Productive Days

This isn't something I get to talk about very often.  In fact, most of the time I'm complaining about how far behind I am in all of my goals.  But not today.  No, today I get to tell you all about the productive day I had on Sunday.

It started out fairly well.  Without the use of an alarm clock, I was up by ten.  (For those of you who know me, you'll know that this really is a feat.  I tend to sleep in when there's nothing waking me up).  As I thought it was closer to noon or one, I started the day on a happy note.

I didn't get up right away (because, why would I?) but I also didn't go back to sleep, which I'm pretty proud of.

By eleven, though, I had already gotten to work.  The first order of business was to catch up on the editing that I hadn't managed to get to the two days before.  That wasn't difficult, as I'd already gone through the chapters, I just had to put the changes into the computer.

Then came the blog post, which was actually a lot easier than I thought it would be.  See, I had tried to do my epiphany, and got a little stuck, so I wrote a blog post, which helped with my idea for the epiphany.

By the time I had done all of that, it was about one, and all I had left to do for the day was to do the two chapters of editing that I had scheduled for that day.

I'll admit, I slacked off a little at this point.  I might have gotten distracted by gag reels of comedies.  It started with How I Met Your Mother and quickly progressed on to Friends.  I had a few good laughs, but eventually I had to get back to work.

When I had finished my daily editing for the day (and had even managed to polish off the epiphany for Monday and got it all set up to post) I decided that I deserved a treat for sticking to my work all day (I don't really count the slacking off.  It was just a break, I swear!)

Anyway, I decided to watch Pitch Perfect, which I've seen before, but can't seem to get enough of.  It was a nice little way to reward myself, and when I was done, I thought, I might as well get a bit more work done.

So I did my Monday editing, and threw together another blog post (yep, this one right here) just to give myself a kick start for the week.

Now, if that isn't a productive day, please, tell me what is!

I'm happy with the progress I made.  I'm sticking to my goals for the year, which is surprising me.  I'm not usually good about keeping them.  Generally I procrastinate so long that it's no longer plausible for me to finish on time, and decide that I might as well just push back that deadline since I'm not going to meet it anyway.

With the way this year has been going, I'm going to accomplish all of my goals.  My first novel of the year is going to be edited to the second draft by the end of the month, and I couldn't be happier!

Now I'm going to go...I don't know...maybe work on another chapter of editing that doesn't need to be done yet.

How are your goals for the year going?  Have you started on any of them yet?

Stop and Smell the Roses

Today I heard a phrase I'm sure I've heard a thousand time in my life.  Stop and Smell the roses.  I don't think that anyone has specifically said it to me, but I've always known what people have meant by it.  That you can't rush through life.  Sometimes you have to take a break and make sure to enjoy the little things in life.

So when I heard the phrase today, I couldn't help but really stop and think about it.  Mostly because, at the time, I was actually watching a show and procrastinating on my writing.  (Well, rewriting.  I do have an editing goal I need to try and keep as I have beta readers waiting for it.)

I've never really been the one to be busy all the time.  However, in the last year I've found myself doing more and more things, and therefor finding my schedule getting more and more full.  There are weeks when I almost never go home after work.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  I love going out with my friends.  I love my critique group and all the different things I've been doing since starting writing.

So now, for the first time in my life, I find myself actually able to appreciate the saying.  I understand what it's like to get so caught up in everything that's been going on with my life that I forget to stop and see or appreciate all those little things.  I've done it, where all I can think about is the stress of getting a book written, or edited and forget that I love this.  I love creating a story, and there's nothing I want more than to share those stories with everyone else.

Of course, getting stressed means I start to feel overwhelmed.  When that happens I tend to stop working on whatever it is I need to get done.  Unfortunately that means I start smelling the roses a little too much.  I just stop.  I'll do pretty much anything to not work on the writing or editing that I have to do.  Today that happened in the form of watching the first season of Dead Like Me.

I know how to stop and smell the roses.  I do it all the time, even when I really shouldn't be.  That doesn't mean that I disagree with the message of it.  It doesn't matter what's going on in your life.  How stressful everything is, or how much you  have to do, every once in a while, you need to stop and take a deep breath.  Look around and realize that life isn't always about that to do list.  Sometimes it's about taking those thirty minutes you don't think you can spare to have a meal in the park while listening to the birds sing.  Sometimes it's finding the time in a week to watch that show you absolutely adore, because it inspires you, or even just entertains you.

Sometimes it's not about doing something.  Sometimes it's about not doing something.

Unfortunately for me, right now it has to be about doing something.  The roses will be there when I'm done, though, and I'm looking forward to smelling them again.

Here We Go Again

So here we are again. Only a few short thousand words away from finishing my second novel of the month, and I'm starting to get exhausted, and yet exhilarated all at once. Never in my life did I ever think that I would actually finish three novels in a single month, and yet here we are, 20 days in and two novels done!

I have mixed feelings as I always do. First, I don't want to leave these characters. They're starting to really open up to me, and I'm starting to get the impression that there's even more going on in this world than even I was aware if, including one good guy that's really a bad guy, and one love interest who has currently set his sights on the wrong girl. Neither or which are something that I like to turn my back on, but as I don't have a sequel to this planned out and I do have a different novel planned out, I think we all know which one I'm going to do.

Before we go any further, I'd like to mention that yes, I am a freak of nature, yes I have been told that, and yes people have pointed to my nano chart and called it a mutant. Moving on.

