New facet of Chaos, or Katie's hyperbolic, mythic moving experience

For those wondering why I've been even more remiss than usual about regular blog posts, here is the reason - told in the (only slightly edited) words of the cause.  A happy cause it is, though.  Life is a positive flavor of chaos at Chez Wooldridge.  Helloooooo, Katie!!

xx

Passing the protective daemons resting with the dryads of this mystic land, I come upon my home for the unknown future.  The grand cathedral [Trish, here, is deeply moved by such a description of her crooked, humble, home] is adorned with angles, fairies, and protected by its four legged guards and their elfin comrades. [I really hope she's not considering Nylis a guard. Maybe Loki, and the ghost--hell, even the statue, of Miss Rhetta.  But Nylis?]

First, we chose the clean out the junk in the room I wasn't going to sleep in and turn it into a more cleverly organized storage closet and library. [It's still a work in progress.]  To do this I, as a monkey, ascended the stair to the attic where was found many a box, chest, and crate filled with hidden fortunes and forgotten memories.

Next was the ship…. Ohhh…. Wait!!!  The weaponry.  Must mention those. [Even I had forgotten the depth of our collection…]

In the storage closet stood all manner of weapons for this palace’s gallant warriors to wield as each practiced and sparred with the spirits of the wood, lain bare from Winter’s chilly wind.  We transported these to the Temple Viewing (TV) room and blocked this entrance, protecting what would protect us, with the rugs and coverings found within the room that was to be changed next. [Oh my… those who know my writing - I swear, I am blameless here.  This is ALL Katie.]

Next was found a white, well built, with the sturdiest logs and paint, book shelf. Moving it is highly silly to watch and was done by mainly myself. (I made a short video).

Once we removed from the windows of the adjacent room [Katie's near-future completed bedroom] what had been keeping the cold-winter out and sunlight from ever coming in a refreshing and cleansing sensation came over us and hot chocolate was the perfect for that moment. [To my editor friends: A discussion will be had about passive writing.] And so we share a moment by the Comfort Stove.

Tho' this be a wonderful place to rest, we must journey forward through our days...

Days later, at Home Depot, I had a challenge of choosing not only the new color but the design, finally deciding on nothing and arriving from the store with a new fire protector (lamp shade), spackle and paint supplies.

Once the ship [read as: Katie's room, I had to ask about the metaphor, too] was emptied was when the handwork began.  [And Katie got tired of writing, so she bulleted the rest.

Spackling:  Finding and sealing every hole and ding was a chore taking days.

Painting:  Two coats helped me keep my thoughts warm.

Furnishing:  Moving the bed took two of us and after this the rest was up to me.

Now, I am happy to see my new residence built to allow for freedom of motion to and from nature. [She has a balcony.]

My aery was made for flight and its motion felt when you sit in its center--being as the floor is tilted and the furnishings are placed as tho' the room were a circle. [She likes her room and is kindly making the most of the aforementioned crookedness of my humble home.]

Now, we work on making the rest of the house liveable… while I attend to my email slayage, deadline challenges, and journey demands.  Ack… the mythic hyperbole is catching!!  I better end this post now and get to bed…

The Great Recovery of 2012

It seems more of this year has been recovering:

Recover from Scott's trip

Recover from Arisia

Recover from Boskone

Recover from arrival of new roommate

Oh, yes, an old friend has moved in with me.  :)  I'm very happy about it, but there is a lot of work involved because my house really is quite a mess.

I'm back in that pattern of reaction as opposed to pro-action…

Or not… it was my invitation that brought Katie here, and part of that plan was some serious house fixin' work.  To make Scott's old room livable, I knew there would be a lot of work.  It was pro-active.

But now, I have to react to fit the rest of my life around this.

As it is, I'm going to have to work around much more travel than I planned: two extra international trips to visit Scott.

"Work around" sounds so negative… it's AMAZING to get this chance to travel with my Husband-of-Awesome.  It's an opportunity I can't miss.  But, I do still have responsibilities and deadlines (many of those new, too) that must be balanced around the opportunity.

My blog has not been as regular as I'd like, though.  I'm back to making it a work in progress.

I'll aim for Monday and Thursday updates for now.  That's about all I can promise.  There are too many Fridays that I am traveling and Thursday nights I'm prepping. 

I'll do my best to keep things updated… like, ahem, my website… for which I'll send my webmistress edits tomorrow night.  (And I'll see if I can sneak in a person-to-person visit amidst my errands tomorrow.)

In any case, it's another reinventing of my work, my job "title," and, in essence, my life.

And I'm happy to share it for all its lessons.

My blogging plan…

It's not working so well. 

Well, there's a post here when it ought to be scheduled, more times than not… but I'm barely hanging on, and there's been a lot of borrowing from other sources - look, the podcast!  Look - a cute cat!

I have a lot to say; I have articles in my head.

I have no time…

Little things around the house, reworking my whole schedule, fitting in this exercise and eating protocol… total time eaters.

