Hello Again!

Hello everyone! Long time no see!

It's been a little over a year since my last post on here! My life has been busy with work and family obligations, and that unfortunately means I haven't written anything in a long time. I'd like to try to change that this year.

I know I can't make grand promises about writing prolifically. My work and family life is still quite busy, and consistently failing to meet my goals will only discourage me. My goals need to be small and reasonable. 

Goal 1: I will blog a minimum of once a month.

Goal 2: I will write at least four pieces of fiction this year.

That's where I want to start. Hopefully making this pledge public will help motivate me.

The Insecure Writer's Support Group-January 2022

 

It's the first Wednesday of the month, and that means it's time to convene another meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group! Our leader Alex J. Cavanaugh has recruited another wonderful bunch of co-hosts for this month: Erika Beebe, Olga Godim, Sandra Cox, Sarah Foster, and Chemist Ken.

Be sure to follow the IWSG website for great writing advice! The winners of the latest anthology contest are also being announced today, so be sure to check that out!

Rather than answer the optional question for today, I'd like to talk instead about resolutions. Yeah, I know, talking about resolutions in January isn't original, but it can still be quite helpful.

Some of you may have noticed that I haven't posted as part of IWSG for a little while. I wouldn't be lying by saying I've been busy. My kids and various other things have kept me quite busy. 

One thing I've been trying to do is lose weight and get back into shape. So far I've lost a little more than twenty pounds. I still have quite a way to go before I hit my goal, but I feel like that's a good start. Between focusing on that goal and juggling life with my kids, I've let my focus on my writing slip. Maybe it's easier to take the quiet moments I do find and use them to relax rather than motivate myself to put words on the page. Not that there's anything wrong with taking some quiet time, but I need to do a better job with how I manage that time. I need to motivate myself to get writing again.

So those are my resolutions. Continue improving my physical health, and carve out the time to write more. I know I can do it. It's just a matter of making it happen. Writing this post is one way of holding myself accountable and making things happen in 2022.

Have you made any resolutions for yourself?

The Insecure Writer's Support Group: July 2018

It's time for another meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Our host Alex J. Cavanaugh has recruited another bunch of fantastic co-hosts for this month: Nicki Elson, Juneta Key, Tamara Narayan, and Patricia Lynne. 

Be sure to check out the IWSG website!

Before I get to the optional question for this month, I'd like to announce that the Normal Deviation anthology is now available for purchase.  My short story "Becoming Death's Personal Assistant" is part of this wonderfully weird collection.

Here are some purchase links for anyone who may be interested in getting a copy.

Ebook:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Paperback:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

You can also add it on Goodreads.

Now on to this month's question.

What are your ultimate writing goals, and how have they changed over time (if at all)?

I first realized I wanted to be a writer when I was six years old.  I used to look at the bookshelves in my childhood home and marvel at all the exciting stories contained within those pages.  I diligently began to scrawl my own imaginings on a stack of wide ruled notebook paper.  The results were largely incomprehensible.  My vocabulary was limited, the spelling wasn't always the best, and I had no idea how to construct a paragraph or use most punctuation marks.  Nevertheless, that was the beginning of a lifetime love for writing, and it started because I too wanted my books to sit on bookshelves someday.  I wanted to be able to see my work for sale in bookstores.

That goal has remained firmly in place, and I've been working toward it ever since.  Now I can happily say that I have a number of short stories published, as well as a few novellas, all of which sit on my bookshelf at home.  I will continue writing, and hopefully one day I'll walk past a novel I wrote in a physical bookstore.  I think that's a goal a lot of writers share.

What are your ultimate writing goals, and have they changed over time?

The Insecure Writer's Support Group: February 7, 2018

It's the first Wednesday of every month, and that means it's time to gather for another meeting of The Insecure Writer's Support Group!  Our leader Alex J. Cavanaugh has assembled another wonderful group of co-hosts: Stephen Tremp, Pat Garcia, Angela Wooldridge, Victoria Marie Lees, and Madeline Mora-Summonte.

