Juggling Multiple Balls While Balancing on a Tightrope

Life has been crazy busy these past few weeks. I've always been self-disciplined about setting goals and personal deadlines. I have no problem working toward one that's given to me. Actually, I like to send requested materials earlier than the due date because that's how I roll.

And I bet that makes my editors at Entangled Publishing very happy.

But here's a secret: I love revising. I LOVE LOVE LOVE fixing problems on the page even if the solution isn't always an easy one to find. So revising is like playing with my words and it's fun.

First draft writing? Um. Well. Twirl toe in carpet and look away. Um.  I like to finish the story so I can revise it and make it stronger. That's been a bit of a problem lately because the first book has a release date (stay tuned--I'm sharing it today). I've got to wrap my brain around revisions on book B, copy edits for book A, and how I will market the debut so that it succeeds.

I can't do it all in one day. Each book deserves my full attention, but now they're queuing up in a different order. I did give myself permission to work on my sequel to the MAVERICK'S RED HOT REUNION through this Sunday. I wanted to get a good handle on Caleb and Hannah before I put them aside to work on another round of revisions for my prequel to the debut novel.

So here's how I'm juggling and walking a tightrope.

I'm not.

I have decided that I will dance to a different tune every day, but I have scheduled my rehearsals so I can dance efficiently. Some days the music will be fast, and I'll have to move quickly, working on the projects my editor at Entangled gives to me first. Other days the beat will be slower. I'll use the time to flesh out my next story, staying on course until I finish the first draft. Having a rehearsal schedule allows me to play every day with my words at the best time for capitalizing on my creativity. It also gives me time to organize my marketing/business life when my inner administrator takes over my brain.

Of course, I've only figured out how to dance to my new writing life's tune. The housework will simply have to suffer. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for my career. And now here's the debut release date for THE MAVERICK'S RED HOT REUNION!

Drum roll....  JUNE 30TH!!!  Super squee time!!

Are You a Lark or an Owl?

After the Amazing Email that changed my life, I went about the business of wrangling a new world. First the website had to be revamped, then my Tumblr account, the blog is brand spanking new thanks to the College Kid, and I have awesome new business cards to give away at Nationals.

At first I was so busy getting to know my new publishing home, joining groups on Yahoo, reading about other debut sales, and more that I barely had time to write. And I get kind if twitchy when I can't write. Really. Twitchy.

I cleared my desk of all the technical, business issues slowly and steadily, but I was frustrated by the brain drain of my creativity. Fortunately, I had already started revising a book before we went on vacation in May, and I had signed up for a very cool plotting class with Suzanne Johnson (more about that in another blog). So while I knew I have two new stories to write for 2014 for Entangled Publishing, I also know myself well enough that I need the proper planning time to do it. So instead of stressing out about what was expected, I decided to focus my energy on the current revisions during the plotting class.

I harnessed all my creativity for this class and the manuscript I was revising for another reason: it's summer in the South and everyone is underfoot. The Physicist is taking extra time off work, the College Kid is in and out of the house at odd hours, and we're all traveling more. Plus there's the 2013 RWA National Convention just around the corner which entails a lot of pre-planning and prep. Not a lot of time to generate new story ideas, but plenty of time to work with words that have already been written and need revision.

The first thing I had to do was reevaluate my schedule. It's so easy to get sucked into the Cyber Vortex of emails, new Yahoo Groups, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and my latest obsession Vine. But if I do that I lose precious writing time. I'm best in the mornings, but I won't stop going to my morning Zumba Classes so what's a writer to do?

This writer starts writing early. At 7AM I'm usually up and at 'em. I write for 2 hours with a breakfast break, then I get ready for the gym. After my workout, I get ready for the day and grab lunch, then I sit down to write for 2-3 more hours. After that there isn't much left in the creative well. That's when I bumbled my brain through the business side of writing (and the Linda Howard Contest).

This rhythm has ebbed and flowed over the years. I'm a Lark Writer. I'm most productive if I start early and finish early. I have another writer friend who is the complete opposite of me: she's an Owl Writer. Often times she'll be signing off Twitter when I'm signing into see if there are any #1k1hr writers who want to sprint write with me.

I've always been a Lark. The College Kid is an Owl. The Physicist just wants coffee and a trip to his cave. Tell me, are you a Lark or an Owl?

Buzz Buzz Busy Bee Needs to Get More Energy

As I progress further down the road toward my ultimate goal of publication, I have discovered that my energy needs a boost. This writing thing takes a lot of creative energy. There are certain drains to my creative energy. These are my current creative energy drains:

1. Anything Tech--last week I had to go over building my web pages with Florina Craven of THINK FLOW DESIGN. I'm so glad I am NOT trying to build  one myself. This requires way too much energy and stops the creative flow.

