Fall Musings
Is still doesn’t really feel like fall. It’s going to be in the high 80s today. The sky is clear and bright blue, and even the trees seem to be confused, their colors stalled between green and orange and red. I know it’s bad, that the weather shouldn’t be this summerlike in mid-October. This time last year I was on a fall hike with some friends and it was misty, foggy, and FREEZING. I loved every second of it. Yesterday I wore shorts. But the light is different. Thinner somehow. The earth’s rotation has put the sun at a different angle, one that says “Autumn.” The weather, and thus nature, just hasn’t caught up. This time of year is always one of transition. Summers are for revisions remember? Maybe I pump out a short story or two (or four!), but largely I spend the summer months finishing up manuscripts for…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #40
Okay. Look. This post is late, and I’m also running late on my final proof for Victoria, so I’m gonna keep this brief. Last Week Victoria Revision #2 Read/workout 30 minutes a day Edit + post podcast Survive Homecoming Week How’d I Do? Victoria Revision #2 Yes! All the substantial edits are done, and now I’m in the proofing process. Wooo! Read/workout 30 minutes a day Yes! It was a very active and busy week, and I definitely burned some serious calories. Edit + post podcast Yep and yep. The new episode is out now! Have you listened in yet? Survive Homecoming Week I’m here, typing, so I guess I survived? I’m still exhausted and vaguely sore (from dancing for 3 hours straight), but it’s over. I made it! Weekly Word Count: 0 Honestly? The week was such a blur, I have basically nothing to say by way of reflection. Last week…
Top Shelf Librarians – September Episode OUT NOW!
It’s that time folks! Get ready to shatter all your preconceived notions about Librarians, because the Library Pros™ are back, babeyyyyyyy! You can find the new episode (or catch up on our backlog!) on the Listen page, or by clicking this link. And if you like the show, don’t forget to rate and/or review! Enjoy, Blogland!
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #39
Look, I’m keeping this brief because I’m sleepy and stressed about the week ahead, for reasons that will become all too clear as you read on. Enjoy my impending nervous breakdown! Last Week Victoria Revision #2 Read 20 minutes a day Write 1500 words Record podcast How’d I Do? Victoria Revision #2 I made good progress, but did not finish it. There’s still a bit of work to do. Read 20 minutes a day Yep! You can read about how the Trevor Project reading challenge went in my September Recap. Write 1500 words Nope. Record podcast Yes! It will be out on schedule, this Friday! You can catch up on the most recent episode here. Weekly Word Count: 381 Hey man, it ain’t zero, which is about all I care about when it comes to word count right now. When it comes to revision, word count just isn’t a good metric by…
The Recap – September 2022
I gotta say, the view from my desk does NOT look like October. Like, at all. It’s blue skies, a lovely 74 degrees, and the trees are still entirely too green. It feels like the end of summer, not the first, fledgling days of Fall. But how things look and feel ultimately have little impact here. Time trudges on, and the goals go with. So let’s get to the good stuff! September Goals Write Victoria Query Package Rough Draft Read 20 minutes/day Finish Victoria Revision #2 How’d I Do? Write Victoria Query Package Rough Draft Yep! I actually got this to a point where I think it’s closer to a final draft. I’m comfortable sending it out to an editor in the shape its in. Read 20 minutes/day Yes! More on that in a bit. Finish Victoria Revision #2 Close! I am very very close to getting this revision done (3/5 goals completed!). Total Word Count: 3,997 September…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #38
Someone needs to get ahold of whoever is in charge of time and tell them to take a chill pill. I cannot keep up with this calendar, folks. It’s going TOO FAST! Is Ricky Bobby at the helm of this year or what? Last Week Victoria Revision Pass Write 1500 words Read 20 minutes a day Prep Newsletter How’d I Do? Victoria Revision Pass Hahahahaha *sobs* No. Write 1500 words Nope. Read 20 minutes a day Yep! I’m still working my way through The Story of the Hundred Promises, but the Ghost Files series premier came out on Friday and then Trev and I spent Saturday playing silly video games together and split a pizza. I have no regrets. Prep Newsletter Yes! The newsletter is written and scheduled and will be out before this post is published! Weekly Word Count: 870 Look. This isn’t the greatest word count ever. But it…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #37
It’s Monday, y’all. You know the drill. Last Week Victoria Query package Rough Draft Read 20 minutes a day Write 1,500 words Writing Admin How’d I Do? Victoria Query package Rough Draft Yes! This was one of those things that you dread and put of because you think it’s difficult, and then you sit down to do it and it’s cake. Read 20 minutes a day Yep! I’m making slow and steady progress on The Story of the Hundred Promises, and I also read a graphic novel, The Crossroads at Midnight. Write 1,500 words Not quite. Writing Admin Yep! There was a bit of time spent last week on short story submissions, revisions, and querying. I’d fallen behind on a lot of it because school started and I’ve just been so wiped when I get home. But I’m all caught up now! Weekly Word Count: 1,216 Honorable Mentions There were a handful…
It’s Saturday.
Which, historically, means very little for the blog. I don’t write any special posts or even tend to spend much time on the site. Saturdays are personal days. I don’t write, I might read, but mostly I play video games and lounge around with the spousal unit. Especially since the pandemic. Today though, is a very different kind of Saturday. There’s the usual Saturday Morning “Coffee at Your Table” through Willamette Writers, where a bunch of writer types hang out on Zoom and shoot the shit. I’m helping run those meetings these days, and I couldn’t be happier about it. They are one of my favorite traditions to come from the COVID era. But after that I need to return some pants to Goodwill, buy dog food, and then there’s the Willamette Writers Salem Chapter meeting in a nearby park. It’s the first in-person meeting for my chapter since March…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #36
Well, as anticipated, the start of school threw me for a loop. Y’all. Kids are a lot. And add to it that I had to checkout a chromebook to every single student in three days? I’m exhausted. Or, at least, I was by Friday. Luckily, this weekend was very relaxing and I’m feeling fairly high energy as I write this. I promise that isn’t just the Cold Brew talking. Let’s take a look at what happened last week: Last Week Victoria Query Package Rough Draft Read 20 minutes/day Write some fanfic? How’d I Do? Victoria Query Package Rough Draft Nope. One might even argue that I actively avoided this. Read 20 minutes/day YES! And yes, I’m counting fanfic. If I tell students it counts as reading, then it counts for me too. I read A LOT of fanfic this past week (was it mine? Maybe….) Write some fanfic? Yes! I FINALLY returned to…
Goals Summary 2022 – Wk #35
I’m having trouble pinning down all the things I did last week. What did I plan to do? What did I actually manage to accomplish? Thank goodness for planners and whiteboards, or else I’d never be able to tell you! Last Week Finish Victoria Revision #1 Query Package Rough Draft (Letter + Synopsis) Read a book Edit + post new episode of Top Shelf Librarians How’d I Do? Finish Victoria Revision #1 YEP! And boy does it feel good! Query Package Rough Draft (Letter + Synopsis) Lol, nope. Read a book Yep! I finished reading Gallant on Saturday and I loved it very much. Edit + post new episode of Top Shelf Librarians Yep! The new episode is out now! So give it a listen if you haven’t yet. Weekly Word Count: 606 Not too shabby, methinks. Especially considering how busy my work week was. God, it was so busy. Busy enough to leave me…