Posted on 21 September 2020 08:54
Summary:
Going great guns on the final novel edits and really enjoying it, which is a very pleasant surprise. Everything else has pretty much fallen off the to-do list, but that’s okay, because the novel is the most important thing.
Read morePosted on 13 September 2020 16:58
Summary:
Very light on writing this week - but big plans for both novels from next week until the end of October, so activity should be really ramping up again shortly!
Read morePosted on 06 September 2020 15:28
Summary:
Feeling very happy about the state of my novels this week (at some point soon I may start to consider myself a novelist!), and happy to have cleared the decks of all editing responsibilities before going on holiday.
Read morePosted on 31 August 2020 13:27
August has been an interesting month for my writing.
I finished and submitted three short stories, which felt really good and also cleared my writing to-do list of everything except the novel.
Read morePosted on 30 August 2020 20:47
Summary:
Stellar work from the subconscious crew this week, which left me feeling a lot happier about my novel edits. Even though there’s still a lot of work to do, the path is clearer than it was, and it all seems more possible now.
Read morePosted on 23 August 2020 15:53
Summary:
Three good writing sessions on my dedicated writing days, so back into a more regular groove for writing. Very happy with progress this week.
Read morePosted on 17 August 2020 09:06
Summary:
A bit of a scattershot week - I ‘wrote’ every day but don’t feel like I made any real progress on anything. I did, however, give myself permission to let go of the task list and read a lot, which was lovely, and never a waste of time.
Read morePosted on 10 August 2020 08:19
Summary:
I wrote every day this week, which I know I decided was a bad idea, after the July Camp Nano experience. But the daily aspect was mostly small, fun exercises, and I had a relaxed approach to it in terms of not putting myself under too much pressure, so it was okay.
Read morePosted on 02 August 2020 18:17
Summary:
I feel like I’ve come up with a better structure for my writing week and that I’ve settled back into a better routine again. I should remember the lesson that trying to write every day really doesn’t work for me and actually ends up being very counter-productive.
Read morePosted on 26 July 2020 20:55
Summary:
A bit hit and miss this week. I was low on motivation and decided to give myself the whole weekend off from the to-do list, but did make some good progress on various things at other times during the week.
Read morePosted on 20 July 2020 09:54
My current main writing goal is to get my second novel in shape to submit to my publisher in September.
In May, I finished editing the second draft and sent it to eight lovely people for feedback, which I received back by the end of June. I took a few days off work at the start of July, with the intention of going through all the feedback, collating my notes and completing a comprehensive editing plan, which I was then going to work my way through for the rest of the month. August would then be available for a sense-check, line edit, and reading the whole thing aloud to myself to check the flow.
Things haven’t gone entirely to plan. It’s 20 July and I haven’t even built my editing plan yet, let alone being most of the way through implementing it.
Read morePosted on 19 July 2020 19:32
Sunday:
Intermittent good progress this week, interspersed with a total lack of energy and motivation. I’m hoping to be able to re-establish a better routine next week for making proper in-roads into my novel revision.
Read morePosted on 13 July 2020 09:34
Summary:
My editing project for the second novel went more slowly than I’d planned, but I still worked on it every day this week, so I’m pleased with progress overall (though I'm not entirely sold on the idea of focusing on logging any number of words every day just because). I also really enjoyed working on some flash fiction and reading another writer’s novel to break up the focus on my own.
Read morePosted on 06 July 2020 10:17
Summary:
It’s been a great start to the second half of the year! I’ve cleared all but one of my short projects off my list (and worked out what I’m doing with the last one) to make way for the grand novel revision project. And I’ve processed a lot of great feedback on the novel from my wonderful beta readers, to inform my editing plan. Very happy with progress all round!
Read morePosted on 29 June 2020 09:39
Summary:
This week was very much a lesson in accountability and scheduling. I had two retreat days where I wanted to get specific tasks done but didn’t really feel like it on the day. But I stated my goals on two separate online communities and that helped me achieve them, even though I wasn’t feeling very enthusiastic.
Read morePosted on 21 June 2020 20:09
Summary:
Some good progress on various fronts, and a highly enjoyable collaborative workshop, which reminded me why I like spending time discussing things and working on stuff with other writers.
Read morePosted on 14 June 2020 19:47
Summary:
Monday has definitely become my most productive writing day, thanks to a great online writing retreat schedule that fits really well with how I like to structure my day.
Read morePosted on 11 June 2020 10:30
Things have been getting hard again. The daily routine has been feeling relentless. The future is still so uncertain. Everything has been seeming to take more energy that I don’t have. I’ve been grumpy and tired and not feeling like being constructive.
But it’s all in my head. And I do know that. But, sometimes, it takes a while to remember, and to give myself a nudge to change my attitude.
Read morePosted on 07 June 2020 18:23
Summary:
More planning and brainstorming and revising this week than actual new words, but a couple of stories completed, lots of submissions done. Oh, and I signed the contract with my publisher for my first novel. So, that happened...
Read morePosted on 31 May 2020 20:25
Summary:
Really great progress on the short story front this week, starting from an awesome session with structure provided by Urban Writers Retreat. I’m pleased that I then managed to build on that momentum to continue with the stories throughout the rest of the week. Here's hoping I can do the same next week!
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