Tag Archives: writing

And So It Ends

It’s probably no surprise to you that I’m writing this.

It IS a surprise to me.

I’ve been pondering about it for months now, trying to make time for everything, trying to hang on, trying not to say goodbye.

I’ve rationalized too long, finding comfort in my internet securities.

I’ve remembered that the hardest decisions are almost always the right ones.

I’ve realized that in order to keep growing, you must allow change.

And, wow, have I grown.

I’ve been in Germany for over a year now and I have moments where I don’t even recognize myself. And, that’s not a bad thing.

It’s just….time to keep growing and make more changes in the hopes of reaching even bigger goals.

So, it is with a heavy heart that I’m saying goodbye to this blog. I know people have found it helpful. I just received an email from someone the other day, thanking me, but I think this is the right decision for me.

To be honest, I’m not sure if I will delete it or leave it up, although I’m leaning towards deletion.

I can’t let go of this name though, or the cool idea that jolted me back into a lost dream. So, you’ll still be able to find From Casinos to Castles in social media.

As for me, I applied for almost 20 jobs today. The boy is in kindergarten now and I am hoping with all my heart that something works out. Anything.

I’m not giving up my dream of being a writer either, so, you can still find me over at Tipsy Lit. You may not know, but I’m Managing Editor over there now. I’m really excited about that opportunity and I think this year, I’m going to grow even more than the previous one. I have so many things in the works.

I’m working on a memoir as well as my first book of poetry.

I’m also working together with 7 other fabulous women on a new site we will be launching soon that is community oriented with a goal of helping and supporting women.

I’m working on finding myself again and figuring out who that is without all of the labels I had before.

I’m working on making one dream come true, while letting go of another.

I’ve loved getting to know all of you and I’ve appreciated you coming here and getting to know me. As I said, this is goodbye for the blog, but not for me. I wish you all the best and if you’d like to keep in touch you can find me at these places:

Facebook - Author Profile
Facebook Page - From Casinos To Castles
Twitter - Author Profile (C2C will be deleted)
Tipsy Lit

And the new site isn’t ready yet, but you can follow on twitter to stay up to date on the launch!

The Sisterwives

Thank you again and I hope to see you at one of my other online locations!

The Value of Expat & Travel Writing

Writing Around The World

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Deanna Herrmann:

The Tipsy Lit feature this month is all about expats and travel writers! Make sure to check out new posts daily, Monday-Friday, and see which of your favorite expats wrote something fabulous!

Originally posted on TIPSY LIT:

You may remember me mentioning the fact that I rekindled my love for writing when I started my first blog, From Casinos To Castles. This blog was created as a way to document my journey of taking a huge leap of faith in becoming an expatriate. It started off fueled by the inspiration found in our courage and has become a place where I share things about every day expat life. The travel writing community is unlike any other I have ever found online, but they are similar in that they all share a glimpse of what it’s like to be a part of another culture, another world.

I’ve now had an expat blog for over a year as well as a separate writing blog. It occurred to me how different the communities are and how little may be known about the expat bloggers/travel writers. Granted, we all stumble…

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My Response to the Response

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Since my most recent post has apparently stirred up quite the discussion, both on and off the internet, I decided to write my response post to the response.

First off, what is a blog and why do people have them? The reasons vary from wanting to share travel experiences, personal journeys/skills (weight loss, cooking, crafts), and just to write, but in the end, it boils down to the same thing which is adhered to by the definition:

It’s all based on the writer’s own experiences, observations and opinions. Period.

Why is that important? Well, to me it means that there is not always “right and wrong” and things can’t always be “black and white”. We are all different with unique perspectives on life based on our experiences throughout. Just as some have said that I am “elitist” in my understanding of the term “expat”, they then turned around and wrote their own posts, or comments, or emails, or tweets in the exact “exclusionary” manner. It comes across that way because they formed an opinion, made a judgement, decided they were hurt and right, so I was hateful and wrong. To clarify for the record:

I never said anything derogatory about them as individuals or a group, but they did towards me.
They said a word meant nothing, judged my use of MY space and my writing, yet went on to fight for inclusion and/or write their own posts/emails/comments about the same thing.
They made assumptions about me, my intent and my life yet I never did about them.

I owned my opinions. I certainly didn’t show any two-faced mannerisms by claiming to “agree to disagree”, “interesting post” or even claiming to “agree completely” just to go on and email others, write posts/comments/tweets claiming otherwise in a response to being “attacked”. I also listed plain facts in my original post to justify my conclusion and yes, with a “disclaimer”. I also responded to each and every one with respect because that is how adults have objective discussions.

For those who had hurt feelings, I apologize(d) that my words hurt on an emotional level. In the end, I respect all of their viewpoints, their posts, their thoughts, their feelings and their opinions. They have a right to all of that and their blog is absolutely a place for them to share that.

I accept the fact that there will be differences of opinion.

I am open to the criticism you leave (or don’t leave) in the comments.

This is my blog where I share my experiences. You follow (or don’t) because you like (or don’t) what I have to say. After all, isn’t that the point?

The Monday Ante #6

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Are you guys ready for another week of amazing posts, finding new great bloggers and a chance to be featured this Saturday? I know I am! So, let’s just get right to it!

And don’t forget, you can keep entering even after you win.

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How is about you? One person from every link-up will have their post featured on C2C on Saturday just in time for weekend reading, gaining additional exposure for your blog. I will share your post with a link to your site and at least one social media option. This will also be publicized through my social media channels.

Why? Because you guys are awesome and the world needs to know! I want to say thank you for your readership and your support by helping to share and promote your work.

When. The link-up will open every Monday at 8am, closing every Wednesday at 11:55pm. (Time zone is CET - Central European Time which is GMT+1 - Greenwich Mean Time. If that is confusing, ahem, 6 hours later than EST. Hope that’s clear as mud.)

What you need to do. Look at your posts for the past week and pick your favorite. Come back here and link it up before the end of the day on Wednesday. That’s it! (aside from a few simple rules coming up)

What you don’t need to do. No badges. No prompts or topics - the post can be about anything. No additional follows (aside from this blog). You don’t have to read the other submissions, but why would you not want to? Maybe you can find a new blog to love! Or you can just wait for the winner on Saturday and come back and congratulate them. It’s up to you because this is what???? ALL. ABOUT. YOU.

RULES

While I am trying my best to keep this simple and fun, there are just a few requirements for your entry to be accepted:

You must be a follower of this blog through Bloglovin’, email or WordPress. Obviously since I am doing this to support my readers, you need to be one. Duh.
You must share this link-up via Twitter. Not only do we want people to participate, but we also want people to look forward to reading the winning post. There is a handy-dandy Twitter share button below you can use to make it easier or feel free to share on your own, but please use my twitter handle in your tweet so I know (@Casinos2Castles). If you don’t have Twitter, leave a comment and we can work on #1 why you don’t have Twitter and #2 an alternate way to promote if you are against twits.
No inappropriate, hateful or adult content. This one is a given, but I figured I’d better list it because, after all, your work will be highlighted on my blog; therefore, I am endorsing it.

That’s it! I am always open to suggestions so if you have ideas that you’d like to see or that you think will make this better, please share with me!

I’m looking forward to reading all of your great posts and I know selecting a winner will be difficult.

Again, thank you for being you and being a part of my blogosphere. <3

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Now, link-up!