Be sure to check out the IWSG website!

I'm feeling pretty excited about my writing progress lately.  My goal for my WIP last month was to reach 45k, which I did a few days ahead of schedule.  Once I did that, I decided I wanted to see if I could hit 50k by the end of the month, which I did!  My word count at the end of the month was 50,657.  Woohoo!  That means I wrote about 20k last month alone, which is really good for me.

I am now publicly stating my writing goals for February.  It worked out well by holding me accountable, after all.  My goal is to reach 65k words by the end of the month.  My larger goal is to complete the rough draft of this novel by the end of April.  I really think I can do it if I keep up this momentum.  I'm trying not to think about all the revising and editing I'll eventually have to do, because I'm worried that will hinder my progress.

Now let's move on to the question of the month!

The question for February is: What do you love about the genre you write in most often?

The genre I write in most often is science fiction.  My stories vary.  Some take place in the far flung future, or in space, or both.  Others take place on Earth in modern times and come with a super weird science fiction twist.  My current WIP falls in line with this last description.

What do I love about science fiction?  It's filled with possibilities.  As a writer, I can enter any world my brain can conjure.  I can also use those strange places and scenarios to ask interesting questions about the nature of being human and what kinds of challenges we as humans could possibly face.  I love asking these kinds of questions and exploring the answers, and it's even more fun when I can do it on a space ship or on the surface of an alien world.

What genre do you write in most often, and why does it speak to you?

Celebrate the Small Things-December 1, 2017

It's Friday!  Let's Celebrate the Small Things with Lexa Cain!  Tonja Drecker and I are her co-hosts.

My boys excitedly wrote out their Christmas lists for Santa this week.  I'm so proud of how much they've learned and what a good job they did writing those lists.  I'm also impressed with the sheer number of items they put on there.  Santa is going to have his work cut out for him.

I set myself some goals for the month of November.  While I didn't do NaNo, I still wanted to challenge myself.  The goal was to write a complete rough draft for a short story and add 15,000 words to my novel.  How did I do?  Well, I did indeed complete the rough draft for that short story.  On that front I was successful.  And how about my novel?  How many words did I add?

Drumroll, please.

I added 15,o37 words.  I didn't blow past my goal like I'd hoped I might early in the month, and for a little while there it seemed possible I might.  Then Zoe's birthday and Thanksgiving happened, and I lost some momentum there.

Still, I achieved my goal, even if it was only by the skin of my teeth.  It's still a win, and I'll celebrate it!  And I'd like to congratulate anyone who made it through NaNo this month.  I admire you for that.

And finally, I'd like to celebrate these little beauties that came in the mail.  Earlier this month, I learned I'd won a Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children boxed set through a giveaway on Goodreads, and I just received it this week.

Also, the 2018 Young Explorer's Adventure Guide is coming out, and I just got my author copies in the mail.  Aren't they pretty?  

If you'd like to learn more about the book, you can check it out on Goodreads.

What would you like to celebrate?

Express Yourself: February Goals

The Express Yourself Weekly Meme is made possible by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests.

The question for this week is: What goals do you have set for yourself this month?

This is a good question, because I've set my sights high this month.  At least, as high as I can while still making sure my two boys don't get themselves into too much trouble.

First of all, I'll mention an important goal that has nothing to do with my writing. I've been looking into finding a decent used car for $3000 or less.  It doesn't need to be fancy.  It just needs to run and have a backseat for hauling kids around.  We never got around to replacing the Buick that spontaneously combusted on us in October 2012, and I think it's about time we did.

As far as my writing is concerned, I've set the goal of completing the first draft of my WIP by Valentine's Day.  I hope I can do it.  If not, then at least I hope I can do it by the end of the month.  You see, I've arranged for tiny little saboteurs to come to my home and make my life miserable if I fail in this mission.  Though if they mess with my coffee supply, we'll have major issues!

