I feel like I blinked and February is over. That's what happens when it's the shortest month of the year and I feel like I've done a lot. I also got sick, which was so freaking annoying, but it gave me a very good excuse to watch the Olympics. Also, people crabbing that the USA didn't win enough can go away. We got the gold in women's hockey after 20 years of losing to Canada. We got gold in men's curling for the first time ever. So what we didn't do that great in other categories? Part of that, like figure skating, is the fact that we need to up our program. Also, it would be great if the guys didn't fall so much but apparently I'm in the minority on that. Oh well.
Right, February review. Let's get back on track. Mystery of the Dark re-edits are done and it is out to readers! Readers who, at the moment, are enjoying it and put the idea in my head that Mark might be better as gay. To be honest, I've entertained that idea far too much in my head and it would be so easy to change Celestrina to Celestrino. That might be happening, which is great, and yeah. Book 1 is done until I get my reader's feedback so it's been put away.
Now, book 2 - Sleight of Hand - is still a bit clunky. I've got where I want to start, but the outline is still unfinished. I decided to start writing and see where I go with it. I know what I want to focus on, but this is the hart part of taking it out of my brain and putting it on paper. I need someone to get on the idea where you can just plug your brain in and it just spews out everything into a word document. That would make my life a whole lot easier.
Also, books! I finished World War Z which had a lot more realism than I expected it to. I expected it to be more zombie focus and less human focus, probably due to the movie, and it was the opposite. It was an excellent book and I have way too many parts highlighted but it was a ton better than the movie. I wish, instead of the movie, that we could have a TV series focused on the different parts of the book. Tell it in flashbacks or something, but yeah, it needed a better adaptation than it got. I also read, in a day, Dragonsinger because it's been a while since I read it. I can't remember where I left off in the Dragonriders of Pern series, but I'll probably figure it out soon enough. I do remember enough of the series so I won't be lost, so that's good too.
How did your February go? Feel free to leave it in the comments or hit me up on Twitter at CrescentLizzy. Until next time, happy writing!
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Coming Out of the Blanket Fort
One of the hardest things that I've found is being a writer and being sick at the same time. There is so much that I have to do but I can't do it. I have to sit there and be sick in my sickness and let it all go. Just let things drop and try to get better. It is stressful because all I can think about, while not napping, is what isn't getting done. The blog posts aren't getting done and my gratitude week self imploded. The editing isn't getting done. No writing is getting done. It's hell because I want to do things. I really do. I want to write the blog posts. I want to get things done. I just couldn't last week because that's how sick I was. It sucked. It really really sucked. There's no other way to put it, honestly.
So, here I am, on Tuesday, a week later, and I'm starting to feel normal again. I'm starting to pick things up again, like this blog, and get things done. I've got a to-do list, I'm feeling better, but there's also this question at the back of my head. I'm wondering how last week and feeling right now would have gone if I had pushed myself to get things done. If I had pushed myself to finish gratitude week or get the editing done, how good would it be? I wouldn't be able to give my all to my projects and that idea terrifies me a bit more than just not doing anything at all. It terrifies me not to give my all to my craft and put every bit of me into my writing or editing. Or even blogging. If I'm not giving 100%, what am I giving? How good will it be? How much will I have to go back and redo things because I pushed myself?
Underneath all of those questions is one more - how would I be feeling right now if I did that? Not mentally with my work but physically. I have a pretty nasty virus going on - I went into a clinic on Thursday and got a faint positive for strep but the culture came back negative - and I had no energy. I was sleeping and watching the Olympics with a little bit of playing World of Warcraft. There were times when even that was too much. So, in pushing myself, I don't think I would be feeling better now. I don't think I would be up and able to get my work done or even take care of the house as it is. Now, sure, I'm still not 100% physically but I am feeling that way mentally. I'm still losing my voice and coughing and all that fun stuff but at least I'm clear headed enough to work. At least I am ready to get things done.