I may end up just posting a photo of my houseguests on Friday.

Also - people near Worcester - sign up for the Writing Workshop I'm doing with two great friends this Saturday.  Today is your LAST DAY to do it. :)  Here's the info on how to register.

Part of the blog-eater is this workshop - so I'm sacrificing for you!

:)  Happy mid-week.

Happy New Year 2012 – Part 1

Yes, it's that wonderful time of year again!  Time to evaluate my 2011 goals and move forward with my 2012 plans.

I remember reading in one of the many articles I perused over 2011 that publicly setting goals actually hinders one's ability to get them done.  The psychology behind that is that the act of setting goals makes one feel "accomplished," and therefore slows or stops progress; we need a certain amount of stress to push us to go beyond just setting goals.

I'm ambivalent about that because every year that I've done this exercise, I've improved my business life as a writer.  On the other hand, I didn't meet a lot of the goals I set last January.

On the other, other hand (because I write spec fic and I can have more than two hands, damnit), a whole lot of opportunities and major changes redirected me…

See, I had this nice line of goals and steps set up, and then wooooo, that path took a 45 degree angle or something--starting not long after I even made said goals!—and while some of those steps and goals still fit on that line, a lot did not.

The Changes

Big Change 1: Spencer Hill Press

It started with being invited to co-edit this wonderful anthology for which I've been carrying around bookmarks and the first contributor copy around like my firstborn child.  Which it kinda is, being the first book with my name on the cover.  That, and it's made of teh awesomesauce of awesome.  (Go pre-order it now!)  It evolved into perusing the slush pile and adopting a manuscript or two to love and edit… which I need to ask Kate about the protocol for pre-publication gushing.

Big Change 2: Presidency!

Of Broad Universe.  Because, y'know, just running events and stuff wasn't enough.  I WANT THE WORLD!  FOR WOMEN!  WHO WRITE ALL SORTS OF WONDERFUL SPECULATIVE FICTION!  Ahem.  Yes.  I'm always very dignified about my responsibilities.  You totes should join our quest for world domination!

Big Change 3:  Calico Silver!

Ok, I claimed this last year, too, but I'VE NOW HAD A HORSE FOR OVER A FULL YEAR AND WE DID AWESOME STUFF TOGETHER!

Big Change 4: Concrete, Solidity on H-of-A's Deployment

Which I can only talk about a little for various reasons.  But it's big for both of us.

The Accomplishments

In planning for these posts, because they are always more than posts for me, I read back over last year's posts.  (Mind you, I really am evaluating myself and planning as I write this.  I'm a writer; I think best in writing.)  I admitted last year that I wasn't satisfied how I was tracking certain progress.  As I've learned more, a lot of what I was tracking is really useless info.

Here is just some of the highlights:

Starting with previously mentioned…

• Maintained horse adoption happiness.
• Edited an anthology. (That you totally want to buy, right?)
• Took on my first novel manuscript at Spencer Hill Press
• Became Prez of Broad Universe

What all else I did…

• Edited and updated another StraighterLine course
• Finished complete second draft of Kelpie and sent to Beta readers
• Published "Kali's Promise" in Epitaphs, the New England Horror Writers anthology
• Published "To Me You are Holy" in the Eye on Life: Poetry Locksmith
• Had "Fixed" accepted into Corrupts Absolutely? (due out March 2012)
• Had "The Unicorn & the Old Woman" accepted into Sauced anthology (due out 2012)
• Submitted 22 fiction/poetry pieces to various markets, agents, publishers (3 fewer than last year, but higher acceptance rate!)
• Guest of Awesome at Pi-Con
• Presented panels at Arisia, Conbust, Wiscon, Pi-Con, Dragon*Con, and Anthocon

And my usuals…

• Maintained position as food writer for Worcester Magazine
• Wrote and published about two dozen other pieces of non-fiction
• Edited more stuff for StraighterLine and Smarthinking
• Regularly tutored

There ya' have it. A highlighted list of 2011. Feel free to compare it to my goal-setting post and weigh it yourself, but really, I'm proud of it, and that's what matters.  Next post will be the goal setting, itself.

Too busy to blog…

Yes!  It's a New Year!

Yes!  I'm doing a New Year's Plan set of posts.

Just not today.

Why?

Because Scott's getting on a plane to the other side of the globe in less than 9 hours.

And that's what he and our living room look like right now.

Though - one New Year's Resolution will be my return to 3 blogs a week, so there will be one Wednesday sometime.  Where I'll share my New Year's Planning.

Christmas Week!

I baked nearly all my cookies last week… but I didn't finish or frost the ones that need to be frosted.

I still need to finish up my year end reviews for tutoring, too…

Oh, and I need to get back to the Spencer Hill Press Slush pile…

Needless to say, I'm behind on my plans from this post.  le sigh.

Also, outside of the Blizzard Hallowe'en, we haven't had any snow.  Not that I'm complaining (Dear Mother Earth, I am TOTALLY COOL with no snow!), but that means no cute winter snow pix of Calico.  I may be able to get a Santa hat picture of her tomorrow, but we'll see how behind I'm running to my lesson and how much light I've got.