I've also signed on for three fun blog hops this month.  The first is The Bloody Valentine Blog Hop on February 14th.  It's hosted by A.F. Stewart, and it's all about love gone wrong.  It should be a lot of fun coming up with something for that.

The next is the Ubuntu Blog Hop, and it's running from February 18th through the 21st. This gives participants plenty of flexibility in deciding when to post, which is always nice.  This one is hosted by Michelle Wallace, who has now been blogging for three years.  The purpose of the hop is to capture the essence of ubuntu, and it's up to you how you decide to do that.

The last blogging event of the month that I've signed on for is WIP: The Movie. This one is being co-hosted by Kyra Lennon and Rachel Schieffelbein, and it takes place on February 28th.  For this one, we're being asked to cast actors to play the characters in our WIP, and to post pictures of them.  We're also being asked to come up with a soundtrack.  This sounded like a good bit of fun to finish out the month.

One other goal is to keep plugging away at my posts for A to Z.  I've finished all of them for this blog, but I'd like to get a few of them done for my other blog, Warped Nerdiversity, by the end of this month.  I have my subjects selected for each post.  It's just a matter of writing them out.

And last but not least, I'd like to look into doing some freelance writing and editing work to earn some more cash.  As life gets more expensive, I must search for more income.  That's just the way of things, I suppose.  If any of you have any advice for me in this realm, I'm certainly open to it!

Anyway, with such a busy month ahead, I'd better get to it!  What are your goals for this month?

Express Yourself: Self-Improvement

The Express Yourself Weekly Meme is hosted by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests.

The question for this week is: Is there anything you'd like to change, or work on, about yourself this year?

I think we all have those things that we'd like to improve about ourselves.  My main issue is that I'm not confident enough.  When it comes to my writing, I second guess myself all the time, and sometimes it's almost crippling.  I try to put myself out there as much as I can, which is why I started this blog.  Even so, I think I could accomplish more if I didn't spend so much time feeling inadequate.  Yes, I have a lot to learn, but if I let myself give up before I try, I'll never learn what I need to know to be successful.

I need to tell myself that I can do it.  Every day I need to focus on my goals instead of the reasons why I might fail.  I know that focusing on failure instead of the possibilities will only doom me to failure.

I know where my insecurities come from, and I know that I want to do everything I can to overcome them.  Sure, we all have our moments of doubt, but we can't let them define us. This year, I want to do everything I can to stop my insecurities from defining me.

What would you like to work on in the coming year?

Musing About My Writing Goals

This week, I'm feeling pretty good as far as my writing is concerned.  My muse is sticking with me for the time being, and I'm pleased about that.  My current WIP Silent Soliloquy has been challenging for me, so while I haven't made the kind of rapid progress I would like, I still feel like I'm making steady progress.  If all goes well, I hope to have the rough draft done by Valentine's Day.  I'm going to do all I can to adhere to that goal.

I've also finished all of my A-Z posts for this blog, and now I plan to start the posts for my other blog sometime soon.  I have the topic for each post selected, so hopefully those will come together for me relatively easily.

The weather here is awful, and probably won't be much better tomorrow. Perfect weather for staying inside.  Hopefully that will keep me motivated.

What are your goals for the week?  Has your muse been kind to you lately?

Insecure Writer's Support Group: December 2013

Wow.  Is it really the first Wednesday of the month already?  Time sure is slippery that way.

Anyway, it's time once again for the monthly meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Our esteemed leader is none other than Alex J. Cavanaugh.  His minions for this month are Julie Flanders, Heather Gardner, Kim Van Sickler, and Elsie is Writing.

Also, feel free to swing by the IWSG website!

A quick note: The IWSG posting for January 2014 will be on January 8th.  Yes, that's the second Wednesday of next month, but since the first Wednesday is New Years Day, we may all be too busy recovering from our celebrations to post and visit one another.  Besides, ninjas need days off too.  Being stealthy isn't as easy as it appears.

