No progress on my WIP since I decided to work on something different. One of my big problems is something that’s becoming a time suck. Here’s the background. I got hooked on Big Fish Games about three years ago, and so did my late best friend. I tried to use moderation when playing, though. Before I was diagnosed with diabetes, I had been feeling so tired and sleepy all the time, that I had stopped even enjoying playing Big Fish games. Since I’m feeling better now, I’m suddenly into them again. I mean REALLY into them. It’s so easy to sit at the computer and say, “Just a few more minutes, I have to finish this level or find this object, or…or…. Anyway, I need to seriously step back from these games. I got my mom hooked on them and that’s almost all she does anymore. They are ADDICTIVE. It’s all about self-control. I’ve learned to exercise control with my eating habits, which is the hardest thing in the world, so there’s no reason I can’t do the same with these games. It’s either cut down or go cold turkey with them. I NEED to get serious about the writing!
Posts Tagged ‘writing’
I Need an Intervention
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged addictive games, big fish games, ROW80, wasting time, writing on January 30, 2013| 24 Comments »
The Office Project
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged decluttering, productive writing, writing, writing office on January 28, 2013| 19 Comments »
Yesterday I posted that I could be a lot more productive in my writing if I could get my office looking nice and uncluttered. You know, so it doesn’t feel like the walls (and the junk) are closing in on me.
The first step was to get rid of the television that was in the floor of the room. It was one of the big ones, not the flat screen. It weighed about 200 lbs., lol. My mother decided she wanted it, so she and my brother came to get it. Hubby had already put his shoes on to help my brother carry it because hubby said it was a two man job. My brother picked it up like it was nothing and carried it out. 🙂
The next step will be to get rid of the Bowflex, which is taking up more room than anything else in the office. I haven’t used it in forever, preferring the weights at the gym where I don’t have to change a bunch of stuff around for the next exercise. I thought someone where hubby worked was going to buy it, but he didn’t. I would be willing to give it away, but hubby probably won’t.
I would really love to put a different floor in there. The carpet is light blue, and it used to be my oldest son’s bedroom. Need I say more? But that will have to come later. When I can afford it.
What about the rest of you? Do you have a writing spot that helps, or do you just write wherever you can? Does the atmosphere where you write affect your writing?
Sunday Update 1/27/13
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged ROW80, WIP, writing, writing office on January 27, 2013| 22 Comments »
Well, there’s nothing really to report in the writing area. NOTHING. I’m beginning to think I need to work on something else instead of my current WIP. Most of you know this is the story my husband thought of. In order to go on, I think I’m going to have to ask him for some more input. I know the basics of what is going to happen, but I don’t know what to do in between the main points. I thought it would be easy to write this story, but it has been really, really hard.
I have two more ideas in my head, one for a book, and one for a short story. I thought maybe I should work on the short story for awhile and see if that sparks my writing interest again. And I might even have to put the current WIP on hold and write the book that’s in my head, which is a ghost/murder mystery. I’m not sure what to do, but what I’m trying to do right now just isn’t working.
Another thing I need to do is get my office in order. We moved our old computer desk (with computer) in there, and there’s still a Bowflex, a treadmill, and another thing my mother-in-law gave us (I have no idea what it’s called). I have to get this exercise equipment out of my office. Oh, and the cats’ litter box is in there, too, but there’s not much I can do about that. That’s the room they get locked up in when we aren’t at home. Which is much better than outside in their cage. I’m surprised hubby agreed to that. Well, he didn’t really agree. It just happened that way. 🙂 Anyway, I think fixing my office up to look nicer would help make the atmosphere more conducive to writing. I wish I could rip out the carpet and put down some other kind of floor, but one thing at a time.
I hope everyone else is doing better than me!
Sunday Update (Where there’s not much to update)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged exercise, losing weight, ROW80, WIP, writing on January 20, 2013| 13 Comments »
I’m not sure why I’m even posting today. There’s really not much to tell. Between being sick and having company every evening, I just haven’t gotten anything done with my WIP. But I feel better now, and the company will be less frequent, so it’s time to get back to work tomorrow. And back to exercise if I can work out without coughing.
Btw, I lost another pound. 🙂
Sunday Update 1/13/13
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged blood sugar, exercise, health, row80 update, weight loss, writing on January 13, 2013| 17 Comments »
Well, as I mentioned Wednesday, I had a couple of good writing days. However, I woke up Wednesday with a sore throat and was kind of miserable traveling back from Baltimore, a ten hour drive. I’ve been sick since then, so I haven’t really felt like writing. I did go out for dinner last night for my birthday (a few days early) with family and a couple of friends, but I coughed so much last night I couldn’t sleep. I seem to feel better during the day and miserable at night. I’m not going to beat myself up over the lack of writing because I know what crap I would have written while I was feeling so bleh.
On the health front, my blood sugar is doing great on the 24 hour insulin. I SO hope I can get off of it or at least cut down the dosage. I’ve lost about 10 lbs. in the last month, so I’m happy with that. I didn’t walk on the treadmill on Friday because I felt so bad, and I really missed it. So exercise has become a habit that I miss when I don’t do it. That’s a good thing. I want to keep up with the treadmill through the month of January, then add back the weight work in February.
