FOCUSing on Social Media

Remember how I said my word for the year was "FOCUS"?  Well, between my day job and my part-time job as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I am trying to learn more about social media.  Marketing my SU! business more effectively would be wonderful, but the main reason for studying the various platforms out there is because once my novel is ready for publication, I will need to market both the book and myself. 

I'm preparing to attend my first-ever writer's conference in May, and the classes cover both the writing aspects and the publishing/marketing aspects of being an author.  Since my novel is still unfinished, my focus for this conference will be classes on craft; however, I would be totally remiss if I refused to take any class on the use of social media for authors.

I've posted here before that I don't have a Facebook page or a Twitter account and some of my reasoning behind the decision of not participating in those forms of social media.

Face it, I'm not always the greatest at keeping a schedule with this blog, and I am ashamed of that fact.  It's not that I have nothing to say (my friends will attest I am seldom quiet LOL), but I feel I have too many things I want to share. 

For instance--I managed to cover several notebooks lately, but haven't found the time to get out the camera, take the pictures, crop and edit the pictures, and then post them here.  They are really pretty--I'm not ashamed of my work--and yet they still sit at the table awaiting a post.

I wanted to post something for St. Patrick's Day, and the first day of spring.  On both occasions, once I was off work, general living took precedence over the blog.  Looking back--I haven't posted since my March 1st rant--so we can see no focus on social media here :-(

There are several books I have finished this month that need to be added to my 100-book challenge at Goodreads and also need to be listed here (preferably with reviews)...

Anybody else see a pattern here?  How could I reasonably expect to interact with multiple social media platforms if I cannot even  stay consistent with this personal blog?  So, until I learn more discipline and begin to focus more on improving this platform, I choose not to string myself out any further.

Baby steps...

Mardi Gras!

I didn't live in New Orleans long enough to experience a Mardi Gras parade as an actual attendee, but I certainly got caught up in the feverish excitement along Canal Street and throughout the French Quarter.  When I started my novel, I was somewhat surprised to find out that there was seemingly no Mardi Gras celebration during the Civil War, since the first krewe, Mystick Krewe of Comus, was established in 1857.

The colors of Mardi Gras are Purple (for Justice), Gold (for Power), and Green (for Faith).

Other areas of the world acknowledge today as Shrove Tuesday and instead of king cake, the food of the day is pancakes...

Want more info on Mardi Gras in New Orleans?  I've no affiliation with this site, but Mardi Gras Unmasked has some wonderful info in an engaging fashion on a crisp, clean site ;-)

"Laissez les bons temps rouler!"  (Let the good times roll)

2012 Word of the Year = FOCUS

Main Entry: focus  
Function: intransitive verb
: to concentrate attention or effort -- "she was already focusing on her next role"

"focus." Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. 

Merriam-Webster, 2002. 

http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com (1 Jan. 2012)

The last 56 years have taught me that I am not a person who needs to make a lot of New Year's resolutions (see yesterday's post to understand some of the reasons why).  I do need to set yearly goals or guidelines so that I'm not floundering around willy-nilly for the next 365 days.  When I recently read somewhere of the idea that a single word could help me concentrate my efforts, I decided my word for 2012 would be "FOCUS".

In 2012, I want to focus on:

• My Blessings more and my disappointments less
• Creating items, not collecting supplies--even though the new Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini that starts January 4th is the best Mini ever, and 2012 Sale-A-Bration begins on January 24th, LOL
• Shrinking my TBR mountain, not increasing it--and as I complete a book, I want to post reviews in appropriate places
• Writing more and researching less--the first TGAN draft needs to be completed by July
• Blogging more consistently--this blog will continue its multiple purposes (crafting, writing, and my life in general)
• Networking more with other writers
• Eating healthy foods in smaller portions
• Increasing my retirement savings as I decrease my debt

And now a caveat for my readers:  2012 is an election year in the United States, and my friends know I'm a political junkie.  So far, I have kept politics off this blog primarily because I feel the election cycle has become way too drawn out.  Although I will try to maintain a balance here, part of learning the art of focus means also that I must be even more true to my inner self than I have been in the past.  Hopefully, any discussion occurring here as a result of a post will be respectful and calm.  I do reserve the right to edit or delete comments containing any form of hate speech or excessive expletives.  I don't expect all my readers to agree--I do expect them to be respectful of others' opinions.