Anyway, my insecurity this month has to do with goals.  Specifically, with such a busy month in which I will be celebrating Christmas and New Years (and shopping for these festive occasions), how should I set goals for myself?  If I set a daily goal, I may feel bad when I have a day where I simply can't get any writing done.  And let's face it, December is a month where that's bound to happen.  A weekly goal may be more doable.  Or perhaps a goal for the month as a whole will work best.  Then again, I may not feel motivated enough if I have a whole month to get it done, and by the time Christmas rolls around, I'll be kicking myself for not being more demanding of myself.

Or perhaps I shouldn't worry about it at all.  Maybe I should do what I can with my writing and not be too hard on myself this month.  After all, there's already going to be plenty of holiday stress as it is.

What do you think?  What are your writing  goals for this month?  How are they impacted by this busy time of year?  Do I sound crazy in my insecure ramblings?

Musing About My Busy Writing Week

I usually do these posts on Monday, but my blogging schedule for this Monday is so busy that I decided to put this up a day early.    

This past week I resolved to work on my A-Z posts, and I did.  I'll admit, I didn't get quite as far as I'd hoped, but I did get some good work done.  I have no real reason to complain.

I finally decided that I do want to enter both of my blogs in the A-Z challenge.  I even selected a theme for my other blog's A-Z posts and completed a couple of them.  The posts for my writing blog will require more work on my part, but I hope I'll be able to offer something interesting in those other posts as well.  

My goal for the coming week is to complete my A-Z posts through the letter I for both blogs.  Ambitious, maybe, but I think I can do it.  I also need to remember to sign up when the linky list goes live.

It's going to be an insanely busy writing week for me, but I just need to keep telling myself that I can do it.  I know I can.  It's merely a matter of believing I can do it and not making any excuses.

Do you have any specific goals for the week?

Plans for the Week

My muse isn't angry with me right now.  We seem to be working together harmoniously this week.  Then again,  it is only Monday. 

I have a few simple goals for this week.  It will be a lot to accomplish, but not so much that I don't think I can handle it.  Last week, I completed posts A, B, and C for the April A-Z Challenge.  This week, I hope to get three more done.  So here I come D, E, and F!  Maybe I'll do more if the inspiration is good to me in that area, but those three are the ones I am promising myself I'll do.

I'm also toying with the idea of signing up my other blog for the A-Z Challenge so I can get more traffic for it.  If I do, I need to come up with an idea for relatively simple, short posts.  Doing something complicated for both blogs might kill me.

I'm also going to work on the WIP I dug out again last week.  I'm hoping to get at least a couple thousand words done on that.  I know I can do it if I put my mind to it.

Then, of course, I'll stick to my normal blogging schedule.  There's plenty to do, but I'm feeling motivated!

What Are Your 18 Things?

I decided to join in on the What Are Your 18 Things? Blogfest because it sounded like fun.  Jamie Ayers is hosting this event to celebrate the upcoming release of her book 18 Things.

The idea is straightforward.  Sometime between January 17th-24th, blog about your bucket list.  Don't have one?  Then why not write one?  A bucket list can be a good source of motivation.  It helps you organize priorities and focus on what's important.

So, here are my 18 things.

1. Have a book published the old fashioned way
2. Visit Australia
3. Visit the UK
4. Own a house
5. Go skydiving
6. Take flying lessons
7. Go up in a hot air balloon
8. Own a writing desk (somehow I've been meaning to get one for a long time but it just hasn't happened)
9. Go to a sci-fi convention
10. Meet Neil Gaiman
11. Meet Neil deGrasse Tyson (wow, I must like Neils)
12. Be interviewed on TV or in a major publication about my writing
13. Go to Adult Space Academy
14. Give my kids a fun family vacation.
15. Make sure my kids get a good education
16. Learn Klingon
17. Meet an actor who's played The Doctor
18. Go into space (I know this one's extra ambitious, but with private industry making plans for commercial flights, it's not impossible)

There's my list!  Some items are more ambitious than others, but I think it's a pretty good list to keep me motivated.  What items would you put on your bucket list?