So, you have some cute pix if the indoor animals. 

Now, I have to get back to that whole catch-up on work.

Tis the Season for Year End Self-Evaluation and Business Records

Wow!  It's freaking December already!

This week, I must:

Complete most of my Broad Universe Actionable Items.

Submit a Pub review

Meet with weight consultant

Meet with Worcester Writers Collective

Meet with Promotions & Advertising Coordinator for Broad Universe

Exercise at YMCA on Wednesday and Friday

Exchange Calico's Blanket

Review the Spencer Hill Press Slush Pile

Before Christmas, I must:

Finish tutoring evaluations

Bake cookies

Finish Calico's present (wood burnt name plaque)

By year end, I must:

Write yearly letter for Broad Universe & finish rest of Actionable Items.

Review & evaluate my 2011 plans

Create a Novel Friend business plan for 2012

Sit down with Scott to discuss a household business plan for 2012

Basically, aside from a few hours I might be able to use at Annie's Book Stop and at the coffee shop before my riding lessons, creative writing endeavors are on the back burner.

Sometimes you have to run triage as a freelancer and really focus on what needs to be done the most and leave other important things, or the pretty, shiny things you want to work on, by the wayside with promises of coming back and picking them up later.

An important part of freelancing is continually reevaluating, prioritizing, and reorganizing projects.  I do a big, formal thing of it every year-end/year-beginning, but I'm re-doing it every month, every week.  What needs my attention now because it's due?  What needs my attention now because the story won't leave me alone?  What needs my attention now based on where I physically am?  (For example, if I'm at an artsy coffee shop, I should make the most of the free-flow of creative juices; if I'm somewhere without WiFi, write stuff that doesn't require research.)

Being a fiction and poetry writer also influences these things.  First of all, we are always, always, always getting new ideas.  And sometimes these new idea are things that need to addressed immediately because they will make current work easier, are a limited time opportunity, or are so shiny that ignoring them will drive you mad.  Actually, if we don't get creative releases on a regular basis, most writers, poets, artists, etc. get pretty damned cranky and certainly less productive.  Sometimes ignoring the creative muse has a negative impact on the business end of work, so a balance has to be struck.  "Look, I'll write a synopsis or a scene right now, but then you gotta leave me alone so I can get this stuff done that helps me stay housed, alive, and in good enough shape to continue your fabulous story, ok?"

Figments of imagination can be just as demanding and aggravating as bill collectors—really!

Scheduled for next week, though, I'm having a sit down with my friend Vikki, with whom I'm sharing a few projects, and I'll make a fiction/poetry list of priorities and potential deadlines.  I also need to touch base with Christy on our novel, and I need to catch up with other people I'm working with on other projects.

It's no surprise though, and I'm hardly alone in the insanity that is December.  Who else is rearranging their life and priorities with the end of the year and holiday season?  What are your favorite ways to get it all done?

Life Before Blogging

Two conventions, a whole-engine overhaul, reuniting with my first writers group, family issues, a death, a pow-wow, ten anniversary of 9/11…

Really, I don't feel that terrible about not blogging for about two weeks.

I really can't do all that justice in one catch up blog post, so I'll move forward.

It's September!

September is my New-New Year, and this year it's particularly poignant.  Not only did Dragon*Con rejuvenate my writing spirit, as it always does, but hanging out with the Dragon*Writers, dinner with Ann Crispin, and being on some pretty fabulous panels just made it all the better.  Even before that, being Guest of Awesome and sharing a pretty fab dealer's room with friends and friends-to-be at Pi-Con had me flying with writerly joy.

The engine overhaul made us have to redo some major finances, so despite its hefty cost, we're starting September with what is likely to be a better financial grasp on things.

I have yet to sit down and re-evaluate my New Year business plans, but that's all right.  I'm working on my editing deadline for UnCONventional and remembering why we picked each of the stories we did; I can't wait for the anthology to come out so we can share it with you.

Besides my editing, I've got a bunch of local stories I'm covering for Worcester Magazine that are due in the next couple of weeks.  I also know that the Broadsheet is looking for articles, and I have to get off my but to get some of my existing writing out there.

Speaking of which, I just shared the opening my novelette, "Mirror of Hearts," on the Broad Pod this week.  I need to get on putting that out as an ebook.  :)

In any case, there is a lot to do, but at least most of this is on the computer, and it really just requires some major Butt In Chair syndrome.

And kinda being sparse online.

The lesson in all this?  It's never too late to do a little restarting, or a lotta restarting.  So long as you go and do it.

Wednesday Writer Wrists

My wrists hurt. 

I was up and on the computer by 11:30AM.

I slayed* some email.

I took a break from typing to make calls.

I slayed more email.

I took a break to do some dishes and put chicken and green chiles into the crock pot for tacos.

More email slayage.

Conference call with new Readings & Events Coordinator & Assistant.

