New Beginnings

Ha Long Bay 2009

Each  year I look back at the written list of goals taped to my desk. Some goals are always on the list. That doesn't mean I didn't accomplish them, some goals have no end point, such as being a supportive partner and a healthy person. Checking off a big goal always feels great. Looking back over the year and seeing check marks and lines drawn through a goal always makes me smile. I limit myself to ten big goals per year divided between Self, Family, Financial, Health and Community.

I don't make resolutions, I make plans. Each goal gets broken down in to tiny little baby steps. I don't get overwhelmed if I make tiny changes. I also know that small changes add up. Each day, I make sure that I have done at least one thing to move me towards my goals. It prevents me from becoming discouraged when life gets complicated. So many people say they want to write but don't write down their writing goals, fail to make a plan, and then wonder why they don't accomplish their goal.

If you want to accomplish a goal, make a plan. Break your plan down into small steps. Don't discount the power of small steps. How small? When the kids were babies and I stayed home with them, if I managed to get 250 words written per day I was very happy. Even 250 words adds up, and keeps you moving forward. It can seem that life is conspiring with evil beings to thwart your best efforts to keep going. A parent becomes ill, a partner has surgery, your kids get sick, you get sick, the dog gets sick, and so it goes.

The key in all of this is to keep moving, as best you can. You might have to stop and take care of your family and yourself, but don't stop forever. Pick up your notebook and get going again, don't feel like you have to stop forever because you stopped for awhile.

As part of my planning process every three years, my partner and I sit down with a bottle of wine and markers and draw a joint three year plan on poster sized paper. We dream, get silly, drink, and have fun. I post the picture behind the door in my office, right over my big calendar that I talked about in this post about how to keep track of multiple projects





It is not pretty to look at, but when we look back at the old one when it is time to do a new one, it is pretty amazing how much we have accomplished. Why? Because we verbalized what we wanted to do for ourselves and for our family, which means we work together to support each other in our adventures.
It also reminds us what our priorities are, which means we funnel our time, energy, and financial resources into our plans and dreams. Making plans is the difference between accomplishing anything and accomplishing nothing.

 People get hung up making plans because they try and force themselves to conform and write a numbered straight list, editing themselves as they go, afraid of writing down what they really want to accomplish.

This year, loosen up, get out your big paper, markers, beverages of your choice, and have fun.
Dream big.

 Have a safe and happy New Year.

All I Want for Christmas

                                                   

 Every year I find myself more frustrated with the rampant consumerism and ridiculous advertising messages implying that what you spend equals how much you love someone.  I have always hated that part of Christmas, and the pressure I see people put on themselves to buy the perfect gift, whatever that might be. As the Grinch said, and I am paraphrasing here: Christmas doesn't come from a store.  

As a nurse, I have spent many holidays at the hospital watching families get the best gift of all, a new person to love in their life. I have held hands as families have let go of loved ones too. Remembering friends and family no longer with us physically, I am reminded that each year is a gift. 

This year, all I want is more moments like this, 

                                                                 and this.

Take time to enjoy your family and friends this holiday season whatever you celebrate! 

Keeping Track: Tips for Managing Multiple Writing Projects

It is not uncommon for me to have at four or five writing projects in progress. The gift of ADHD means that I always have projects. Some are large, long term projects such as developing my editorial calendar, manuscript drafts and edits, others are short such as website content and blog posts, and some fall in between, think short stories and journal articles. Although I love the reminder feature on my Google calendar, as a visual person I have difficulty conceptualizing time when it is represented by little boxes on a computer screen limited to a one month view.

Click here for my post on Creative Acts and Self Care

 I need to see it all. My solution is a twelve month wall calendar. I like a Write on/ Wipe off type, ever so helpful if deadlines, or project details change.
 I know some people are able to just work on one thing, and then move on to their next project, but my mind does not work that way. I need to be able to move to a different project when I get bored with what I am working on, and want to start something new (because new always feels good), going back to another project gives me the same feeling of doing something different, and yet it propels me forward in that task so in the end it all gets done.

Click here for my post on using flat files to keep my big projects organized

I also make notes in each file, listing the next steps to complete the project. For example, word count goals, scenes left to write or rewrite, necessary research, lists of of photographs/ images needed, correspond with a co-author, conduct an interview, follow up on an email, etc. I make these notes at the end of the manuscript and/or on the outline.  What, no outline? Read my post about outlines here. Outlines really are helpful.
I started keeping my Next Steps List when I was working on my master's thesis. It kept me on track so I could finish my thesis on time, using every second of time I had to work effectively.
 A Next Steps List helps in three ways:
 1. You know what you need to do next to move toward completing your project and can get right back to work after a break in writing, invaluable with limited writing time.
2. A Next Steps List clears your brain so you can move on and work on other projects without the distraction and worry that you are forgetting something.
3. Crossing out tasks as you finish them is a visual reminder that you are making progress. A visual reminder of your progress helps maintain motivation on long projects.

