On a Roll

The words flow from me and I’m working hard on a number of projects.  I finished and published Wayfarer Evolution.  I’ve got other manuscripts edited and I’m hoping to get them on the computer soon.  In the meanwhile, I’ve started – or restarted – this story I’ve had in my slush pile.  I’m 55K into the manuscript.  

Over the weekend, I wrote 21K words to pull the story along.  I can see later scenes and see how the story will unfold.  I’m not sure on the climactic scene yet or if this will be a series.  I am sure I like the story.
All week I’ve been adding to this story by leaps and bounds.  Tonight I crept along rather than leaping.  I stopped at one point because I wasn’t sure where the story was going.  I came home and normally I’m opening my computer and shooing the people away.  Tonight it was more – okay I can write.  
The problem – I still wasn’t sure how the scene was going to go.  Instead of leaping into it, I opted to go back and read through the story.  I updated my character list as I had missed some.  I corrected misspelling, grammar, typographical errors and so on.  
I got to the end and I still wasn’t sure but I started writing.  Every other night I could tell you I added 3K or 4K or whatever to the story.  Tonight I added about 1500.  I aim for a minimum of 50K and I’m past that.  Now I’m going to write till the end of the story.  If I’m any judge, I’ll probably end up with 15 – 20 K more.  If I write this weekend, it is probably the amount of work I can get done in the weekend.  However, I never know where the characters will take me.
This is the time I want three or four of me to be able to do all the tasks I need to do.  Some of my other tasks are creating patterns to submit to the magazine which pays for them; editing; publishing; marketing as I’ve been adding my books and patterns to Mogul, Ravelry (just patterns), and Pinterest.  I should be putting out review requests but I am struggling at this point because I feel like I’m not getting enough writing time.  
I keep reminding myself I can only do what I can do.  I’m hoping I’ll keep this juggling act going and get it all done.  It’s June and I have to think about the goody bags and the basket for the raffle.  I may have to edit tasks to get everything done.  
It’s my hope I can keep moving forward and not get stressed by the long to do list which is rattling through my head.  I keep reading the list and crossing things off.  One thing at a time – it’s the only way.  

Coupons, Crocheting, and Juggling…

After I finish a manuscript and switch to something else, I feel like I’m not accomplishing anything.  I have to remind myself there is more to life than writing. 

Sunday, I spent the day listening to an audio book and going through the stack of coupons.  Since my stack was so large, it took me most of the morning to go through them.  I got the three piles done (one for me, one for my middle daughter, and one for my Atlanta daughters).  I talked to my middle daughter for a bit to sooth her pre-test nerves. 

Ken came home from helping his sister with a car that wouldn’t start and we had lunch.  I worked on a throw and finally finished it last night about 8:30.  I started another crochet project but realized I had done the first row wrong so I have to tear it out and start over.  I like the pattern, I just got the count wrong – at least that’s my hope because otherwise the pattern is screwy.  It’s a new book so it could be the pattern but I’ll try the first row again tonight. 

I’m still listening to Obsession in Death.  I’m up to chapter 13 and enjoying it.  Robb does a good job in drawing in the reader and even though this is the 40th book in the series, it is still an interesting story. 

I have editing to do.  I’m trying not to think about writing so I don’t get more manuscripts to edit but the third book in the Defenders is calling to me.  I know what the next two or three scenes will be.  I just need time to write them.  However, I also want to make sure I get the editing done.  I’m juggling again, juggling projects for both writing and crocheting. 

Often I feel like I have too many things to do and not enough time to do them.  That is when I remind myself it will all get done in time.  I have to remember to not be too hard of a boss to myself.  I get annoyed when I know I should do things – like marketing – and find myself opting to do things I know I like more – like writing.  It is a matter of balance. 

Back to the salt mines…

My to do list did not get to done… but I did relax and spend some ME time while I was off.  I’m actually looking forward to going back to work.  I know I have a lot on my desk – it was there when I left.  I also know that the moment I step into work the stress level will be quite high with all the political stuff going on.

I’ve spent the last five days organizing and sorting through writing stuff.  I have it more the way I want it now and hopefully that will last – I just have to maintain it now.  In going through I’ve gotten a couple of ideas about what I want to do with a few articles and hopefully I will have time to get those done. 

I didn’t get to write at all.  I need to get back to that.  Hopefully that will happen this week and I can move forward with the manuscript I am working on.  I didn’t get any work done on any of the other manuscripts either.  I think if I’m not in the mood to write I’ll go back to editing those so I can move forward on getting them published. 

As I said – my to do list didn’t get done and those are still on my mind.  I would like to get those projects submitted to a couple of places though so I can move on to other projects.  I have about a half a dozen in the works… it is just a matter of time and motivation to work on them…