More email slayage.

Break to put away laundry, wash the cat water fountain, feed cat.

Write agendas for Motherboard meeting and Open Meeting for Broad Universe--and anyone interested.  Save the date! August 14th starting at 7PM Eastern time!

Break to check on taco stuff.

Properly filed into the new file cabinet some of the collected paperwork (dating back to 2006) in the "To Be Filed" folder in the OLD file cabinet.

Write a guest blog post for 1Bookshelf.blogspot.com

Break to finish preparing and actually EAT dinner.  (I did eat cereal, yogurt, hummus, a peach, and a test taco at the desk throughout the day, lest you worry I didn't eat.)

Slay all/most emails related to Bay State Equine Rescue - Hey! Fundraiser where Calico lives.  Horse of Course Family Fun Benefit at Whip-O-Will Stables on September 25th, for anyone living around Central Massachusetts!

Finish dishes for MIL before she comes to clean.

Listen to a podcast with Neil Gaiman as I continue with work…

Slay all Dragon*Con related emails.

Slay all Pi-Con related emails.

Pull spot checks to evaluate for my tutoring job.

Tally total email slayage at OVER 150 FREAKING EMAILS!!

Pause for a temporary, "Damn, I'm good!"

Realize I did not:

Finish my spot check.

Write any web copy for my web site

Write a press release for Broad Universe motherboard changeover.

Critique anything for UnCONventional.

Write my own durned blog post - wait, here it is! >check!<

Before I go to bed, I will go over one UnCONventional story.  And then a housecleaning note & $ for Mom-In-Law.  And then bed.

*In case you're wondering, my "slay" metaphor means to actually deal with, respond, record and do whatever else in regards to emails sitting in my inbox awaiting some sort of action.  As I break to write this blog, there are 198 emails still awaiting action.

The New File Cabinet & The Mess

Here's my spiffy new file cabinet rescued from a tree belt* after a tag sale** down the street about two weeks ago.

 See how neat and clean and organized it looks?  At the bottom of the photo are two bags: a paper bag for burning (I'll likely have another of my burning rituals when the weather is cool enough to signify an end to this wave of clutter.) and a reusable bag that now houses the three-ring binders that used to house the paperwork that now resides in the spiffy file cabinet.

I can haz organization?! :)

There are still a few things that need to be filed that are on my desk, and they are getting in the way of my focusing, so I must attend to them shortly.  It's not the worst it's been, though.

Now, to the right of my desk is the rest of The Mess.

That is a three-shelf high book shelf.  Note the Pile O Stuff reaches nearly to the top of the second bookshelf, preventing me from actually getting to the books on that shelf and the one below it. It's kinda scary.  There may even be intelligent life evolving between the papers and books and Stuff in that pile.  If you do not see a blog post, Facebook update, or an email from me in over a week, I may have been consumed by the Stuff and the hypothetical intelligent life that lives in that environment.

When you have this kind of upheaval, it's really hard to get actual work done.  So, I need to give into the Cleaning Fairy and get this sh*t taken care of or she will beat me upside the head with her wand.  Been there, done that… not a pretty sight.  If I can do a certain amount each day, Cleaning Fairy will let me get bits of other work done… which is also what I need to do with deadlines and such.

Wish me luck… especially in negotiations with whatever Evolving Life Forms might be losing their Clutter-based Natural Environment.

* It's been brought to my attention that "tree belt" is a regional slang that may only exist in the 413 area code of Massachusetts.  Specifically, it's that swath of grass between your sidewalk and the road, which has a dubious belongingness to both you and the city.  For areas without sidewalks, it's the edge of your lawn separated from the road by the "curb." (Not called "curbing," which is supposedly the proper term is for that concrete separation, thank you Ms. Gilhooley, the faculty advisor for my high school newspaper.)

** "Tag sale" is the 413-ism for what everyone else in the nation (according to the H-of-A) calls "Yard Sale."  Personally, I like "tag sale" better because nearly all of these sales use tags to denote the price, while the actual sale may take place anywhere from a driveway to a parking lot to a hall to a basement… not just someone's yard.

Another Bits & Ends for a Manic Monday

Here comes the last week of July, and what's up with Trish?  A lot, actually!

The pics are old ones from a very messy desk.  My very messy desk… which is currently, horrifically, messy once again.  It's bled out to one side and the book cases and has been doing so for some time.  About a week or two ago, Scott got me a file folder cabinet and it has finally been moved into its new home beside my desk today, along with a new, narrower, bookshelf. 

So, Stuff is getting rearranged.  It makes for a great metaphor.  I'm doing an awful lot of rearranging life around stuff right now.  Here's a glimpse!

xx

Good news!  I have an acceptance to announce!!

New England Horror Writers accepted my poem "Kali's Promise" into their upcoming anthology, Epitaphs, which will be available 11-11-11 for Anthocon, in New Hampshire!