I may or may not post specific goals as the year progresses, but I will keep track of my need to focus on the subjects listed above.  Do you have a focus for 2012?

Letting Go and Starting Over

"Letting go is an act of strength and courage.

It helps healing begin, frees you of the weight of the past,

and opens doors to a new future." 

~~Stephanie Tourles, Lift Me Up

My mother's voice is screaming in my subconscious, trying to strangle me into the belief that I failed miserably in 2011.  I did not complete my reading challenges.  I did not get 50K written during either Camp NaNoWriMo session, nor during November--in fact, I don't believe I got 50K written on my novel this year.  I did not make, much less post, a lot of cards--even my best friends did not receive handmade birthday greetings (some were lucky to get a quick e-mail acknowledging their big day).  I did not lose weight.  I did not pay off all my debt.  

Mother, I loved you, but your unrealistic expectations for me while you lived damn near drove me into insanity and helped encourage some really bad behaviors for years, so please allow me to kindly (but firmly) tell you to be quiet.  I'm grown and I make my own decisions (and accept the consequences of those decisions).

I hereby let go of the unfinished idealized list of accomplishments I had set for myself for 2011.  No more weighing myself down with regret or negative self-talk.  No more wallowing in what did not happen the way I wanted it to.

I did accomplish many things in 2011:

• Attended on-site training at my job (which helped me stay actively employed all year)
• Paid off one of five student loans
• Kept my Stampin' Up! demonstrator status active (and increased my customer base)
• Learned multiple new software programs
• Set up a complete wireless network in my apartment to maximize the connectivity of my work equipment to the company network (allowing me to continue to work remotely)
• Decreased my carbon footprint by decreasing my electrical usage in my home (even with record Texas summer heat)
• Replaced my microwave after accidentally almost starting a fire in it one night while I was busily writing
• Upgraded my laptop after managing to fry the hard drive in the old one

I also read for pleasure--primarily on my Kindle or my Kindle for Android app.  Between Paperback Swap and donations to my local public library, I succeeded in moving over 300 books out of my apartment.  On the other hand, I  brought in about 150 physical volumes because I still cannot seem to do historical research without actually highlighting passages and making margin notes LOL.

Speaking of historical research, I did a lot of it--and read quite a bit about the craft of writing and publishing (and about marketing yourself).  I didn't reach my goal of 100 complete books in this year, but I did manage to read portions of over 100--see, research to me doesn't always mean reading from beginning to end; some of the Civil War material I have accumulated may never be read cover-to-cover, but it is being read as necessary to help with accuracy for a specific scene.  The same with various texts on using software programs--most of these texts are getting used weekly and marked accordingly, yet only as the information is required.

Was I a success in 2011?  Why, yes--I may not be rich monetarily, or have a managerial position at my job.  I don't own a home or a car.  But none of these things define success for me.  I have friends.  I have a comfortable apartment and a lease until 2014.  I have a wonderful job with nice benefits.  I have my health.  I have a slowly increasing retirement savings account and a slowly decreasing debt load.  I have hope for both my future and the future of this great land (still the best place in the world to live). 

What else could a woman hope for?  My Blessings are many and my regrets for the past are very few.  With that attitude toward my future, my end of year message to my Mother's ghost is simply this--I am indeed a successful, happy human being full of delight in the present and ideas for the future. 

Here's to opening doors of wonder and delight for 2012!

I've Extended my Camping Trip

July's version of Camp NaNo kinda sucked...it started well, but the Texas heat plus my day job doing data entry made it very difficult for my right wrist/elbow/shoulder to allow extensive additional typing.  A series of surgeries over a decade ago left weaknesses in my right arm and while it usually causes me more trouble in extreme cold, this summer's extreme heat (today was--I believe--the 30th day in a row of 100 degree days; the second longest streak of consecutive days Dallas has seen) has totally worn out my arm.  (Extra weather trivia--the longest streak was in 1980; I was pregnant that summer with my youngest son, and pregnancy in this type of heat was no walk in the park either LOL.)