And that, truth be told, is the best part about coming out the other side when feeling sick. To give yourself the time off in order to come back better. I know a lot of people can't do that because of the ways that sick days and PTO is set up in the United States but it would be nice if it was. It would be nice if we could get sick and take all the time we needed to get better. It would be nice to go to see your doctor, without the fear of it bankrupting you in case it turned out to be worse than a cold or strep, and getting your medicine without wondering if you would be able to eat. I think, along with a lot of other reforms, we need to start striving towards that. Let's make ourselves better first and then get back to work, with a clear mind and, hopefully, some clear sinuses.
See you all next week and, until then, happy writing.
So, here I am, on Tuesday, a week later, and I'm starting to feel normal again. I'm starting to pick things up again, like this blog, and get things done. I've got a to-do list, I'm feeling better, but there's also this question at the back of my head. I'm wondering how last week and feeling right now would have gone if I had pushed myself to get things done. If I had pushed myself to finish gratitude week or get the editing done, how good would it be? I wouldn't be able to give my all to my projects and that idea terrifies me a bit more than just not doing anything at all. It terrifies me not to give my all to my craft and put every bit of me into my writing or editing. Or even blogging. If I'm not giving 100%, what am I giving? How good will it be? How much will I have to go back and redo things because I pushed myself?
Underneath all of those questions is one more - how would I be feeling right now if I did that? Not mentally with my work but physically. I have a pretty nasty virus going on - I went into a clinic on Thursday and got a faint positive for strep but the culture came back negative - and I had no energy. I was sleeping and watching the Olympics with a little bit of playing World of Warcraft. There were times when even that was too much. So, in pushing myself, I don't think I would be feeling better now. I don't think I would be up and able to get my work done or even take care of the house as it is. Now, sure, I'm still not 100% physically but I am feeling that way mentally. I'm still losing my voice and coughing and all that fun stuff but at least I'm clear headed enough to work. At least I am ready to get things done.
And that, truth be told, is the best part about coming out the other side when feeling sick. To give yourself the time off in order to come back better. I know a lot of people can't do that because of the ways that sick days and PTO is set up in the United States but it would be nice if it was. It would be nice if we could get sick and take all the time we needed to get better. It would be nice to go to see your doctor, without the fear of it bankrupting you in case it turned out to be worse than a cold or strep, and getting your medicine without wondering if you would be able to eat. I think, along with a lot of other reforms, we need to start striving towards that. Let's make ourselves better first and then get back to work, with a clear mind and, hopefully, some clear sinuses.
See you all next week and, until then, happy writing.
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Monday and Tuesday Gratitude
Two for the price of one here because, like with all good intentions, I seem to off the road as soon as I got on it. I am fighting off the start of a cold or the flu or something but yeah, I am sick. It's not fun. However, we've got a plot twist coming up.
I am grateful for the fact that I can be sick and there are no big world ending things that'll happen to my life for being sick. A lot of people, like retail workers, cannot say the same thing and they usually have to go in sick. So do a lot of other people. The US is crap when it comes to PTO - paid time off - and it is hit and miss at every company you work at. Nobody should have to worry about money coming in or bills being paid when they're sick. They should be worried about getting well and making sure their family stays well when they're sick. This goes for any sort of illness - chronic, acute (colds and flu fall here), mental - it shouldn't matter how you're sick, just that you can get the time off and get yourself well.
So, yes, today, I am grateful that I could call yesterday a sick day and today too. Probably tomorrow as well but we'll see. Maybe, someday, we'll get to the point where everyone can relax and focus on getting better than on the fact that they need to work to survive.
Until tomorrow everyone.
