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Welcome to September 2018’s update for The Jittery Junebug. This was a month full of new ideas, new friends, and all kinds of fun both on and off the blog.
I’ve decided to start these monthly updates as a way to keep track of my site’s progress, and compare how far it has come. It’s so easy to forget that even a little progress is still progress because it may not strike all at once. Hopefully, these updates will serve the dual purpose of holding me accountable and tracking the blog’s growth over time.
If you’re new to The Jittery Junebug, welcome and I’m so glad you found us!
This all started out as a way to keep myself writing even when I was busy, but gradually evolved into so much more than that. In addition to writing my own stories, The Jittery Junebug (or JJ, as I like to call it) has become a source for other writers to find inspiration and hopefully encouragement to develop their craft.
The JJ has already changed so much since its creation several years ago. Some changes I remember, some I probably don’t, and others are still in progress. It’s fun to look back on old prompts and posts just to see how far we’ve come, and I know we’ll continue to improve as we expand.
Overall, this site—these prompts and articles—started out being for my own use, but are now by and large for you, writer friends. I hope you continue to enjoy my future posts, courses, books, and more!
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What’s happened in the past month?
September was a great month for The Jittery Junebug. We reached over 1,000 page views for the third month in a row. I hope views stay consistently at or above this marker for the next month as well.
I have big plans for the JJ, including the second installment of The Creative Catalyst and a new look for the prompts themselves. Since I redesigned the website, I’ve been looking to make everything else follow suit with a similar look. Starting in January 2019, the new prompts will have the new appearance as well!
Potential roadblocks to this, however, include the fact that I lost the flash drive that had the finished version of The Creative Catalyst Part Two on it. The only copy. I’m extremely frustrated by this, but I won’t let it stop me from completing my goals.
I re-made the prompt template that was lost with that drive, so the 2019 prompts will still have the new look, but I may not be able to publish CC2 until later than I’d hoped.
My biggest goal right now is to get the JJ to the point of a cohesive brand design. I’ve gone back and forth with the look over the past year, and I think I’ve finally settled on the appearance going forward. Getting all of the pieces together to look consistent is a big chunk of work, but so far I’m thrilled with how things are looking.
Currently, I am working on getting back up to speed with creating new prompts for JJ, as well as working on two novel drafts and a non-fiction book. Once these are all in a place where I feel comfortable sharing them, I’m going to add them to my Books page, so you can keep up with where they are in the process.
If you are interested in starting your novel, check out Scrivener on MacOS or Windows as a way to keep your work organized. I’d highly recommend reading Kristen Kieffer’s explanation about using Scrivener’s virtual corkboard for your work, too, especially if you’re a neat-freak like me!
What I accomplished this month — a breakdown
These are the things I worked on and accomplished during this past month:
- Scheduled prompts through the end of December 2018
- Drafted monthly review templates
- Redesigned prompts starting in January 2019
- Created new prompt templates for upcoming sections for 2019
These new templates and designs will be covered in more detail in the next couple of month’s reviews as they are not yet finalized.
Below are some of my other articles and updates to show how the blog has progressed:
- Why You Should Write a Character Based on Yourself
- The Importance of Writing Crap
- Tips & Tricks: Part One
Blog news
The JJ is growing slowly, but steadily, and I’m happy with the results I’ve seen so far.
I started this blog in 2015 as a way to encourage myself to write more, but quickly found that I also love encouraging others in their writing. As the blog grows, I hope to help more people find their story and gain the courage to write it for the rest of us to enjoy.
Overall, traffic for the month was around 1,000 page views, largely from Pinterest. These are not huge numbers, but considering I was lucky to get 100 views a month in a very niche subject a year ago, I consider this a big improvement.
I am also currently working on:
- The next installment of my Creative Catalyst prompt series on Amazon KDP.
- Drafting new prompts for the months of January, February, and March 2019.
- Redesigning and adding pages to the JJ.
- Finding ways to grow the blog’s audience outside of just Pinterest.
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Popular prompts on The Jittery Junebug recently:
My current goals
Ways I’m looking to improve the JJ in the coming months:
- Finalize design of new prompts. I’m planning to launch the new prompt appearance and more in 2019, so I need to kick it into high gear over the next two months to be well-prepared.
- Write at least 3 new articles for tips series. I’m aiming to have at least one Tips & Tricks article per month starting in 2019, and drafting/writing them now will greatly help me get ahead of the curve.
- Draft CC3. Though CC2 is not yet published, and may in fact have to be completely re-done as a result of the lost flash drive, I want to start drafting the next installment now to keep the design consistent and start thinking on what to include for the third round.
- Finalize email course. I’ve been meaning to create this course ever since a friend asked me about the self-publishing process.
What I’m working on outside of the blog in the coming months:
- Finish writing my current novel-in-progress. It has been neglected far too long, and since it is over halfway done, I need to buckle down and get it finished. I love the story, so I need to treat it accordingly.
- Finish drafting my next novel. I’ve been moving my giant whiteboard all around the house, and it’s time to plot the whole book out from cover to cover instead of blinding writing without a plan.
- Finish writing my non-fiction book. I have several non-fiction drafts in the works, but one in particular has been really pressing on my mind lately. I’d like to get it done soon, so I can share it with y’all.
What writing project are you currently working on? What are you doing to keep yourself motivated?
The Jittery Junebug 