The problem is that as my characters start to open up it's harder and harder to tear myself away from them. I want to continue their story to find out what else is going to happen. And whose going to end up together, because at this point I really don't know if it's who I originally thought would. Just like a reader who isn't satisfied with reading one book in a series, I find myself wanting to write more and more.

But I know I have to force myself out of that world for a while. For one thing, if I stay there too long I'm going to get sick of it, and then I wont want to write the entire series. For another, I have other things I need to focus on, much as I may not want to. I have other novels that I have started, and other series that are begging me for my attention. Besides, if I stay buried in the world for too long someone might report me as missing, and that would be really embarrassing when the police showed up at my house and found me frantically writing at my computer long after November ended. Just saying.

So despite how much I want to stick with it, I have to finish off these last few chapters and move on. I have to give these characters a chance to take a break. To breath while I work on something else for a while.

They can rest assured, however, as there's no way I'm not coming back to it. Not with all of these little twists that even I didn't predict.

Halfway to Salvation

Here we are, November 15^th, and we're halfway through this crazy journey we call NaNoWriMo. In the first week we found ourselves excited and wanting nothing more than to write those words. Determined that this year we were going to write that amazing book that was going to get published with the first draft. We went to all of the write ins, laughed with other writers, explained what we were writing, commenting on how great it was going to be in the end, and were generally hopeful and certain that we were going to win.

The second week is the onset of the second week slump. On a rather abrupt shift from the first week, this one was dotted with our own self doubt, threatening to give up on multiple occasions, and the general acceptance that this isn't the best novel in the world. While we still laughed at write ins, when asked what we're writing, the answer usually falls between 'YA' and leaving it at that and 'absolute crap.' This is nearly always answered with a remark from a fellow writer about how you can't expect perfection on the first try, and that you have to just keep going. You can edit it later. Usually a smile and nod was given when this is said while in our minds we're wondering how we're supposed to keep going when we hate our main character, there's no plot and you're not entirely certain that your villain is a villain.

Yesterday marked the beginning of the third week, and with the halfway point hitting, we are finally pulling out of that slump and accepting the advice that was given to us then. We're pushing past the block that had us telling ourselves that we are possibly the worst writer in existence and what made us think that we could actually do this? While we accept that we probably wont get the first draft published – or even allow anyone to read it – we're not quite so certain that we will never be published. In fact, we might even be starting to plan what we're going to do when it comes time to start editing.

Today many regions will be having midway bashes. Parties that (at least in our region) don't actually include any writing. This can be great, or it can be bad. For example, I'm behind for my goal and wishing I could just go home and get some writing done. At the same time, though, I'm so excited to go and see people (or meet people for the first time) that I'm willing to give myself the pass...even though it means that I will be writing non stop over the weekend.

At the bash, we'll probably talk about all the fun stuff, like the fact that week four is quickly approached, which is filled with frantic writing, as everyone is still trying to catch up from the second week slump and the mutterings of more than one writer swearing that they're so not going to finish, and how does anybody manage to get this done every year?

While I can certainly understand wanting to just keep writing, and not being willing to go out (I've become a hermit. I'm just lucky my boyfriend is also a wrimo and understands when I veto the movie and suggest we just get together and write...) I also have to express that taking time off is just as important as writing. Go to that party and commiserate with other writers fighting the same problems that you're having. Discuss those plots that you just can't figure out and listen to the suggestions other people give you, because they could have a fresh take that will completely inspire you.

Enjoy yourself. Don't think that you have to suffer because your writing, or doing nano. Because while it is about getting those words on the page, it's also about having some fun. You've got to have fun while you're writing. Don't get overwhelmed and let yourself relax once and a while. Your writing will be all the better for it.

There is Life Outside Nano

Today, for the first time this November, I actually have plans that aren't 'so...I'm going to write today...'. These are actual plans made with actual friends (most of whom are also doing nano, but I assure you, there will be no writing involved.) And I bet all of you can guess what is currently going through my mind.

When am I going to get my writing done?

I've been up since ten thirty, and of course I procrastinated for the first hour (who wouldn't?) by watching the latest episode Grey's Anatomy. (By the way...it was far too sad of an episode...just putting it out there.) Then, after realizing that I had just wasted an hour of the few that I had to do all my writing and get ready, I started to frantically write.

This may have been the worst day to pick for doing this, too, as I'm planning on doing the 11-11-11 challenge (write 11,111 words today) which is higher than my normal goal of 10k. Not by much, but enough to make me panic a bit, as I wasn't entirely certain that I would get that done today, never mind the higher goal.

Add to that this blog post. The challenge that a certain friend of mine (who shall go nameless...you know who I'm talking about) gave to me at the beginning of the month stipulates that I must put up a blog post every day. I can't take a break one day and put up two the next day, this has to be up today.

So now I'm panicking a little. I'm going to be picked up in three hours, and I have less than half the writing I need done.

Of course, the fact that I'm getting together with a bunch of writers doesn't help. Because of previous high word counts, it's not pretty much expected of me. So when I start to fall behind, people look at me in horror, and I feel almost like I'm ruining all of their hopes and dreams. As if by me falling behind they can't ever expect to catch up.

Okay...so maybe that's not quite true. But needless to say, I feel a little ashamed when I start falling behind. How can I set such high standards for myself and then not meet them? I feel like I'm trying to talk myself up and failing completely.

Regardless of that, however, I know that whether I get my words written or not, I've already won. 100K words in 10 days is far better than I did last year, and if I surpass my 154k from last year, then I can certainly be happy with myself.

Now if only I could relax and enjoy the day out...