In addition to my other writing projects, I write this blog and am starting another in February. (Stay tuned for details).  If you are a blogger, or want to be one, the best thing you can do for yourself is to create an editorial calendar. An editorial calendar is simply a calendar that you use to plan posts that you want to write, give them publishing dates and plan your posts. Keep it loose, give yourself permission to change what your post is about if you don't want to write about that topic that week. Your editorial calendar allows you to plan in advance, gives you a place to park all your ideas for posts, and keeps you focused on your goals for the blog.

 Most writers deal with deadlines, family obligations, work, holidays, and travel. Having a long term plan will help you stick to your writing schedule, turn projects in on time, and increase your productivity.  Make a plan. Hatch your dreams. Keep writing.

Megan Hart's Lovely Wild_ A Year of Women's Voices

I met Megan Hart at the CNRWA Spring Fling 2014 conference. She was charming and hella funny. One of the things we talked about besides RVs and family vacations, was music and writing. I appreciate Megan's ability to write across many different genres. It is not often you find a writer that has a story for you, no matter what your mood. 

In Lovely Wild, Megan Hart's most recent release, Megan brilliantly tells the story of Mari, a woman with a past that does and does not define her. Over a summer spent in her childhood home, Mari discovers past and present betrayals, encounters her hidden history, and finds her strength in the love she has for her children and herself. Reminding us all that people can be so much more than they appear to be, Mari is a character that you will remember long after you close the book. Lovely Wild is a story of growth, redemption, and family secrets that will keep you turning pages with that wonderful edge of your seat feeling that comes with a well written suspense novel. Be advised, do not start this book at bedtime unless you want to stay up all night reading.

Megan includes playlists in each of her books that enrich the reading experience in a visceral way. If you have read Megan's other books, and let us be clear here, you should, listen to the playlists included, it is a way to enjoy the story all over again.  I had some questions about how Megan uses music when she writes and Megan has answered them here:

 1.    Have you always written / worked to music? 

Megan Hart: Yes! Honestly, the iPod was the best invention ever, because before that I had to make mix tapes and/or CDs and use them for playlists. So yes, I have always used music while writing.

2.     Do you sing along with the lyrics when you are writing? 

Megan Hart: Absolutely. And sometimes I dance.  

3.     Do you have playlists for certain types of writing? 

Megan Hart: Not necessarily for different types of writing, but definitely a different playlist for each book. The songs can be pertinent or somehow relating to the book or just what I happen to be into listening to at the time, but what’s so crazy is that when I look back at what songs are on old playlists, I can really sink back into how it felt when I was writing that book.

4.     How does music influence you? Is it a way to block distractions, or do you think that the mood created by lyrics / music enables you to get where you need to be emotionally for what you are writing? 

Megan Hart: Both. If I’m trying to write in a public space (which I had to do a LOT when my kids were smaller and I’d write in a coffee shop or the playground or whatever) the music definitely is used to block out the distractions. But also, when I put on something sad or happy or ethereal it really gets me into the spirit of the book. I have a long playlist of songs that stab me in the heart, and I listen to them to get where I need to be for the writing, because fortunately my default emotional setting is not woebegone angstmonster. So I have to find a way to dig into that, and music helps. 

5.     Have you ever written lyrics, or considered writing songs?

Megan Hart: I have. I write lyrics a lot, but I can’t read or write music, so it’s really not very productive! I wrote a song for a story that will be out some time in 2015 and someone did write music for it, which was amazing. 

6.     Do you listen to different types of music when you are editing versus first draft? 

Megan Hart: Not really. Pretty much the same throughout. 

7.     Do you listen to the same playlist each time you work on a project? 

Megan Hart: Yes, usually.

 8.     Does the music suggest the story, or does the story come you and then the music? 

Megan Hart: Story comes first, then I find the music that fits. There have been a few times when a song inspired something, or lyrics have prompted a scene, but usually the music is backdrop.

9.     What of music do you detest?

 Megan Hart: Jazz. I hate jazz so much. Jazz makes me want to stab out my ears. Modern jazz, I guess, all the boopdeleeboopedeedoo whatever. Once I went to a modern jazz band with my husband and I wanted to both die and kill everyone in the room at the same time, that’s how much I hate it.

10.  What kind of music is your favorite? 

Megan Hart: That’s a harder question to answer. I love such a wide range. I love classical, pop, hip hop, rock, hard rock, heavy metal…really, I love almost everything (except modern jazz.)

As a writer this is what I have learned reading Megan Hart:

1. Great stories do not have to be set in exotic locations.

2.  Internal dialogue is as important as external dialogue.

3.  Pacing is essential to building suspense.

4.  Create characters that are capable of doing the extraordinary when they reach the tipping point.

5.  Embrace the dark side of your characters, all of them, not just the villains.

6.  Emotions are never simple, don't be afraid to show exactly how complicated they are.

7.  Do not back off from social class conflict and social expectations, show just how deep and ugly they can be. 

 Mega Hart's new novel Lovely Wild is out now: You can purchase the book here or your favorite independent book store

For more information about Megan Hart and her books click here