Writer's Wednesday: #AmWriting

I am writing. At this point about 200 words at a sitting, once or twice in a day, and my story is growing. It's not a very good story; continuity is about what you'd expect. But that's not the point. I'm writing, and for 5 or 10 minutes at a time I am losing myself in the story, struggling to visualize a truly alien alien.

I have also made notes on two more chapters of Death By Donut, which brings me close to the end. I'm making notes on a part of the book I think will need a complete rewrite, but at least I'm getting clear on what I have and what will need to be kept, moved elsewhere, or otherwise modified.

I have also done routine maintenance on the blog, adding links to my posts from 2020 on the appropriate pages in the header. I'm still eying the mess those long lists are and thinking about organizing them--you know, reviews alphabetical by author, that sort of thing. The truth is, that's about a likely to happen as me color-coordinating my sock drawer (hint for those who don't know me: pigs may also fly).

My goals for the next couple of weeks: continue 1-2 paragraphs a day on the story, and finish the notes on the novel. And: make that LT edition of Death By Library. It really isn't that hard, and Mom's friends are waiting.

That's it. Plenty of goals for the next week or two. I'd like to promise more photos, but I can't make that a promise. I'm sharing when and how it feels okay.

One jagged, worn, but still beautiful iceberg:

Writer's Wednesday: Time evaporates

In the interests of putting things back to normal, at least as a writer/blogger, it's time for my regular "Writer's Update." As my title suggests, this might be a little embarrassing this week.

Seriously, how can it already be a week since last Wednesday and the IWSG post? Based on the amount I've gotten done (of anything productive, not just writing), it's been about 36 hours, and I've been asleep most of it....

I'm not going to beat myself up over that. We've been readjusting our household, not to mention going through the mental lag I always experience after extended travel. But I am going to use this to hold myself accountable for the coming weeks.

That's right: I'm setting some deadlines.

By the end of the week:

• edit and prepare my WEP post
• edit an additional story I worked on aboard ship
• edit 3 more chapters of the new Pismawallops PTA mystery, Death By Donut

For a larger deadline, I want to have DBD ready for Beta readers by mid-May. That will require some intense work, which is the point.

I have some other thoughts about marketing things I need to do, but I think this will do for now. Next week I'll post the goals for the following week (and the WEP story!). If I start meeting goals, I can add more.

So, if you see me over on Facebook... Can you chase me away? :D

PS--don't forget to check out the latest from the IWSG Anthology Blog. The release date for Voyagers is coming up fast!

VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost 
will be released May 5, 2020
Preorder now!

Print 9781939844729 $13.95
EBook 9781939844736 $4.99
Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure / Fantasy & Magic
Dancing Lemur Press/Freedom Fox Press


Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/ Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost

Writer's Wednesday: Looking Ahead to 2020

The future is approaching at light speed...

Last Wednesday for the IWSG I did my review of 2019 accomplishments and failures. This week, it's time to set some goals for 2020!

The first challenge: decide if I want to set aspirational goals or realistic ones (solution: set both, but know the difference!).

So my realistic goals:
1. Revise, edit, polish, and publish Pismawallops PTA #5, Death By Donut. The draft from November/December is open on my laptop, and I've begun the first stage (notes).
2. Write a flash for each of the six WEP posts. Even if I'm traveling.
3. At least one blog post/week, even when traveling. Ideally, I'd manage one review and one flash per month. I've already missed that one, but we can start from here, right?
4. Find at least one local event to sell books.

I think that's it for goals that I have really no excuse for missing.

My aspirational goals:
1. Submit one story/month for publication, minimum. Can average this, and can use the same story over.
2. Put together, edit, and publish at least one collection of my flash fiction.
3. Either draft another murder mystery, or finally finish Gorg the Troll's novel!

That's about as far as I can take my aspirations without being totally unrealistic. Our current travel plans have us away from home at least 7 months this year, much of that out of the country, almost all of it hiking. In my dreams, I'm putting out two or three books, and finally figuring out how the heck to promote them. In reality, I'm deciding how many pairs of socks I need to take to Patagonia. I'm okay with that :)

Try to stop and reflect from time to time.

©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2020
As always, please ask permission to use any photos or text. Link-backs appreciated!

IWSG: Long-term Goals

It's a 4th of July IWSG! Posting a day early so we can all enjoy the holiday. If you don't live in the US, you can enjoy it anyway--just eat some hot dogs or burgers, and make a bunch of noise.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! Be sure to link to the IWSG page and display the badge in your post. And please be sure your avatar links back to your blog! If it links to Google+, be sure your blog is listed there. Otherwise, when you leave a comment, people can't find you to comment back.

Let’s rock the neurotic writing world!

Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG

 The awesome co-hosts for the July 3 posting of the IWSG are Nicki Elson, Juneta Key, Tamara Narayan, and Patricia Lynne!

July 3 question - What are your ultimate writing goals, and how have they changed over time (if at all)?

I like this month's question, because it reminds me to look beyond the disaster my writing life is right now, while we pack and fix up and clean and plan and have zero time for writing or even thinking about writing, and think about the bigger picture. I am almost able to imagine that I will be writing again soon.

My writing goals have remained pretty simple: I want to keep writing, and publishing, roughly one book a year (seems to be about what I can handle). That's been true since the start, though it took a few tries to figure out how to do the annual book. What has changed is that I want to add more short stories into the mix, and start getting those stories published rather than merely sharing them on this blog. To my surprise, I haven't changed from being pretty happy with being an author-publisher rather than being conventionally published (for my novels). I still toy with the idea of finding the right book to plug to the agents, but I find I'm also pretty committed to continuing the mystery series as is, and I recognize that my ventures into fantasy (see: Gorg the Troll, whose book is still in rough rough rough draft form) are probably not commercial. I *like* making money at the books, but it's not essential. Writing the stories and finding readers is the important thing for me at this stage of my life.

I do toy with moving a bit into non-fiction: some of our adventures in the next few years may be worthy of publication, even if we aren't young people doing over-the-top things. Maybe the AARP magazine would like to share how retirees can get out and explore the world, even afoot!

Your turn--how are your goals doing? Do you set them deliberately, or do you only know what they were in retrospect?

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P.S. Since sales of poor Halitor the Hero remained lack-luster during the month of special pricing, I think I'll leave those sale prices in effect--just 99 cents for the ebook, and $7.99 for the paperback. 

Note: My ability to fill orders for signed copies will be extremely limited for the next year. If you want books direct from me, now's the time to order!