Okay--so little writing got done.  Not to be defeated permanently, I have changed tactics.  I'm allowing technology to help me for the August camp session.  I've loaded Dragon Naturally Speaking 11.5 onto both my personal computers, so I will be dictating "Louisiana Lightning" and hopefully be much more successful in "writing" 50K in 31 days.

I will confess that I did read a bit in July, and this past Thursday made time to see Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2.  I'll be adding the books I read to my challenge lists, and perhaps write reviews later.  The movie will receive its own review here soon.  Suffice it to say--I loved it!!  Thank heavens they split the last book...

July also started the new Stampin' Up! year and the new Idea Book & Catalog is the best I've ever seen!  Our Summer Mini catalog will end August 31, and the Holiday Mini will begin September 1 (I'll be able to post links then).  So, I'd love to be stamping and having fun--I miss my card challenges tremendously--and if the dictation works like I believe it will, my arm may allow some creating soon (I hope).

Stay as cool as you can, and I appreciate all my followers being so patient with me as I try to work thru health issues and get back to sharing online on a more regular basis.

I'm Going to Summer Camp!

Camp NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow!  I'm planning on another 50K and since July has 31 days, I only need 1613 words each day to be a winner!  November was a bust for me last year--I was a "pantser" rather than a "plotter"--and so when the wonderful people at The Office of Letters and Light decided to have a summer camp program, I jumped at the chance to escape from the Texas heat and spend time in 1862 Louisiana (yeah, I'm still writing about the Civil War).

Not that I expect July to be an easy road of writing.  I have a working outline (no more being a "pantser" for me, LOL), but July holds its own set of writing challenges--the new Stampin' Up! 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog debuts tomorrow!  It's the yummiest one I have ever seen!  And of course, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II debuts on July 15...even though I know the ending, I have to see this one on the big screen as I have all the prior seven. 

However, I have a wonderful inspiration piece to keep me motivated.  My dear friend Beverly over at GottHeartArt is a published artist in several card making magazines and has recently branched out into mixed media.  She decided to gift me with a beautiful piece for my writing area:

Isn't this the most awesome gift ever?  The acorn idea came from reading Sage Cohen's The Productive Writer and I encourage any creative soul to read this book, as all the tips and techniques are inspiring for anyone who wants to pursue a dream.

So--even though my idea of camping out usually means a cheap hotel room without cable (I used to say with a black and white TV but that would really prove how old I am LOL), I am headed to writing camp!  I'll try to check in here more often than I have been (which would really be ironic given the scarcity of posts the past few months), but I will surely post my win come July 31 (nothing like the power of positive thinking LOL).

For any Canadian readers, Happy Canada Day on July 1 and for the Americans, Happy Independence Day on July 4!  If you are visiting from anywhere else--welcome and I hope to get to know you better ;-)

Putting My Butt in My Writing Chair

Found this over at Confessions of the Un-Published! today.  Great "tough love" for writers!




It has been a really strange day for me.  My schedule change threw me for a bigger loop than I expected, because I am a creature of habit--I've worked a lot of jobs and worked weekends on many of them, but it has been years since my days off have not been consecutive...so today was spent doing housework, laundry, grocery shopping (aka general living), and I just looked up to realize a full day has gone without getting to write or create :-(

Jackson's great video reminds me that I will never have a finished novel if I don't write the danged thing LOL...similarly, I won't have any more cards made for OWH or challenges if I don't sit at my studio table and create them.  So, even though my TBR mountain has been calling my name, and there are many new Blu-Ray/DVD movies out that I want to watch, and I want badly to blog-surf to see what new inspiration is out there (like Jackson's video for instance), I am signing off the Internet for the rest of the night...TGAN and writing chair, here I come!

My Muse is MIA

Try as I might this past week, no creating with paper was done :-(

Lots of general living occurred--work (of course LOL), the cleaning and bill-paying and shopping that had not happened recently due to illness, and the beginnings of a slight rearrangement of my crafting area.  For me, organization and creativity only co-exist when outlining chapters for my novel (and I did manage to roughly sketch out a couple of chapters this week, so all is not lost).

