What happened to Audra Leigh Fisher?

This is my first blog featuring a guest blogger. I've been wanting to do this for awhile, figuring that my fans were tired o f hearing me ramble on and on and on.

The subject of this blog is poet/photographer Audra Leigh Fisher. She hails from Fairport New York, located nine miles east of Rochester. Also known as "The Crown of the Erie Canal", the village has a population of just over 5300. She's lived in this town most of her life but claims to be "The opposite of Fairport but [I] fit in on the beach at Durand on Lake Ontario. I just live and breath[e] here. [My boyfriend] Micah and my family are here. And what is familiar and safe I guess. I reflect on inanimate objects and wild life more than people...less conflict."

When I learned several weeks ago that my HUBPAGES colleague, Audra Leigh Fisher, was leaving the site, I wanted to know why. I asked Audra to share her story in her own words. I hope you'll find it interesting and I hope those of us who love Audra as a person, writer and photographer will better understand her reasons for leaving the writing community. While she cherishes her time there and the relationships she made, she believes leaving the site was the right decision for her. If she had to do it over again, she would spend more time writing and less time commenting on and promoting other peoples' work. She touches the chord that all of us writers' struggle with: how much time should we spend writing and promoting our own work versus the work of our friends and colleagues?

While her story is in many ways a cautionary tale, it is also a story of determination and hope. I trust you'll enjoy reading it as much as I did. She hails from Fairport New York, located nine miles east of Rochester. Also known as "The Crown of the Erie Canal", the village has a population of just over 5300. She's lived in this town most of her life and when asked how the town has influenced her and whether or not she is like the town, Audra said she was "The opposite of Fairport, but [I] fit in on the beach at Durand on Lake Ontario. I just live and breath[e] here. [My boyfriend] Micah and my family are here. And what is familiar and safe I guess. I reflect on inanimate objects and wild life more than people...less conflict."

So, without further adieu, and with great pride, I yield the floor to Miss Audra Leigh Fisher.

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Justin William Price and I formed a formed a friendship via a writing site called hubpages.com and through private promotion of poetry and writing on sites created on Facebook in February of 2012. He was one of many (authors, poets, and photographers) who invited me into their lives to share my work and become a part of their everyday virtual routine. Justin always had faith in my writing and asked me for my input on a couple of pieces.

After 6 months and 80 articles (photography and poetry were my vices), my first online job (or hobby) came to an end. Even though I formed amazing friendships through the site, I was frustrated with the low quality of work I was writing and the restrictions the site had on formatting. Also, I was burnt out from reading and promoting other people’s work. The process took away from what I was trying to create. As a result, I resented what was being promoted ahead of my work and my comments became less sincere for my peers’ creations. But, there was more to the story.

One could say the end for me on hubpages.com came parallel with me ending my medications for a mental disorder. However, I stopped crying all the time and have had less anxiety without the turbulent course of meds I had been taking for the past twenty years. Yes, the hubpages.com community was there with me through one of my many stages of depression, the end of my “real” job on the outside, and listened to me cry through my poetry. But, I did not have it in me to write for “them” anymore.

Since I left, I have not written anything really, nor have I taken my Canon out to shoot my world. But, I have gone outside to enjoy the sunshine a bit, spend time with my loved ones, and have begun a new job. Perhaps, I will be back when my creative juices start flowing again. Hopefully, much sooner than later.

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I want to thank Audra for her time and honesty and I trust my readers enjoyed getting to know her and her story a little better. Audra still shows her photography on facebook and flickr and, I know I speak for many of us when I say that I hope Audra gets her writing out there very soon. She is a true talent and the art world is a little poorer, for the moment. Audra Leigh, come back soon!