Back to it
Y’know, I’m eventually going to have to just stop titling these unless they actually have special meaning and just date them. I don’t know. Maybe add something along the lines of Goals for Week [Date to Date] and bookend it with Accountability for Week [Date to Date] for record keeping. Meh. Future me problem.
We had the kickoff to busy season over the weekend. Well, technically busy season starts in September with Mabon (Autumnal Equinox), but thanks to how this past summer went, we’re moving behind on everything. Honestly, we probably won’t be caught up with the day-to-day and seasonal stuff until we hit the dead months of January and February. Even then, not making any guarantees. Especially considering we started making plans for things to do throughout the fall and winter to get ready for spring over the weekend. Sawdust is in my future. So. Much. Sawdust.
But you’re not here for any of that. You’re here for the writing stuff. Well, there really isn’t much to say. My goals remain the same: 6 manuscript pages per day divided between 3 projects Monday-Friday. Rinse and repeat. Yes. Writing is so glamorous, isn’t it…
I’m actually making good progress using this strategy. Is it fun? No. Is it easy? No. Is it working? Yes. Here’s the thing. The fact is, this is a job. It isn’t all fun and games. Waiting and relying on the whims of the muse is a fool’s gamble. At the same time, it’s madness to deny her. I’ve quite literally written an entire first draft manuscript in a month once because she took hold of me and wouldn’t let go. That became what I consider to be my best work, which won’t be released any time soon…
As far as the current projects go, thanks to keeping with this consistent strategy, I’m moving forward. Across the 3 projects I’ve finished roughly ¼ of my middle grade monster academia, will be passing 18,000 words against a planned 95,000 (roughly speaking) in the dark YA urban fantasy today, and should reach the first 6,000 against a planned 100,000 words (again, roughly speaking) in the YA contemporary drama today as well. Everything is progressing at a rate that suggests that I should be able to start sending things off to beta readers starting late December after that little red and green winter holiday is over, with a view to publish the dark YA in February/March.
But the fact is, it’s October and 18,000 words < 95,000 words by, oh, 77,000 words (y’know, just a whole freaking novel worth of words unto itself!), and instead of working on getting those, I’m writing a blog.
See you Friday!