Okay, enough talk. I’m going to rest for awhile now….
My Snarky Voice
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Snarky, Snarky humor, writing, Writing voice on January 8, 2013| 14 Comments »
So here I am trying to write the story that started in my husband’s head. This started out as a really dark story. There wasn’t supposed to be any humor or light-heartedness. But I just can’t help myself. Although the story is a tragic one in many ways, I just can’t keep my remarks to myself. Well, my characters’ remarks. I’m already writing banter between the reaper demon and the guardian angel. They are at odds with each other, but it wasn’t supposed to be snarky. But it is. I guess that’s how it’s going to be. I really hope my husband isn’t disappointed at how the story is going. But I have to write in my own voice. and it’s sometimes a little snarky, even in the darker books. So that’s how it is.
Goals for ROW80 Round 1 2013
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged goals, ROW80, row80 goals, row80 round one, soul of a vampire, time goals, WIP, word count goals, writing, writing goals] on January 7, 2013| 18 Comments »
The last round ended up during a time that was very difficult for me in many ways. I won’t go into all of that since most of you know what all happened. But it’s time to move on and get my writing mojo back. 🙂
This round starts at kind of a hard time since I’m out of town on business for the next three days. But there’s absolutely no reason I can’t write at night after all the lectures and receptions and networking. I have nights to myself here in my room, so there’s no excuse not to write.
My main goal is to write one hour per day, five days a week. Some days that might be 250 words, some days it might be 1,000. I’ve worked better with time goals rather than word count goals, although I will be keeping up with word count on a spreadsheet. I would really like to finish my WIP during this round.
My secondary goal is to get Soul of a Vampire out in print. This should have been done already. I think I already have it formatted (it’s been so long, I forgot if it’s finished), and Anya already has my cover ready. So this goal should be easy to achieve. I don’t rush the print versions because they don’t sell nearly as well as the ebooks, but I do have one reader that always waits on the print version. I would put it out in print for that person alone.
My non-writing goal is to keep my blood sugar at the proper levels through diet and exercise. My MAJOR goal would be to no longer require insulin shots, but that might possibly be out of my control. My doctor says it doesn’t happen often, but it DOES happen. We shall see.
I wish all of you a GREAT Round One and hope you all meet your goals. 🙂
Whew, What a 2012!
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged 2012, 2013, epublishing, facebook, marketing, ROW80, writing, year in reflection on January 2, 2013| 15 Comments »
Looking back on last year, I can see so many changes, and not too many good ones. I lost my father, my brother-in-law had a heart attack, my mother-in-law found out some distressing health news, and I discovered I had diabetes, which had apparently been going on for some time. Other things have happened to friends and their families, not to mention the deaths of church members. But life happens the way it happens, and I trust God to sort things out, because I’m sure not qualified to do it. Through all the bad things, though, there are so many ways I’m blessed…way too many to list. As an optimist by nature, I believe 2013 will be a great year, full of blessings and happiness.
I hope that this year will be the year book sales will take off. There are so many strikes against us now since the market is glutted with SO many ebooks. It’s much different than it was in 2009, when e-publishing was still shiny and new, and there wasn’t as much competition. The key is to write good books, but you always have to find ways to help people find your books. This year, I need to focus a little more on marketing. I don’t believe in the kind of marketing that annoys people, but I need a plan. There’s a saying, “build it and they will come”. But you have to let people know you built it. I’m terrible at marketing. My cover artist, Anya Kelleye, has found a nice group of friends on Facebook, and she’s gotten some extra business because of it. I’ve been saying how much I DON’T like FB, but many people are finding it’s a good way to market without being pushy. Just getting yourself out there. I’m going to focus on it a little more and hope people will stop sending me requests to do this or that or play this game. LOL.
This post got a little long-winded, but it’s my first of the year. I wish so many good things to all of my online friends. And there’s a special place in my heart for my fellow ROWers. I feel so privileged to have met you all, even if it’s only a virtual meeting. Happy New Year to all of you, and best of luck for 2013.
Sunday Update 12/16/12
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged diabetes, ROW80, writing on December 16, 2012| 21 Comments »
I’ve put my writing on hold until the next round. I’m spending this time reading my literature about diabetes and trying to come to terms with the fact that this is going to be my life from now on. Testing my blood sugar twice a day is going to be a challenge for a writer, since I’m sticking my fingers. However, they aren’t really as sore as I thought they would be. Maybe it won’t be too much of an issue. I’ve had two doses of my medicine (it’s once a day), and my blood sugar is down some, but not as much as I would like. Maybe it takes a little while. I think my medicine is the kind that actually makes the pancreas produce more insulin. I need to read up on it. I’m also on blood pressure medicine. 😦
I’m an optimist by nature, so I’m NOT going to let this get me down. I just need to take care of it. And I promise there won’t be numerous blog posts on diabetes and how it’s affecting me. No one wants to hear all that. Just maybe a mention every once in a while to let everyone know what’s going on.
So, how has YOUR writing been going? I’m still interested in hearing about you. 🙂
No spamming. I promise!
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