Quandary

By Chris Redding (Guest Blogger)

quandary \KWAHN-duh-ree; -dree\, noun:
A state of difficulty, perplexity, doubt, or uncertainty.

I’m often in a quandary. Some would argue I’m simply confused.

Which manuscript should I work on next? What should I get my husband for his birthday? Paper or plastic? Oh wait, I have totebags from a bajillion conferences that I can use. Whew, one problem solved.

I have two boys, a teen and tween. When they were little, I knew instinctively what to do. Now I find it harder. I was never a teen boy and there’s all that “having to break away from mom” stuff that I don’t want to stifle. It’s tough on a mom letting go of the kids you’ve raised for all these years, but you have to, especially with boys. Luckily I’m not doing this alone and my husband has a great perspective on it all that. I think he likes that I rely on him more.

Here’s a big one for a published author: Which promotional efforts are worth it? Book signings for me sound fun, in a way. I love to meet people. Oh wait, I’m not a good salesperson. I couldn’t sell a thirsty man a drink of water. Reading my work in front of people is odd enough when I do it in critique group. How can I do that in front of strangers?

I like Facebook, but am I using how it should be used? Twitter? Love it, but again, is it the right way to spend my time? I guess since I didn’t use these things with the last book that I’ll know if they work for this book.

I saw a quote recently on Facebook that went something like this: You make more friends by being interested in people than by trying to be interesting. Neat. Reach out to others and they are more likely to reach out to you. I think sometimes I forget that lesson in life, but that’s a whole ‘nother blog post. So, I comment on people’s blogs. I comment on FB statuses. I retweet when I can. I hope I’m doing what the quote above says I should.

Who knows?

I’m a decisive person, really, I am. It’s just when the choice isn’t clear cut I find it harder. I was in a quandary for several months over quitting a job. My poor friends had to listen to me that whole time. I had another one lined up. The new one had a better boss. (Turned out to be the right decision to quit that job.) Guess I don’t like change. Maybe that’s part of being in a quandary. I don’t know what lies ahead. We never do. We can’t. Frankly life would be boring if we did, but I wish sometimes I knew if the outcome was good or bad.

What decisions do you make on a daily basis that put you in a quandary?

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Chris Redding lives in New Jersey with her husband, two kids, one dog and three rabbits. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in Journalism and a minor in English. When she isn’t writing she works per diem for her local hospital.

www.chrisreddingauthor.com

www.facebook.com/chrisredding

www.twitter.com/chrisredding

Her new novel Incendiary, a romantic suspense, will be out in June of this year.