Feel Good Friday

/

A random list of small things that make me happy:

  •  Fall weather
  • Dark chocolate
  • Holding hands with Blair
  • Aveda "Smooth Infusion" hair straightening conditioner
  • Salt Pigs
  • Puzzling over plot for my YA adventure/fantasy novel
  • Cats sleeping on windowseats
  • Family
  • Healthy eating
  • Watching / helping friends succeed
  • Neighbors who leave fresh garden vegetables on my porch
  • Blue toenail polish
  • Knowing we've recorded "Glee" to watch later tonight
  • Facebook
  • Mango sorbet
  • Blog readers

Why It's Important To Hang Out With Writers

/

I miss my writing friends. These are the people who, like me, find it fun to sit around a table at a coffee shop for hours on end discussing plot, dialogue, and the newest crap out on the market and various theories on how this junk came to be published when no one will look at our obviously superior novels? (We writers are an egotistical bunch.)

But I've discovered that more than missing them, I need my writer friends.

Read More

Time Management: How Efficient Are You?

/

Had an interesting experience with TIME this week. Late Tuesday afternoon I went into my spam folder, looking for an e-mail I thought might be there. While scrolling through the list, I found a writing assignment that had been sent to me on Friday. I'd known the assignment was coming but thought maybe the editor had just gotten bogged down and that's why it hadn't been sent.

I opened the assignment only to find that the 800-word article was due the next day. YIKES. I e-mailed the editor, explained what had happened and asked if I could have until Thursday/Friday to turn the piece in. Luckily, he was fine with that. 

Read More

List Making - Is There A Better Way?

/

My dry erase board with today's to-do listI have a friend I admire who's an action gal. Unlike me, with half my life spent huddled over a to-do list (either admiring it, adding to it, or crossing something off with a sense of satisfaction), my friend just does things. Phone call needs to be made? Bam. She picks up the phone and makes the call. Letter to be sent out? She's at the computer - type type type print - done. Need to get the dogs in to the vet? She's on the phone making the appointment. 

It's my goal to be more like her. Quit dithering around and just DO what needs to be done. Do it, move on, quit thinking about it. Sounds lovely, doesn't it?

Part of my "to do" list fetish comes from a fear that I'll forget something. Heaven forbid I be less than perfect. But I think a lot of it is just showing off. A written record of "Sigh, look how much work I have to do!" Big, fat, hairy deal. Do YOU know anyone who isn't swamped? Me either. 

I think I'd get a lot more done if I just jumped into a task versus planning WHEN I'll start it and HOW LONG it will take and IN WHAT ORDER things should be done. Let go of the OCD and just do the work, Dena.

I think I'll start by erasing "Write blog entry" from my to-do list. ;)

Cheers,

Dena