I am grateful for the fact that I can be sick and there are no big world ending things that'll happen to my life for being sick. A lot of people, like retail workers, cannot say the same thing and they usually have to go in sick. So do a lot of other people. The US is crap when it comes to PTO - paid time off - and it is hit and miss at every company you work at. Nobody should have to worry about money coming in or bills being paid when they're sick. They should be worried about getting well and making sure their family stays well when they're sick. This goes for any sort of illness - chronic, acute (colds and flu fall here), mental - it shouldn't matter how you're sick, just that you can get the time off and get yourself well.
So, yes, today, I am grateful that I could call yesterday a sick day and today too. Probably tomorrow as well but we'll see. Maybe, someday, we'll get to the point where everyone can relax and focus on getting better than on the fact that they need to work to survive.
Until tomorrow everyone.
Monday, February 12, 2018
A Welcome to Gratitude Week
Hello! If you didn't know, this week contains Valentine's Day. In celebration of that, I am doing a gratitude week where, instead of complaining or explaining about something, I am instead going to be grateful. I'm not sure if I'm going to do it spur of the moment when I think of something and have it go up or if Monday's Gratitude will appear on Tuesday and it'll be staggered so we'll see. I thought it would be interesting to show a different kind of love rather than the traditional type of love that we see around this time of year.
Please feel free to join either in the comments or with me on twitter. You can always find me @CrescentLizzy and I'd love to see you join in.
Please feel free to join either in the comments or with me on twitter. You can always find me @CrescentLizzy and I'd love to see you join in.
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
The Woes of Outlining
An alternative title for this post was "Ranting About How Outlining Sucks" which might have been catcher. However, I am having issues with outlining and just butt in the chair in general. The re-edits for the first chunk of Mystery of the Dark book 1 is done, so why not outline book 2? And, you know, write it so you can be editing it while trying to push book 1 towards publishing? It all seems like a good plan on paper but, in practice? I am having so many issues here. Let's go through my top three with the problem and the solution.
Problem: The butt-in-chair isn't happenning - it's just not. I can think of everything else that needs to get done - like my laundry yesterday and the fact that I should go shovel Cookie's area outside (she's a short dog) and the dishes and and and.. you get the idea. It's not that they're things that need to get done right this second, save for maybe Cookie's area as it's just going to get colder in a few hours, but there's no reason why I cannot just sit in the chair and try to outline. And yet, I can still feel like I'm wanting to get up and go do something - anything - other than try to figure out where this book is supposed to go.
Solution: Write down the most exciting parts and then go do a house chore that needs to be done. In doing so, you might find the dot that connects the exciting parts together.
Problem: The butt is in the chair but there's other stuff to be done online - this is harder. This is a lot harder and I'm actually doing one of the butt is in the chair but yet I'm still procrastinating right this second by writing this blog post. So, thank you for being my procrastination. Or there's all those plan with me videos I could be watching or I could catch up with Lucifer or some other TV show I've got a back log on the DVR with.
Solution: Get an extension to Chrome or whatever web browser you are using and use it. Make sure all the sites you would go to procrastinate and your email is included in them. Do not put in Google because you might need to search for something. Hide your cell phone / put it in to airline mode so you don't use it as a go-around to get to a site. Then, set a timer or get an extension with a timer so you're dedicating a block of time to do what needs to be done.
Problem: I have no clue what the hell I'm doing and why am I a writer in the first place?! This is all going wrong.
Solution: Deep calming breaths, maybe some yoga, and either tea or coffee. More deep calming breaths. It'll pass. It'll pass and you'll go right back to being the kick ass writer you know that you are.
These are my top three. I have a lot more, but those are a lot more my own issues and related to the book itself. For those related to the book, the solution is all the same for me. Grab a notebook or a yellow pad of paper - I've been using a yellow pad a lot and love it more than a notebook - and start writing down what you need to figure out. For me, it was making sure that everything connected back to the first book and what I needed to get done plot wise in the series. It also helped to figure out my antagonists for each book and how to loop in the eventually insane end to the series. I hope that my top three problem / solution helped you and if you have any tips or would like some help with your own problem, leave a comment below or hit me up on twitter at @CrescentLizzy. Until next time, take care and kick some writing butt.
