Hello there!
To quote one of my favorite movies: “Let me explain…! No. There is too much. Let me sum up!”
I started LittleZotz.com in 2010 and it did really well. A decade went by, I went through a lot mentally/physically/emotionally/financially (I’m actually still in the process of recovering from having five organs removed as I write this post!), and I realized I needed to make some MAJOR changes to my work life or I wasn’t going to survive long-term.
At first, I figured I’d just leave LittleZotz.com behind and focus solely on HorrorFam.com (my horror website). But some things happened and I realized… I have a LOT to say — a lot to offer all of YOU — and not all of it is horror-related!
So I’m putting the LittleZotz (that’s me!) back in LittleZotz.com! And I’m doing things MY WAY this decade!!
So What the Heck Happened?!
For this post, I want to focus on the happy present/future of LittleZotz Writing. Hope that’s okay!
However, I knew that some of my longtime readers would be curious and/or feel more comfortable if I gave them a recap of what went down. So, if you’re one of those people, here’s a Timeline of Lauren Spear & LittleZotz Writing you can look at. (It opens in a new tab so you won’t lose your place on this post).
Okay… What’s Going to Happen Then?
Great question!
My primary goal in life has always been to help people. Hopefully that’s what I’ll be achieving here on LittleZotz.com!
I’m pretty much just going to write about whatever I feel like writing about at any given time and hopefully it’ll be helpful to you guys in one way or another. I know that sounds silly but…well… when my bestie is having a bad day, she’ll send me a message saying “I need a dose of Lauren.” And then I’ll just kinda ramble at her until she feels better.
Similarly, my husband (Frank Spear) and my other close friends find that my cheerful ramblings and vaguely-related tangents are both uplifting and oddly clarifying. Buddies will come to me confused or distressed and I’ll be… distracting? Haha. I’m not exactly sure what my “superpower” is (and maybe it’s best that I don’t?), but I do know that my randomness has a purpose and that purpose is making the people I care about feel better and know what they need to do next — even if neither of us is exactly sure how I do so!
And I care about YOU too! So… I’m gonna ramble at you now and then!
Is There Going to Be Any Structure At All?
Pfft! Of course!!
I realized that my rambles tend to fall into six “categories.” Or moods/tones, rather:
- Serious/Struggles – Topics like mental health, recovering from abuse, body image, uterus issues, etc.
- Boredom Busters – Talking about movies or shows, video games, tabletop games, music, cool apps, etc.
- Creative Endeavors – Painting, illustrating, fiction writing, etc.
- Food – Recipes to make delicious food, gardening to grow ingredients to make delicious food, etc.
- Motivation – Inspirational pep talks, physical health hacks, productivity tips, etc.
- Faves/Lists – Just me rambling about the BEST stuff, usually in Top 5/Top10 list form! 😀
Curious what kind of articles I’ll be writing that would fall under such unusual categories? Good! I already wrote a few to give you a sample of what’s to come going forward:
8 Fast Fixes for Meh-to-Bad Days
“Bad” Girls Painting: Portrait of Our Cats
Soy-Free Swedish Meatballs Recipe
F&L Spear’s Chocolate Coconut Cookies Recipe
Fast Faves: Top 5 Anytime Movies!
PLEASE check out those posts when you’re done here! Gimme some feedback! ♥
How Do You Intend to Survive?
Well…
I’ve set up a Ko-Fi page so that people who really really love my writing can contribute funds to support it. And, in return, they’ll get some bonus content and get to be more involved in the overall process.
For example… You see the illustration at the top of this post? I drew that! (If you’ve been a LittleZotz Writing reader since the very beginning, you may remember that I used to draw ALL of the blog post illustrations until 2013). Ko-Fi donors get to see fun hyperlapse videos of my drawing process. Like this:
That one ^ is what I’ve been using as a freebie/example. But I also have a bunch of donor-exclusive videos ready to go (for upcoming blog posts) and I’ll be making hyperlapse videos for any/all future illustrations as well.
I also thought long and hard about products I use EVERY DAY and became an affiliate of the Products I Love. There are only five brands/products but they’re all SO special. I love them and I’m positive you will too. And, if you do — and if you make a purchase using one of my links — I’ll get a small kickback for referring you, at no additional cost to your purchase.
Or, if you’re not interested in any of my favorite things, you can just buy whatever you’d normally buy on Amazon but use my Amazon affiliate link when you do! So you can buy bulk diapers or discount DVDs or a new computer or WHATEVER on Amazon and, so long as you used my affiliate link, I’d earn a small percentage for sending you their way. ^_^
What Happens Now?
As I stated earlier, I’m still technically in the process of recovering from major surgery (I have my final post-op appointment this Friday, 09/03/2021). So, I’m aiming for one LittleZotz.com post per week for now. Especially since I’m also working towards relaunching HorrorFam.com (10/01/2021!).
I’m still in the process of (re)learning what my brain and body can handle. I don’t want to make too many BIG promises.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut… considering I was able to write five blog posts in one week and I’m not even 100% yet, I’m feeling pretty darn optimistic about the future.
I hope you are too! Or, if you aren’t, I hope I can help you feel better via my writing. ♥
For now, please explore the new LittleZotz.com and check out the latest blog posts. Let me know what you think!
Until next time,
Lauren*
I think this is really cool. I’m glad you’re keeping the site AND doing it your way this time around. I think you’re right: you can’t go back to exactly what you were doing since, well, you’re a person and people continue to change and evolve. Plus your focus is different now, and you have new things to say. And you SHOULDN’T go back, either. So keeping the site and all the freelancing resources, while continuing to move forward in the new direction of your life, not only helps the people who had use for those resources, but it helps the people who need you now, and finally being free to talk to people in your authentic voice helps YOU! …And everyone I just listed deserves to have your help. As rough or as pleasant the different seasons of your life have been in turn, you have a lot to be proud from every one of them. So I’m glad they’re all here at littlezotz.
You go, girl. And keep going, on your beautiful journey.
Thank you so much, Heather!! I’m not entirely sure what else to say (rendered a little speechless… more emotions = fewer words sometimes). I truly appreciate you taking the time to write all of that and for the encouragement ♥