Summary: (This was Feb 15-21)

Finalised and submitted my second novel to my publisher – suddenly it actually feels like I might really be a novelist!

 

Monday:

I did some admin and sorting out early on, then settled down to my regular focus session with Ann, starting with edits to a short story that is due to be published imminently.

Then it was time for my second monthly accountability call with Claire from CP’s Day Off. This proved quite enlightening in reminding me to take time to reflect on everything I’ve achieved rather than always focusing on the next item on the list. So that was good!

The final edits had come through from my amazing proofreaders on Colours, so I did those and then sent a query to my publisher about how to submit as a current author with them.

 

Tuesday:

My new weekly focus session with Hannah prompted me to make a list of useful stuff to do.

I went through the GYWO discussion topics list and claimed all my topics for the year.

Then I put together a list of 12 well-known science-fiction and fantasy magazines and tried to find ways to submit The Defiant Spark for review. I succeeded in sending a request to four of them, which I was quite pleased with, though if I get an actual review from even one I think I’ll be doing very well.

 

Thursday:

Claire from CP’s Day Off asked me to think about putting together a workshop about my road to publication, and the subconscious crew gave me an entire structure and plan when I woke up this morning. So, I wrote it up and sent it to Claire ahead of today’s focus session.

Then I went back to Safeguarding at long last and did the next section of outlining. I answered a lot of questions about various parts of the plot and then did some research and made a ton of notes about designing and utilising a soft magic system in the story.

Later, I finished an audiobook and wrote my review.

 

Friday:

I started my focus session with Ann by writing my review of the book I finished the night before. Then I read the first section of a novel by one of the TL;DR writers and offered comments.

After that, it was back to outlining Safeguarding. I managed to put together a rough but workable list of scenes that covered the basic arc of the plot, which was satisfying.

Then I prepared a submission package of synopsis and first chapter for Colours and submitted it to my publisher for consideration.

Later, I typed up the notes I made on magic systems the day before, to save them for future reference.

 

Saturday:

I logged onto the UWR online session and stated my aims for the day.

First on the list was a discussion post for GYWO on Plotting Short Stories, which I very quickly realised I hadn’t done in so long I couldn’t really remember how… But I managed to pull some ideas together and post the article.

Then it was back to outlining Safeguarding. I started day five of The Ten Day Outline which gloriously involved index cards and coloured pens!

 

Sunday:

I finished off the index cards exercise from the day before on Safeguarding. The beginning and the end seemed quite strong, though the middle was a bit boggy, but that’s to be expected at this stage.

Later, I wrote my script for the next podcast episode.