Problem: The butt-in-chair isn't happenning - it's just not. I can think of everything else that needs to get done - like my laundry yesterday and the fact that I should go shovel Cookie's area outside (she's a short dog) and the dishes and and and.. you get the idea. It's not that they're things that need to get done right this second, save for maybe Cookie's area as it's just going to get colder in a few hours, but there's no reason why I cannot just sit in the chair and try to outline. And yet, I can still feel like I'm wanting to get up and go do something - anything - other than try to figure out where this book is supposed to go.
Solution: Write down the most exciting parts and then go do a house chore that needs to be done. In doing so, you might find the dot that connects the exciting parts together.
Problem: The butt is in the chair but there's other stuff to be done online - this is harder. This is a lot harder and I'm actually doing one of the butt is in the chair but yet I'm still procrastinating right this second by writing this blog post. So, thank you for being my procrastination. Or there's all those plan with me videos I could be watching or I could catch up with Lucifer or some other TV show I've got a back log on the DVR with.
Solution: Get an extension to Chrome or whatever web browser you are using and use it. Make sure all the sites you would go to procrastinate and your email is included in them. Do not put in Google because you might need to search for something. Hide your cell phone / put it in to airline mode so you don't use it as a go-around to get to a site. Then, set a timer or get an extension with a timer so you're dedicating a block of time to do what needs to be done.
Problem: I have no clue what the hell I'm doing and why am I a writer in the first place?! This is all going wrong.
Solution: Deep calming breaths, maybe some yoga, and either tea or coffee. More deep calming breaths. It'll pass. It'll pass and you'll go right back to being the kick ass writer you know that you are.
These are my top three. I have a lot more, but those are a lot more my own issues and related to the book itself. For those related to the book, the solution is all the same for me. Grab a notebook or a yellow pad of paper - I've been using a yellow pad a lot and love it more than a notebook - and start writing down what you need to figure out. For me, it was making sure that everything connected back to the first book and what I needed to get done plot wise in the series. It also helped to figure out my antagonists for each book and how to loop in the eventually insane end to the series. I hope that my top three problem / solution helped you and if you have any tips or would like some help with your own problem, leave a comment below or hit me up on twitter at @CrescentLizzy. Until next time, take care and kick some writing butt.
Friday, February 2, 2018
February Goals
No fancy banner this month, just a list of what needs to get done. I'm in this place where black and white lists seem like the best thing right now. I'm also taking a mental health day, where the only thing that's getting done is this blog post, so there's that as well. I did a project last night that just took all my mental energy, even though I got paid, and I'm just not having it with doing anything today. So, that's that. I know I need to work better on it, but that's for another day and post.
This month, the goals are:
This month, the goals are:
- Mystery of the Dark re-edits
- Send out Mystery of the Dark to readers
- Start working on query letters
- Finish working out plot threads for Sleight of Hand
- Outline Sleight of Hand
- Start writing Sleight of Hand by the 16th-20th
- Read World War Z for book group
- Try to finish Magic's Price
The reason why this is a bit heavy on the Mystery of the Dark stuff is... I should have the re-edits of the second and the third chunk by the end of this weekend / next weekend. The re-edits, where I put in things that I might have missed, are going insanely fast. Like I blink between one edit and the next and I've jumped multiple chapters fast. The thing that's going to eat at my mental worry this month is the query letters because I'm only sending it out to readers who are going to be sending me love back in the form of their criticism. So, there's that. I really want to get Sleight of Hand to writing mode by the middle of the month, if not sooner, because the week where February goes into March, I will have very little responsibilities at home in terms of taking care of the dog. I want to channel the free time into writing time with a good mix of downtime.
So those are the goals for February. What are your goals for the month? Comment below or hit me up on Twitter and I'll catch you next time.
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