I haven't written much about New England Horror Writers, but it's another grassroots group that I'm proud to be a part of.  If you write horror or dark fantasy and live in the New England area, definitely check out the group!

xx

As I mentioned on Friday, I'm the new president of Broad Universe.  :)  There's a ton of stuff I need to do and reorganize for that… not the least of which is to write the press release. 

I also have to reorganize all of my Broad Universe stuff that I inherited from Phoebe.  I put two boxes in what I think will make a nice home.  I have two more, plus my own collection of stuff. 

That said, I am already talking about specific new projects on the horizon!  Stay tuned. 

 

xx

Pi-Con just sent me my schedule!  I'm on a bunch of panels AND working on a Rapid Fire Reading for Broads!  I'll post it shortly.

Oh, and if you've missed it, I am their Guest of Awesome!

I'm also putting together a dealer's room with a few friends.  We'll have art, jewelry… and some very special surprises.  :)

Related to-dos: Um, actually fill out dealer paperwork, get party room for Broad Universe!

xx

Come August, Kate Kaynak and I will start sending edits back to our fabulous contributors for UnCONventional!

As hard as some of the "no" responses were that we sent back, hearing so much excitement from all those we accepted is just amazing!  We do have an excellent line-up, so keep an eye out for the book.

xx

I owe my webmistress a bunch of stuff so she can update my website… oi!

xx

On the non-fiction writing front:

1.  I have a deadline on apples for the end of this week.

2.  I have a review deadline end of this week.

3.  I have to put together some horsey news within the next two weeks.

xx

On the fiction writing front:

1. I owe my Trickster novel a synopsis; I promised the main character.

2. I need to re-edit "Photograph of a Mermaid" per various trusted people's advice and then resend it to Kate for UnCONventional.

3.  I need to finish editing Kelpie. 

xx

And if you don't think that's enough to keep me busy (on top of my tutoring and training!), then you are far more sadistic than I am masochistic.  :p 

What am I doing blogging?  I need to get to bed so I can get to work!!

A Little Escape from Mania

Well, at least when I go to the barn.

People have been asking me for more pictures of Calico.  Truth is, we're actually doing more stuff now, so I never think of taking pictures or asking Amanda to take pictures. 

It's like handing me the camera at a convention.  I'm having too much fun to stop and take a photo.

Callie seems to be having fun, too.  She really likes exploring outside and is responding well to new stuff we're learning together.  As always, she's also very protective.  I'm learning the "half seat," which is basically leaning over and not sitting in the saddle.  First few times she felt me move out of the saddle, she stopped and looked back to make sure I was ok.  When we got down that we could do this at a walk, we moved to a trot.  If we started the trot when I was half seat, she was good, but if I decided to take a half seat while trotting, she had to stop and make sure I was ok.  Last lesson ended on the good note of us trotting a full lap around the ring - and over the Poles of Doom - with me in the half seat.  Yay!

The Poles of Doom are these small birch logs that we use to count steps and make the horses learn to extend and stretch their legs more - or, at least be more aware of where their hooves are falling - while we move.  Calico would prefer not to think of exactly where her feet are falling, so she doesn't like them.  However, it's good for both of our movement and balance, so we work on them a little each lesson.  If I'm not paying full attention, though, she'll cut around them.

It's really hard to pay attention while learning to keep your own balance in stirrups at a trot when you probably can still count on both hands how many times the pair of you have trotted together.

Our last visit didn't have any riding, though.  In hindsight, I probably could have still done some bending and flexibility work with her, but I'm not feeling 100% yet, and she really, really, really wanted to go back out to pasture to hang out with her girls. 

Did you know that horses, like cats, dogs, and rabbits, can master the "I'm so cute you want to make me happy, don't you?" look?  Horses - Calico's not the first horse who's done this to me - will even lay their forehead on your shoulder and sigh deeply to make their point.

I can be a real sucker for the Cuteness Factor sometimes.

So, last Friday she just got a spa treatment with a new bug guard stuff, plus Skin-So-Soft and her new fly mask, before I released her back with Babe and Sesame.  Oh the drama!  She's not the bottom of the totem pole in this herd!  She whinnies the second I let her off the lead rope, throws her head and tail to the wind and gallops - yes, gallops! - over to her girls, who fall into place alongside her and start sniffing her up and down and grooming.  Once everyone is satisfied with everyone's general well-being, they clump together and move from hay pile to grass mound.  That I took pictures of!

The other horse with the fly mask is Babe, and Sesame is the bay with a few white marks.  By now, you should be able to pick out Calico.  She's pretty hard to miss!

Enjoy. 

The War of Email

You'd think, because I'm a writer, that the written medium of email ought to be my best friend.  Yeah, I've got that delusion, too.

Today, I received this blog post from Karen Caplan, owner of Frieda's, one of the top produce importers of the U.S.  It's about how she despises email and handles it.

Now, she's owner of a multi-million dollar company and she mentions how she was away from email for a few days and had 246 emails.  She says, "… 246 emails.  Yes, you read correctly."

