sort of speechless. You are amazing...WOW!!! I'm sort of speechless. You are amazing!TerryLynnJohnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08380207155608982319noreply@blogger.com