Lesson: Delegate stuff you hate doing to people who love to do it!!

2. Anything Family: My family is super important to me. I like spending time with the Physicist and the Teen. And the Teen is graduating so there are a lot of holes to plug and t's to cross and i's to dot. This is HIGH PRIORITY. But it is energy draining. My solution? Write when they're not around or go away to write. They can't drain me if they can't find me. It's not selfish. It's self-care. But when I am with them I am fully with them. I'm not disengaged.

Lesson: Schedule writing time to fit your lifestyle demands.

3. Emails/phone calls/social media/blogging all drain my creative energy. I'm easily sucked into the social media world. It is my "water cooler." But I have to put into place rules to maximize the benefit over the energy lost. This means setting a timer, only tweeting and doing status updates during writing breaks, and blogging less. I also don't answer the phone unless it is the school calling. I make phone calls after I'm done working FOR THE DAY. Not during breaks. It is too easy to get sucked into a conversation that lasts too long. The only calls I make during the day are calls which are required by the office hours of medical offices and insurance companies and I schedule them for Mondays. I call them "MEDICAL MONDAYS." Fortunately, haven't had too many of them lately. I am also blogging less. Stay tuned for less of me on the blog and more of me writing books.

Lesson: Use a timer and set a schedule which puts you in charge of social media and phone calls.

4. People. I love people and I have a lot of energy, but I can get drained as well. So I have to pick and choose who I am with and when I am with them. I give myself mini breaks and hang out with non-writing friends between projects and on the weekends. This is a better way of recharging my life.

Lesson: Say no when people want to take up your writing time. Say yes when you have time to socialize. Be in charge of your time and own it.

5. Health. If I'm not exercising and eating right I become grumpy and surly. I need to do both to be a better writer.

Lesson: Take care of yourself or you won't be able to write. Make time for your health. Schedule workouts and plan healthy meals.

It's not rocket science. It's called making your life and your body and your writing a priority for you. And yes, life happens. It does. This morning I had to set aside my goals because the Teen needed help with a printing issue. That's okay. I immediately rescheduled my writing time and will still put in the hours I need to put into the writing later.

Final Lesson: Be flexible and learn to go with the flow and rhythm of the day.

What drains you? What do you do to combat the drains?

A New Year and A New Perspective: I'm a Professional

Every year I reflect upon my accomplishments before I set forth new goals and ideals for the new year. I shared my methodology for developing new goals at the beginning of 2010. And I pretty much follow this method every year.

This year I sat down to write my list of twenty-five accomplishments for the year and wrote over forty! Why so many? Because I wasn't just reflecting upon my work/writing accomplishments. No. I was reflecting upon my life and family accomplishments as a wife, a mother, and a friend.

I'm proud of all that I accomplished as a writer, but I am also very proud of my personal accomplishments. It's been an interesting year filled with challenges. My hubby had a hip replacement surgery, I taught my daughter to drive, I said goodbye to my father-in-law, I hosted friends and family for visits, I traveled from here to NYC with my daughter on an epic road trip to tour colleges, I recommitted myself to building a community in my new city in Alabama, and I explored new places.

This was a great year.

As I sat down to renew my focus for 2011, I realized that with all the different hats I wear, I can no longer limit myself to just one set of 5 Top 5 Priorities. No. I am officially a full time writer with many goals, priorities, and commitments. I am also a mother, a wife, and a friend. These two areas of my life need to be separated and treated differently. Therefore, I see myself as a career writer who needs to organize her life accordingly.

And so I made two top 5 priority lists for this first quarter. Each list will be reviewed every quarter. And even better, my darling hubby agrees that I need help with the household duties because I am "working" now. Now I have two master schedules. A schedule for writing and handling all the marketing/business/volunteer duties alongside my household schedule. And the family minions, Darling Teen and Darling Hubby will help with household tasks.

It has happened. By taking myself seriously as a writer, and by gradually increasing my workload and my commitment to my dreams, I have become a professional career writer. Sure, I don't get paid (not unless you count the quarters I pay myself), but I am a professional. And the proof is in the way my family and friends view me. I'm not just that lady who hauls her teen to voice lessons or who does laundry. Nope. I'm the "writer in the family."

And I like it.

Self-respect. Taking myself seriously. It means being taken seriously by others.

Try it this year. Respect your goals, your ambitions, your hopes, and your dreams. You might discover that others in your world do the same.