I was Blessed to receive a tax refund this year and chose to use a portion for Stampin' Up! products during Sale-A-Bration, primarily because of the great free product available with every $50 purchase.  The down side to ordering cardstock and stamps and ribbons and embellishments comes when you have to find a place to put all the goodies LOL.  So, instead of using the creative side of my brain (the part that was MIA anyway), I organized my dies and stamps and paper.  My brain stayed incapable of designing cards--what's up with that??  I even watched a few videos on You Tube to inspire creative thought, but all I could find was a blank slate...

That's not entirely true--I did conclude I had a few needs.  I need ribbon storage.  I need to find the instructions to my sewing machine (it has been unused so long, I can no longer remember how to set it for a zigzag stitch, much less use any of the more decorative stitches).  I need to find my muse...

Sunday Snippet from the Sickbed

My plans for the past week or so were waylaid by the "crud"--no voice above a whisper, a throat that feels like it was scraped with sandpaper and then had acid poured down it, coughing until my chest hurts and I wet myself, fever that caused chills, stuffy ears that cause all noise to sound as if it is being heard through a muffler, no appetite (actually, that is a good thing if you are big like me LOL)--in other words, abject misery. 

The down side to all this?  No crafting because my brain did not want to function, therefore I missed several cardmaking challenges.  No energy to clean house, do laundry, grocery shop, or participate in any general living.  No research or writing on my WIP because my muse was as sick as my body.

The up side to this?  I could still work since I was not commuting and was also not exposing the whole office to whatever germs I have.  So, even though my customers heard a less than enthusiastic and softer than normal voice, they still got their accounts taken care of.  My company still had me available (even for overtime) since we were already short-staffed.  Because I could work, I saved my PTO for fun stuff (PTO=paid time off).  I even earned overtime pay ;-)

There was also one more up side--I read several wonderful books toward my reading challenges.  Reviews will be forthcoming on all of them, but I have at least added them to my 100+ Reading Challenge list (at the bottom of my blog).  (Reading is easy when you cannot sleep because you can't breathe or you keep coughing LOL).

I am really hoping to get a bit back into the groove of life this week...between starting to feel better and no (scheduled) overtime for the next couple of weeks, let's see if I can participate in a few challenges, read a few blogs, write a few lines, and take care of hearth and home.

Oops! Missed the Deadline (AKA Gotta Get More Organized)

Well, I misread the deadline for Jingle Belles this week and missed being able to enter the "No Red, She Said" challenge by a few hours :-(

I've tried to play there faithfully but just couldn't find my creative mojo this week where crafting is concerned (although I did outline a few chapters for my novel).  I need to work out a schedule of sorts I guess--a way to keep track of the posting days and the deadlines for the card challenges I enjoy.  So far, it's been hit or miss (mainly miss) and I want to get more organized. 

So, you card makers out there--how do you keep track?  On a calendar?  Make a daily/weekly chart?  What works for you?  All I know is what is not currently working for me...

Altered Notebook (since Anything Goes) for Paper Players

Paper Players' Challenge this week is Anything Goes, so I chose not to make a card.  I am a notebook junkie, but I hate using plain, boring composition notebooks, especially when working on my novel.  I've wanted to use this Stampin' Up! Newsprint DSP for quite a while, and I needed a new notebook specifically for trivia about New Orleans...this paper just seems to put me into a New Orleans circa 1862 frame of mind LOL. 

The lace is the Raven Lace (recently retired from the Holiday Mini) and after cutting the Top Note die and using the outside to frame part of the paper, I took the actual die cut shape, turned it 90 degrees, and die cut it again to make the wonderful square medallion on the bottom (it also gave me a set of parentheses/brackets that will show up soon on a card...)  And once more, my apologies for the photo; the book looks much better in person.  The Take Note oval stamp is from the Notably Ornate stamp set.

The Paper Players Blog Hop is also still active, so go check it out and then play with us, since "Anything Goes"...they are a fun group of ladies!

Here's the video that inspired the new way of cutting my Top Note:

Not MIA yet...But Close (AKA Why I May NOT be Posting Much This Week)

We have snow and ice--it's 19 degrees right now, with a wind chill factor making it 9 degrees.  I've teased with a few folks this week that we are doing this on purpose here in North Texas so the Packers fans and Steelers fans will feel more at home next weekend for the big game; after all, it was sunny and 76 degrees here Sunday LOL.