I, really, hadn't doubted her.  In fact, I was surprised it was so low.  After my usual weekend off, I've got almost that much - and weekends are slow for email.  I was sick in bed most of Monday, so when I stopped on for a brief check (after viewing the fab-tacular premier of Game of Thrones the H-of-A recorded), I had well over 100 messages.  And I'm a small-time writer.

What kind of messages do I get?  In the order I think of them:

Informational Blogs and Newsletters

There are a few writers' and agents' blogs I subscribe to.  Normally, I learn something from each every day.  Of course, there are also the food blogs (like Caplan's) and equine blogs and newsletters that I also subscribe to so that I keep up on the stuff I write most about.  On top of that are also the education blogs and newsletters, because I also work in that area.  A writer and editor should stay informed.  Included in that are market listings for places to submit my work.  Some days, I really don't have the time to read these messages, so I have to delete or save them for a day I have time to read.  Some of them I need to unsubscribe to because I haven't read them in months.  My current 190-email inbox has probably about 20-40 newsletters and blogs still saved.

Events Information

As readings & events coordinator for Broad Universe, I get information on genre conventions and writing conferences daily.  New ones, upcoming ones, ones BU members are interested in presenting at, ones who are interested in BU members selling at.  Some are conventions I'm going to - I just got my Wiscon schedule, today, for example.  These are more varied and almost always require some sort of action in a short time period.  On really busy weeks, though, they fall through the cracks.

Charity Information

Some of this comes from charities I've given to, and usually I unsubscribe to these lists - unless the list has made it harder to unsubscribe than to hit "delete" every time they pop up.  I also get other regular information from Broad Universe and Bay State Equine Rescue because I'm heavily involved in both.  I do my best to listen and respond to all the members and needs of those.

Work- and Project-related Emails

Emails that do or may relate to me receiving money.  These, of course, get major attention because, well, I like paying bills on time and I disagree with the widely held belief that writers should starve.  At any one time, I've got multiple articles I'm corresponding over; team-members who need reviews or responses; information from my direct supervisors, editors, and clients; updates to software I use; and more that I can't even think of at the moment. 

Forwards and Reply-Alls

I've raised a stink enough times about this that I almost never get these, and if I do, it's for good reason.  Sometimes they can be read and discarded or read and saved.  Other times they require a response.

Group Emails

Outside of the rescue and BU, I'm on a few writing groups, and we send email to each other.  Sometimes its social, other times it's writing related - like monthly submissions.  I don't get these every day; most of us in the group are extremely busy and understand such.

Daily Reminders

I set up daily reminders in my email for events, and that helps me not forget them.

Direct Correspondence

These are emails that are addressed to me and don't fit into one of the categories mentioned.  Sometimes it's close friends and family with personal updates, other times it's friends or colleagues who want my help or want to catch up or have some other good reason for wanting to talk with me.  Other times they are new connections I've made at conventions or conferences: friends or colleagues-to-be, networking contacts, and so on.

Other Social Networking Reminders

I set my blog and Facebook and Twitter to alert me of stuff, like comments, posts, and so on.  I've been pretty bad about going on Twitter this year because it's been so much busier than last year… and there's no way to really filter the Stuff I Need to Know into email… which, as you see, has become my main workstation.

Miscellaneous

Of course, there is the ubiquitous "miscellaneous" email.  It ranges from press releases for stuff I do or don't write about to things like responses to the Neil Gaiman audiobook contest that you all are voting for me on, right?  (Pst, PLEASE vote for me?)

I'd love to share with you my insightful and efficient means of dealing with all this, but, really, I don't have one.  Caplan has a strategy, but that fits with her own work style.  She has an office and can go visit people in person to discuss things, and she has press people (I know, I chat with them!) and assistants who remind her of things that need to be done and interviews she needs to do.  I'm thankful that my husband-of-awesome cooks for me many nights and helps with dishes - after he's done with his own demanding job.  I wouldn't feel right asking for more.

It's all on me.

I tried assigning duties to my cat and rabbit, but they wouldn't help.  Also, they don't have opposable thumbs.

Most of my clients and contacts are not in driving distance.  Some aren't even on this side of the globe!  And those that are driveably close, well, it's inefficient to go and talk with them in person.  Current etiquette is also mostly prohibitive of calling them unless it's an urgent, emergency, too.  

My best shot is deciding what's urgent and important, what's urgent, what's important, and go down from there.

How do you battle the email monster? 

It's already Tuesday…

… my Manic Monday blog post got eaten by the mania.

A bunch of deadlines this week, team reviews (late), and taxes.

Tomorrow I have a riding lesson in between all the writing.  :)  It's good to get outside, at least, and spend time with my horse. 

Yesterday, (and most of the weekend), we celebrated the Husband-of-Awesome's birthday.  Without him, I wouldn't be half the writer and businesswoman that I am.  I call him Husband-of-Awesome for a reason, and that should be sufficient explanation for why I gave him the weekend.

So, forgive the missing blog post.  I need some sleep so I can work more.