Express Yourself: Resolutions

Look out!  It's the return of the Express Yourself Weekly Meme.  Hosted by Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and Dani @ Entertaining Interests, this meme gives us an opportunity to share a little of ourselves based on weekly prompts.

January 7-11: What are your 2013 resolutions?  If you don't make resolutions, then what's something you're looking forward to in 2013?

I tend to keep goals and resolutions separate.  If I set a specific goal for myself as a resolution and fail, it feels like I've failed for the whole year regardless of what else I may have accomplished.  I think I'm already hard enough on myself without giving myself more reason to be disappointed.  That's why I resolved to have a certain attitude for the coming year.  I already wrote about this in an earlier post.  Feel free to check it out!

Nevertheless, if I had to make a more specific resolution, it would be this one.

Image courtesy of nuttakit
 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Creation is the process of self-discovery.  That's why I write.  When I write, I let a part of myself loose on the page, and once it's there, I can look at it.  Make some kind of sense of it.  Once I've become aware of something in myself I hadn't previously known, it changes the way I see myself, therefore changing me a little in the process.  That's why the creative process never ends.  You change a blank piece of paper, or a blank canvas, and it changes you in return.

The creative process is reciprocal.

That's why I found this quote so profound.  For me, it means resolving to be creative.  That's my process for getting to know myself.  Hopefully that's a resolution I can keep.

Also, I'm looking forward to the Blogging From A-Z April Challenge.  This will be my first year participating, and I can't wait!

Insecure Writer's Support Group: January 2013

One quick note.  For those of you who wish to read my entry for the No Kiss Blogfest, which is also going on today, click HERE to do so.

Welcome to 2013, and welcome to the meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Our esteemed leader is Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh, and this month he has enlisted a couple of excellent co-hosts: Jamie from Mithril Wisdom and Tyrean from Tyrean's Writing Spot.  Best of luck to you both!

So, this is a new year.  2012 was the year I decided to put myself out there through blogging and sharing my writing with a wider audience.  You've all been amazing!  I'm glad I found such a great community of writers and readers.

Now I'm trying to decide what I want 2013 to look like.  This is where most of my insecurities are coming from right now.  A lot of people have been posting a list of goals for  2013.  I already have an idea of what projects I want to work on this year, but I'm not going to post a specific list here.  Instead, I want to adopt a specific attitude about writing this year, because at the end of the day, it's a lot easier to achieve your goals when you have the right attitude (or "write attitude") about work.  Therefore, I've written myself a little pledge.

A Writer's Pledge

I am a writer.

This will not change.

I will write each day,

even if only a little.

I will read when I can,

and I will keep learning.

I will accept critique.

I will look at criticism

as a learning opportunity

and I won't be discouraged.

I will keep blogging.

I will keep sharing.

I will encourage others

and congratulate them

on their successes.

Jealousy has no place here.

I pledge to thee,

my pen will be free.

It may not be the most eloquent of pledges, but I think it's a good declaration of the attitude I want to have for the next year.  It may not be easy, but nothing worth doing is easy.

If you were to make a pledge, what would you include?

Oh, and a quick reminder!  My Beginnings Blogfest is a week from today!  For those of you who don't know about it, click HERE to check out the details!

Musing About 2012, Looking Ahead to 2013

As this year ends and a new one begins, it's an opportunity to simultaneously look back and look forward. That's no small task, as a year holds immense possibility.  The way I see it, 2012 had 366 days, which means there were at least 366 opportunities to do something life changing.  In the year 2013, there will be 365 more opportunities.  If I look at the coming year in this way, I may be proactive in the way I need to be.