As usual, weather like this keeps people from coming to work.  That's probably a good thing in some cases, since many folks here don't really understand the concept of "drive slowly and carefully in ice" and many more don't believe in "do NOT tailgate the driver in front of you". 

So, our already shorthanded office is limping along without our two closers until the weather clears.  When I finish this post, I will be going back to work (i.e., walking into the back room and logging back in) and will work by myself the last few hours we are open.  No craft projects made today and no reading done towards my challenges and no research done for my novel.  Oh, well.  Things could be much worse--I have said this before, LOL--I have a job I enjoy and the world's shortest commute (approximately 20 steps, depending on whether I'm leaving my kitchen, my living room, or my bedroom).

But, if I don't post for a day or two, I've not fallen off the face of the earth--I'm just doin' the day job that pays for the fun stuff LOL.  I'll be back as soon as I can--and until then, y'all stay warm, dry, and safe, won't you?

Voices in My Head...

I've often said my brain carries a full-fledged entertainment center inside it, ready to break out at a moment's notice.  Some people would think that makes me borderline crazy.  People who know me well are astonished at the amount of trivia my mind holds--bits and bobs of this and that, facts and figures that would bode well if I were ever brave enough to test for Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune (which I am not--stage fright would undoubtedly turn me into someone who resembled a mannequin--you know, stiff and quiet LOL).

But I am hearing a new set of voices in my head these days.  Not only do I live much of my life in 1862 ferreting out facts and trivial bits to use in my current novel, but I have just rediscovered several pages of notes I made in New Orleans that are the beginning of a fantasy.  I have soldiers and poets and elves and healers and princesses clamoring to have their tales told.  Their world would seem ancient to us and has none of the "conveniences" available even in the 1700s, so this chronicle is much different from anything I am currently writing.

Nevertheless, these people are whispering in my ear and asking me to tell their story.  I'm starting to dream their world and their dress, their mannerisms and their speech patterns. They are in need of help from unseen forces who want to destroy their land--who am I to deny them that help?  Something tells me this will become the outline for NaNoWriMo 2011 if not written before November...

Guess I'll take the time to listen to the voices in my head...

More 2011 Reading Challenges--See My Left Sidebar

Peeking Between the Pages has set some fantabulous reading challenges for 2011 and I've featured them on my left sidebar, even though I may not participate in all of them.  "If I'm not participating, then why am I featuring?" you may be asking.  Well, two of the challenges--"Harry Potter" and "Outlander" are on my top ten all-time absolute favorite book series ever list and contain books I re-read (in order) on at least a bi-annual basis. 

I already plan to re-read "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" before the final movie premieres this year (July 15), but may not be able to fit the other six into my schedule.  Some of my friends tease that I spend way too much time in the world of Jamie and Claire Fraser--"Outlander" novels are truly sagas and aren't particularly short, so I may revisit the latest, "An Echo in the Bone" since I now own the U.K. paperback version (autographed, no less!), but I may not re-read all of them--I'd really like to read some other historicals this year and I also need time to write my own books ;-)

My TBR mountain has included the books in the other three challenges for a while, however, so don't be surprised to see reviews here this year for the Earth's Children novels by Jean Auel, the Wilderness series by Sara Donati, and the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris.  I read the first two Auel's many years ago, loved them, but got sidetracked and never finished the series.  I also read the first Donati while in New Orleans but that series got interrupted by a rude hurricane called Katrina.  And although I own most of the Sookie series, and I love "True Blood" (the HBO adaptation), I've never taken the time to read them because I would obsessively read one right after the other; I keep putting other books ahead of these (like my current read-a-thon of the Lauren Willig series).

Reading books I already own is frugal entertainment.  Crossing books off my TBR mountain is an accomplishment.  Let's see how well I combine the two and see how many of these three challenges I can complete in 2011.

Who wants to join me?

Historical Fiction--A New Reading Challenge for 2011

Found this on a blog I already follow--Historical Tapestry, a great blog for fans of historical fiction--and since the top level, "Severe Bookaholism" only requires 20 books for the year, and since I write historical fiction and since I already read one in 2011 (THE EXILE by Diana Gabaldon), how can I not sign up for this? 