Gifts of time-machines can be sent to my address. 

Taxes: A Valid Excuse

Today's blog post about why this is a very late blog post.  No - waittaminute - Today's - er, tonights? - blog post about major issue of chaos in the life of a professional writer.

Yeah, that sounds better. 

My accountant passed away in February, bless him.  I didn't know this until today.  :(  I found out from his sister-in-law when she returned the calls I'd been leaving on his answering machine.

H-of-A wondered why they hadn't just changed the answering machine.

In one way, that would have sterilized the news; I would have called his brother (taking over the accounts) with my condolences, said a quick prayer, and moved on to make my tax appointment. In another way, a death announcement is more powerful when delivered by another human.  And any death is powerful and deserves that kind of respect.  I'm glad I talked with the human being.

So, I have a meeting in a week and a half for taxes. 

More sobering: I need to finish my tax spread sheets.  I just heard back from one of the publications I write for because I'd found a discrepancy between my math and their 1099 information.  Situation normal for many people I write for.  Sadly.  I should have done this months ago.  Fortunately, the discrepancy was explained, my unsurprising bad, and I don't need to pray for a rush 1099 reissue. 

But Captain, I'm a writer, not a mathematician!

I did my food receipts, too, and one of my other publication clients.  I've got one easy magazine 1099 to review; the editor there is always perfectly accurate, so no worries.

I have not done: 

Mileage.  You have NO idea what a b*tch that is.  Especially since, despite my best intentions, I don't keep track of it through the year, so I have to look at all my receipts and use Google Maps to figure it all out.  That's about 5+ hours of work.

I also have not done:

Travel expenses: plane tickets, bus tickets, parking, tolls, fees, hotel rooms (usually split, so more math)

Office expenses, which is broken down further to:

Services:  Internet (70% of the bill, which is realistically what per cent of my usage is work related), cell phone (another 70%)

Other household expenses because 7% of this house is exclusively my office (7 not 70, no typo):  firewood, oil, electricity, home repairs, yard supplies (because yes, clients come here), Other Stuff (that I don't feel like looking up for a blog post)

Stuff  (By the way, this is paraphrased, not exact to the tax forms or my Spreadsheets of Doom!):  computer equipment, office furniture, postage, books (used for business; I don't have the chutzpah to declare every book I buy as a business expense.  I'd be audited faster than you can say "But, I swear, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and Hunger Games are research on my craft!"), Other Stuff (that I don't feel like looking up for a blog post)

And then there's proof of paid memberships to organizations I belong to, donations I've made…

Oh!  And then I need to calculate what I've made in book sales!

You get  the idea.  So help me, God and all that is Holy, imagine if I didn't have my W2 job with taxes taken out and I had to do this quarterly!!  And actually have to make payments!  *gaspfaint! I take out as much as humanly possible from my tutoring job just so I know I'm covered - and I put at least $1000 from my return (which I've gotten each year) towards the following year.

Because I know for damn sure I don't want the government chasing my sorry arse for money!

Those of you considering freelancing, take heed.  Be diligent in paperwork and taxes!  It's taken me years to make these spreadsheets efficient, and I know I still have a ways to go. But after talking with the new accountant, I'm confident he'll be as helpful as his brother was.

Which, as much as I hate doing all this paperwork, does make me a better business person throughout the year.

At least I filed all my receipts and notes well, and I do relatively well in maintaining the income spreadsheets.  (Ok, granted, those include the motivation of git me mah money nao, bee-otch!)

And at some point, when I grow up, I'll actually maintain this throughout the year so that when I'm making enough in writing where I quit the day job - or the day job isn't making enough to cover quarterly taxes - then I won't immediately fall into a trembling fetal position at the potential of having to write a check to Uncle Sam on a quarterly basis.

So, listen up all you writers who want to make a living at writing!  Start learning how to save and organize your receipts now!  Before it's too late!  The End is Near!

And pray for an accountant who will whip you into shape while she or he saves your sorry artistic rear end.

Now, back to this scary pile of MATH I have to do… now under Deadline!

Writing Style and Cooking Style

Last Friday, while I was holed up without a car and unable to post a blog post, Storyfix had a great post that sang to me as a writer - and a foodie!

A little background:

Larry Brooks, the author of the blog and the book Story Engineering: Mastering the Six Core Competencies of Successful Writing, often writes about the importance of pre-planning and organizing for a professionally successful story.  For a long time, he was pretty harsh on "organic" or "pantser" (write-by-the-seat-of-my-pants) writers.  Recently, he's gone soft - just a little - on this type of writer… which I just so happen to classify myself as.

Larry's frequent main point - which admittedly is often what causes me to skim his articles rather than read them in depth - is that a successful story requires planning, outlining, and some very specific pieces (gone on in more detail with his new book.)

His recent post had him admit he would soften his stance on it, and gave a great food analogy.  You should go read the post, definitely.  I'm just taking it a little further.

What's cooking?