I started blogging on January 9th of 2012, and since then I've gone from a virtual no one to having nearly 200 followers.I can't wait to reach that milestone!  I've written just a tad over 300 posts.  This is my 301st post, in fact.  All in all, I don't think that's too shabby.

I'm also rounding out this year with a brand new blog, which is appropriate for the start to a new year.  Thanks to Tara Tyler for designing it for me, and thanks to David Powers King for hosting the blog fest that allowed me to win such a great prize!

I started writing flash fiction in May, and since then, it's become a weekly thing. I post new flash fiction each Friday, and now I also post Five Sentence Fiction on a weekly basis as well. Doing these things forces me to write even when I don't feel like it.  And it's crucial to be able to push past those slow days if you want to be a successful writer.  At least, that's what I hear.  A lot of my fiction has actually been serialized and shared, with the world in flash fiction length snippets.  Through doing this, I've learned a lot about pacing, plotting, and the necessity of letting the story take you where it wants to go.

Of course, when you set goals for yourself, there's always the possibility of setbacks.  I set the goal of self-publishing a book in 2012, but I still haven't done it.  Don't get me wrong.  I have plenty of it ready to go.  I simply underestimated the demands of life at home.  Oh well.  I still intend to achieve this goal.  It'll have to happen in 2013.  The only time you fail is when you give up entirely.  I refuse to quit.

I know that the calendar is largely arbitrary.  Yes, we make our calendar years equal to the amount of time it takes to go around the sun, and that's a smart system to use.  Yet, we could have kept the year the same length and decided the new year began in July.  It would be all the same in that sense.  And similarly, there's no real reason to decide the beginning of the new year is a chance for a fresh start.  That's a meaning we attach to the new year.  As human beings, we're great at filling things with meaning.  We celebrate holidays and anniversaries because we attach meaning to them.

Even so, as a writer, I attach significance to fictional events in a similar way.  In a way, filling things with meaning is what I do.  So, in that respect, I am more than allowed to be retrospective at this particular time.

For now, my goals for the coming year are simple.  I hope to keep up with my blogging, accomplish the goals I didn't complete in 2012, spend time with my family, and keep writing!  I hope my muse sticks with me for another year.

What do you hope to do in 2013?

Spaceships and Blogfests

Some good things have happened for me this week in terms of my writing.  First of all, the lovely Mina Lobo @ Some Dark Romantic selected my sci-fi poem Boundless as a finalist in the Resurrection Blogfest.  Go HERE to find links to all the other awesome entries that were selected and vote for your favorite one!  I think they're all great, so good luck making such a difficult choice.

I have a lot going through my mind right now in terms of my writing.  I'm still plugging away on my short stories as much as I can.  I've also been thinking as far ahead as next April.  Though I was blogging at the time, I didn't participate in last April's A-Z challenge.  I guess I just didn't feel comfortable enough with my blogging at that point to tackle such a big commitment.  Now that I'm a more confident blogger than I was a few short months ago, I know I want to join in on the fun next year.  I also know I want to post a novella in installments like I've seen some others do.  Heck, I even outlined the basic premise of the story, though it's not a very detailed outline. I know enough about it though to know that I'm looking forward to writing this one.

Also, inspired by the host of blogfests I've seen successfully done by my great blogging friends, I want to host one in January 2013 to celebrate my one year blogoversary.  I don't have all the details sorted out yet, but I'll let you all know when I do.  I'm a little nervous about hosting a solo blogging event, mostly because I'm paranoid no one will sign up.  However, co-hosting IWSG this month gave me the confidence to give it a try.

So, that's my life.  Planning, scheming, getting whatever work done that I can. Now I'd better climb into my spaceship to whip up some sci-fi adventure!  See you all soon!

Free Gifs and Animations

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

Welcome one and all to another Monday!  They come around so quickly, don't they?  After the weekend we had around here, I feel like we need a second weekend to make up for the craziness of the first.