So, yesterday's post regarding THE EXILE--AN OUTLANDER GRAPHIC NOVEL will serve as my first entry for this challenge and I only have nineteen more to go LOL!

"The Times...They are a Changin'"

 I looked everywhere for a still photo of my favorite scene in John Water's Hairspray where Divine as Edna Turnblad is sitting with her husband Wilbur (played by the wonderful Jerry Stiller).  As much as I love the remake starring John Travolta as Edna, I miss what seems to me to be the signature line from the whole movie--"It's the times...they are a changin'".

That's my motto for 2011--the times are changing, and I need to be flexible enough to embrace those changes.  Changes at work are a certainty--a positive attitude regarding those changes helps the company realize I am an asset.  Changes are needed in my eating habits--that saying, "You are what you eat" should not mean I am fast, easy and cheap LOL.

Changes are needed here on my blog as well--a more disciplined approach to posting is forthcoming.  My intent is to post each Sunday at the very least, even if it is only what I shall call a "Sunday Snippet".  That snippet may be a quote, an interesting website I've found, a short book review, or perhaps a (totally unsolicited) product recommendation.

Stampin' Up! has given us a great opportunity to have a blog directly on our website, so my cards and other projects will often be featured there beginning this year (although I may post a picture here as well).  I intend to make my paper crafting more of a priority this year as it is the cheapest form of therapy I know other than reading.

Speaking of reading, we can tell from the list at the bottom of my blog that I failed to meet the 100+ book challenge for 2010...I did read a few more books than those listed, but rather than go back and try to recreate the list, I'm giving myself permission to move on.  Here is the link to sign up for 2011 and as I am an incurable optimist with these challenges, I'm heading over when I finish this post and signing up for this year.  Thank Heavens for my Kindle (and for Kindle for Android)!!

Finally--I am forging ahead with my writing.  Much of today was spent organizing research notes that had been stacked in various spots throughout the apartment, and a trip to the library is on the schedule for tomorrow.  As I found out during NaNoWriMo 2009, I do not write well when I am not organized, so I'm giving my OCD tendencies more control over my writing life.  I'll post pictures soon of my writing corner as I intend to spend many productive hours there this year.

If you have read this far, I thank you.  It was a long post but expressing goals and dreams becomes wordy at times.  To all of you--A Blessed New Year and may you experience many positive changes in this new decade...I wish love and happiness to you all!

Lessons Learned from Losing

I "lost" NaNoWriMo 2010 by the rules of the whole thing--I wrote only 19,000 words during the thirty days from November 1-30.  The goal is 50,000 and I personally know it is doable as I did it last year.

But did I really lose?  I prefer to think not--I am using this NaNo "non-win" to learn some lessons as to how I personally can become a better writer.  These lessons may mean nothing to my readers, but simply putting them into a public forum will help me be more prepared for the task next November 1st.

#1:  I am a planner, not a "pantster"--I write much better when I have my historical facts already researched and a simple outline of my plot and characters.  Since I am currently writing historical fiction with a time-travel twist, stopping to look up facts in the middle of a sub-plot slows me down considerably.  Because of my apartment remodel this year, I had not planned anything as far as plot, minor characters, settings, etc. and it showed from the very beginning.  Much of the time I would have spent in the actual writing process was spent in figuring out who was who, why they were where they were, and what difference it really made anyway ;-)

#2:  NaNo is about getting the words down on paper and shushing your inner editor as to grammar, spelling, etc.  I gratefully use spell-check at the end of each session, but I have learned that editing the story's flow and punctuation can definitely wait until later.

#3:  I am NOT a linear thinker.  That may sound strange from someone who just said she has to plan out a plot, but when researching history, I usually find myself jumping from settings to personages to food to transportation to economics to... (well, you get the idea).  As any and all of this minutia may come in handy, I hesitate to stop researching in this fashion.  I simply need to do it during the other eleven months of the year LOL.

#4:  If work can get in the way, it will LOL.  And I am not just talking the "9-5" job I have that pays the bills; I even took some vacation days during November in the hopes that I could dedicate those days to nothing but writing.  Some writing got done those days, but I also had housework, laundry, cooking, grocery shopping, granddaughter's birthday party--again, you get the picture.  Since I have neither a personal assistant nor a spouse/roommate, if these "general living" tasks are to be done, I must do them.  And since I cannot think well surrounded by cluttered chaos, I defeat the whole shebang trying to work with a mess around me.