Having been an at-home cook and a "foodie" before I even knew the term, I'm all for food analogies!  I was using them to critique my friends before it was considered cool. (Adjusts "hipster" glasses…)  For example, I'd say that cutting down story length was like simmering down a pan sauce: it needed to be done to heighten the flavor, consistency, and overall experience.  Left watery, it was, well, watery and not as powerful.  Simmer down that word count!

Of course, as cooks, the Husband-of-Awesome and I, rarely follow recipes.  Or, we use recipes as jumping boards.  I've included a few recipes in this blog and in newsletters… but almost all have a list of potential substitutions and alternate ingredients and at least one "eyeball" measurement.

That said, both my husband and I have been cooking long enough to know the basics of cooking.  We're constantly researching.  Research, for us, is fun.  It's everything from watching Food TV to my article writing to just following links about food.  We know what makes a good _______, what are the base ingredients that cannot be substituted or ignored, and how the finished product should taste, look, feel, sound, smell.  There's also the knowledge of what ingredients don't play well together and how cooking and mixing style can affect the final product (this latter lesson is mostly thanks to Alton Brown.)

So, even though we often "pants" our dinners ("Oh, crap, I have to cook… what's in the fridge, freezer and counter?" ), there's a certain amount of planning and structure involved below the surface. 

It's that compilation of knowledge that lets us create meals that seem entirely out-of-the-blue and pulled from our arses when, in reality, there's a lot of subconscious planning going on.  "I've got chicken thighs or tenders… I can cook tenders into a stir fry or pasta.  I am short on veggies, so we'll go with pasta… and make the sauce from leftover pumpkin… which goes with red peppers, onions, and/or spinach with…" and so on.

And the longer we cook, the more we learn, the better the planning becomes - even as it is less and less obvious.

Yum!  A story!

I've been writing stories for a good 20+ years of my life.  And yes, I have the notes and drafts to prove it.  (No, you can't read them.  Would you really want to try a recipe I "created" when I was 13???  No, no you don't.  Trust me.)

My writing has evolved much like my cooking.  Even in my teens, I was a voracious reader, reasonably intelligent and liked research; I had a decent idea of what things made me like a story and how a story developed.  Most of my work, even then, had a pretty clear structure (it read like pulp high fantasy and/or space opera) with a beginning, middle, and end.  I didn't realize there was any structure, though.  I just wanted to see what kind of adventures my characters would find while they saved the world (or galaxy) from [insert generic and minimally appropriate Big Bad Guy].

As I learned more about writing from further reading, taking classes, being active in writing groups, and just writing, I improved and had more structure.

When I said that the planning for a meal I cook becomes less and less obvious, I mean it's less obvious to a casual observer.

If I'm talking kitchen shop with you, then you can see the skeleton and structure of the things I cook.

The same goes for writing.  My current novel, Kelpie (only 3 or so more scenes to write!), is the most planned thing I've written.  However, I've only written a small percentage of the planning.  And, unless I'm talking to you about the steps and research, it's not really evident that I did a lot of planning.  (If you saw me writing at the coffeeshop, deli, or studio, you'd see metyping as if I were flying by the seat of my pants.)

While I did do a lot of planning for A Silent Starsong, which I'm shopping around now, my first draft ended up being a draft for not just the final version of Starsong, but also a whole lot of unnecessary background and a whole lot of a potential sequel.  I did a lot of writing to discover things… and then a WHOLE LOT of editing to fix it afterwards.

And I didn't realize I was doing that.

The few "discovery" scenes I've written for Kelpie are ones that I'm pretty aware are written for my own purposes and will likely get chopped or significantly cut in the next set of revisions.

Compare that to the 800 handwritten notebook pages of my first "novel" written as an adult about 10 years ago.  It's a high fantasy where group of characters have to save the world kinda piece.  If I ever decide to salvage it, it will have to be a trilogy, and it will have to be at least 90% rewritten - completely.  I did an awful lot of "discovery" writing that worked great for brainstorming characters and all the potential routes they could take to defeat their fallen god nemesis.  (Yes, it sounds very generic to me right now, too.)

As a writer, I needed to go through that experimental "organic" period of discovering what I could do.  As a home cook, I had to go through my crazy "let's see if these foods work together!" period that led to many less-than-stellar meals, if not one or two that had to be fed directly to the garbage bin.  In both cases, also, there will be foods and pieces of stories that will be created mainly for discovery purposes; because I know what I know now, some of that may even remain in a final product.  As both a writer and a cook, I have clocked in a lot of time researching, learning, and planning for final products.  In fact, the planning and research come as second nature, so it still "feels" like I'm writing or cooking by the seat of my pants. 

And I have no desire to change that; I love the adventure of it!

In my head, though, the subconscious is fiddling with structure and filling in blanks faster than I can record.  In the creation of the food or the story, though, it's the spark of imagination and creativity that drives those planning gears.

So, if you are an organic writer and/or cook by the seat of your pants, take a moment and consider:  Might there be a hint of planning below the surface based on your experience… that you don't realize is going on?