So far today, I haven't done a whole lot of writing.  I posted my entry for Kyra Lennon's "Letting Go" Bloghop, though I did that before going to bed, so that doesn't count for today.  Either way, if you haven't already, hop on over to her blog and check out some of the entries!  Mine is the post directly below this, in case you're interested in checking it out.

Though I can, in part, blame Kyra for my lack of writing so far today, though by no means in an angry way.  I downloaded my copy of If I Let You Go this morning, and I started to read it while my youngest took a nap and my oldest was occupied with a movie.  I got through it all in one sitting.  The characters were believable, easy to identify with, and I genuinely cared about their struggles.  It's a quick and engrossing read, and I highly recommend it.

Anyway, in regards to my own work, my brain has been tragically overwhelmed after the events of this weekend.  We finally got the car towed away after selling it to a salvage place.  There's still broken glass and things to be cleaned, but it's something else that we don't have to deal with.

After I do some much needed housework and get the kids a bath (they played in the leaves and made a mess of themselves!), I'll settle in to write and schedule tomorrow's post.  Then I'll make myself some coffee and work on a story.  Come to think of it, I haven't had any coffee yet today.  How am I even still alive? 

My goal for the week is to finish the story I'm working on while keeping up with my blogging and everything else that's going on in my life.  I also need to polish up my Spooktoberfest entry, which I plan to post Friday.  If I pull that off, I'll be okay.

Sometimes life pulls us in odd directions, but that doesn't mean we should get discouraged.  I won't let myself get discouraged by the insanity we've been dealing with, because I can't afford it.  Luckily, writing and coffee ultimately work hand in hand to help me maintain my sanity.

Image courtesy of mistermong
 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The Power of Distraction

Here we are at the start of a brand new week.  And within the bookends of this newest week lies the possibility to achieve great things.  At least, this is what I need to tell myself.  This is the kind of thinking that will power me through my edits as I spiral dangerously close to the clutches of tedium.

My main issue for the last week has been maintaining the level of concentration I need.  The lure of future projects tries to pull me off course, tempting me with the new while I try to improve the old.  

Pleiades:  You're not disciplined enough.

Me:  Normally I'd argue with you, but sometimes I think you're right.

Pleiades:  Wait . . . what did you say?  Did you just agree with me?

Me:  After a fashion.

Pleiades:  Maybe I should start recording our conversations.  An admission like that doesn't come around too often.

My muse is far too confrontational sometimes.  I'm also starting to think I might secretly be harboring a muse of distraction somewhere deep inside my brain. Maybe I should set Pleiades loose on that one so I can get some peace and quiet for a little while.

In analyzing my progress thus far, I can confidently say this much.  Out of the 7 stories I plan to use in this compilation, only 3 of them still need major work. The rest just need a few minor adjustments.  Looking at it that way, life seems more manageable.  I can, and I will, do this.

Finishing this project, after all, is the only way I'll get to move on to the other projects that are trying to lure me away.

Blogspiration 16: Key to the Future

Blogspiration is a weekly meme hosted by GrowingUp YA& Saz101. The meme was created to help spark inspiration among bloggers, readers & writers alike. An inspirational quote/picture/video is posted weekly, on the day of the author's choosing, so that it may inspire creativity, conversation & just a little SOMETHING.

We all wonder what the future has in store for us.  The sense of fear and excitement the future holds for us stems from our uncertainty of the unknown. We simultaneously hope for the best but fear the worst.

How do we deal with this uncertainty?  How do we take our goals and implement them to find the future we wish for ourselves?  The future is, after all, this big block of time, and we never know how much time any one of us may have.  There is no way to tackle the future as a whole.

So, here's the key to dealing with the future.  Remember these words, and it all becomes manageable.

Background Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I'll do my best to use this knowledge in striving for my goals.  Any time it all becomes too overwhelming, I can take comfort in the fact that it comes only one day at a time.