#5:  I don't create well when fueled only by caffeine and chocolate.  Perhaps because both of these (especially caffeine) are a part of my daily life, they are not efficient pick-me-ups when my body is weary and my word count is flagging.  Actually, I am now reducing my chocolate intake on a regular basis since I have discovered that protein actually boosts me into extra energy.  I'll never totally abandon my dark chocolate, but I no longer consume it in quantity at a sitting.  It gets savored only as a treat and for energy I turn to dried fruit, protein, nuts, and healthy low-glycemic carbs.  Coffee, on the other hand, is still very much a daily staple LOL.

So, I lost the battle of NaNoWriMo 2010, but I won the war.  I learned more about my writing and research style and I learned how to fuel my older body to respond more proactively to stress.  Onwards and upwards toward NaNo 2011 and I'll see everyone at the finish line--I'm off to write another chapter...

Bits and Bobs while I attempt NaNoWriMo 2010

Little nifty pieces of information have come to my attention lately through all sorts of odd mailings and e-mail links. I would normally try to make each a separate post, but with NaNo 2010 having taken over my November and much general living haven gotten in the way all month as well, I've decided to settle for a simple list format. Check out these links for some uber-cool stuff!

• Operation Paperback -- send books to the troops!
• GreenDisk -- recycle your technotrash!
• Office of Letters and Light -- the blog representing the genius(es) behind NaNoWriMo
• Sherlock Holmes -- 21st Century style

Patriot's Day 2011

Since I live half my life in 1862 these days as I progress with my novel, I thought I'd share a quote from the Civil War era that is just as apropos today as it was when it was written:

"It is well that war is so terrible, or we should grow too fond of it"  ~~~~~  (Robert E. Lee, at Fredericksburg, Virginia, in 1862)

In memory of those lost during the attacks on 9/11/2001, and those brave soldiers lost since then as they defend our right to live free in the United States.  May the Creator of the Universe Bless this country and its leadership.

Gearing Up for Fall

How I wish fall was in the air--it's still 100 degrees outside and it is after 7 PM.  But I find myself gearing up for autumn--usually happens this way when the school supplies go on sale.  See, I'm an office supply junkie.  Nothing excites me quite like new #2 pencils, pristine notebook paper and a brand new box of Crayola crayons.

The office end of my new studio is pretty well finished--I've hung the curtains and put "bright light" bulbs in the lamps.  I've set up my bill-paying/household hub area and set up a filing system for current papers.  I finally purchased my autographed copy of "No Plot? No Problem!" by Chris Baty, the genius behind National Novel Writing Month (AKA NaNoWriMo, which is actually international in scope now).  My copy came yesterday, and I can hardly wait to hunker down and read it this week ;-)

The lamps over my sewing table and my crafting table both have daylight bulbs, so even without an overhead fixture, I have task lighting where needed.  My crafting supplies have been severely decluttered, especially any non-Stampin' Up! products, to the delight of my granddaughter, some crafty friends, and the Salvation Army.  I realized that I am a collector of "stuff"--five years from Katrina and my house was crammed to the rafters in crafting supplies and books, all of which I fully intended to get around to "someday". 

Well, there are only so many hours in the day for anyone, especially a working writer, so I am being ruthless this time in only keeping what I truly love and will use consistently.  In crafting, that's Stampin' Up!  In reading, I happen to have a wondrous library less than a mile up the street, so only my research materials and those books I re-read periodically need to grace my shelves on a permanent basis. 

My books are being sorted into piles--Paperback Swap, Friends of the Library/Salvation Army, and keep.  I've already lowered my TBR mountain by over 200 volumes and want to pare the remaining 500+ by another third or so before Labor Day.  I had to put my Paperback Swap account on hold because of the number of hoarded books other members are wishing for--I need to replenish my postage account there in a big way before I can accept requests LOL!

So, just a bit more to do before the big reveal here, and I hope to be finished by September--then even if it stays 100 degrees plus here, my house will be decluttered, clean, and ready for fall ;-)