Time to Set Goals for 2011

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Because the holiday season is upon us, and time is limited, I've decided to start setting the goals for 2011.  And since this years goals were mostly a pain in my ass and completed at the end of this year or not at all, I'm adding them to the right column so they're in my face almost every day.

There are seven weeks left of the year and I plan on unveiling the goals every Friday as I create them.  This week I've come up with two.  Warning, there's A LOT of thinking out loud below.

1.  Achieve 50% towards remainder of 1,000,000 words of written fiction.  
This is a goal I set, in September of 2008 after listening to an early episode of Writing Excuses.  Basically they mentioned that the first one or two novels you write are likely crap. I know my first two were both more personal stories I'll probably never publish.  They also mentioned that it takes writing one million words to begin mastering prose.  These are all professionals' opinions, and who am I to argue, right?  Anyways, I set the goal back then to write a million words of fiction within a certain time frame that never happened.  Actually I stopped tracking it and have since written over 120,000 new words, which really surprises me considering the writer's block I went through this year.

Well, IT'S BACK for 2011 & 2012.  I started a counter in the right column, but have the rest of the year's writing, so I'm not exactly sure where the total count will be for 2011 and 2012 other than an estimated 300,000 per year which is less than the 480,000 I should be able to write if I stick to a 2000 words a day for 20 days a month.   WOW!  That's 4-6 novels or who knows how many short stories a year, which could lead into another goal.

2. Finish editing The Courier #1 by the end of the first second quarter.
I've consistently not met this goal every time I've set it, so it will be interesting to see if I meet it this time.  This novel is going into its 4th draft, and now on to the math.  I've taken the first 100 pages of the novel to critique group and have another 200 to subject to weekly criticism, and at 10 pages a week gets me to 180 pages by the end of the first quarter.  Well, that ain't guna work.  So I guess I could up it to editing 20 pages a week and attend critique group twice a week.  Gosh, can my ego take that much slamming...LOL?  Sounds like I'm setting myself up for failure again.  Sigh.  Better make it the second quarter, because I also need to update the synopsis and will likely go through the whole query letter business to find a new agent.   More goals...

Anyone else out there thinking about or setting goals for next year yet?  What do you hope to achieve?

One Definition of Flight

There are four books sitting on the left side of my desk, between two brass eagle bookends:  a dictionary, The Artist's Way, Writing Down the Bones, and The Elements of Grammar.  As I reached to pull out The Artist's Way to complete a few assignments this morning, I instead pulled out the dictionary and opened it to a random page.  The first word and definition for that word I read...

flight - A soaring above the ordinary. 

What an wonderfully inspirational message to start my week this early Monday morning.

What a Mess!

I was getting ready to write a blog post on finding your character's voice and I happened to notice a post that I forgot to publish. Oops. Anyway, I thought it might be interesting to read if you find yourself unorganized in the middle of writer's block.

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I have a private Google website I use for all my novel planning.  R.J. and I also have one for Bloodleggers.  In the past, these websites have been more than helpful in recording ideas, tracking characters, plotting, outlining, etc.  Well, I stopped maintaining them far too long ago, and what an outdated mess they've become!  Thanks to The Artist's Way tough, I've been in cleaning mode for a couple of weeks now. 

I've been working my way very slowly through the sections, taking the time to read each chapter twice and complete all the exercises, so at times I find my progress is a little ahead of where I'm reading in the book.  Like when I read this after hitting my office like a Ms. Clean tornado a couple Wednesdays ago.

One of the clearest signals that something healthy is afoot is the impulse to weed out, sort through, and discard old clothes, papers, and belongings...  By tossing out the old and unworkable, we make way for the new and suitable...  When the search-and-discard impulse seizes you, two cross currents are at work:  the old you is leaving and grieving, while the new you celebrates and grows strong.

So this is where I am at the moment, working through my writer's funk.  Only now the cleaning has moved to the computer.  One thing that came out of cleaning up the office was a pile of hand written story ideas and edits I need to incorporate into the novels.  Looking at the pile, it occurred to me I may have brought on some of the writers block by being so unorganized and scattered.  Time to clean it all up and get on with the writing.

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You'll be happy to know I officially exited the clean up mode a couple weeks ago. The office is immaculate and the website back in use, including a nearly complete outline for book 3 of The Courier.

Ladybug Sightings

I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen a ladybug when I found one crawling through my hair over the weekend. Then I found another one this morning. It met me by the refrigerator as I gathered rice milk for my cereal and orange juice.

When something catches my eye and grabs my attention, I can't help but wonder what spiritual message I'm being sent.  So this morning it was off to the Internet to search for the meaning behind ladybug sightings.  I was pretty happy with what I found because it so perfectly suits where I am in life at the moment.  In summary, I feel my funky block melting away and now is the time for renewed creativity.  I felt it this morning, even before the second ladybug sighting, when I woke up to sparks of ideas for three new characters and more of the storyline for Warrant for Damnation. Exactly what I need while I finish preparing for the 3 Day Novel Contest.

If you are interested in learning more about ladybugs, here are a few things I've found:

"LadyBug Life, Rebirth, Abundance, and Hope. Lady bugs, a type of winged beetle, is a gardener's friend in keeping other more harmful bugs out of the flower beds. Lady bugs with their bright red shells and black spots carry the magic of rebirth. Red and black are the colors of thoughts and manifestation. Often Ladybug will appear to us when we have an opportunity to succeed, grow, and start something new. All of the beetle family transforms from larvae to adult, showing us we too can transform our lives. Ladybugs can consume large quantities of aphids and other harmful bugs which eat and destroy plants. When we garden with more conscientious we can be aware of this balance within the garden. Allowing nature to show us how it takes care of the pests, without the use of harmful pesticides and chemicals. So as Summer begins to fade into Fall watch for Ladybug to fly into your life. Let Ladybug consume your unwanted fears and encourage new adventures."  -- Raven Medium Website

"The Ladybug is associated with spirituality and religious devotion. The name Ladybug originated in Europe during the Middle Ages, when insects were destroying the crops. Catholic farmers were said to have prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. Soon after, Ladybugs appeared and began eating the pests and saved the crops from destruction. The farmers began to call the Ladybugs “the Beetles of Our Lady” and eventually they were known as Lady Beetles. The Ladybug's red wings are said to represent the Virgin's cloak and the black spots her joys and sorrows."

The Ladybug is widely considered a symbol of luck and is seen as a good omen when it comes calling. In Sweden, it is said that if one lands on a young woman's hand, she will soon get married. In France, it is said that if you are ill when one lands on you, it will fly away with your illness.

Ladybugs are also considered to be symbols of fire and the Sun.

Ladybug teaches life is short and it teaches to let go of ones' worries and fears, to trust in spirit and enjoy life. It brings the gifts of renewal and regeneration. The message of the Ladybug could be asking you to “Let go and let God”."  -- Montana Dreams Website

You Can Do It!

A few pages into Miracles Happen, The Life and Timeless Principles of The Founder of Mary Kay Inc., Mary Kay Ash tells a story about the responsibilities she had to take on during her childhood as a result of her father's illness. At the age of seven she had to take care of the household while her mother worked long hours outside the home. I don't know about you, but at the age of seven my greatest worry was the next outfit I'd put on Barbie. So reading her words, that her mother would "go through every step, one at a time, trying to think of everything I need to know. I hadn't been raised to be a complainer, but I'm sure she knew that my job sometimes seemed overwhelming. Because when she was through with her instructions, she always added, 'Honey, you can do it.'" was inspirational in so many ways. Hearing those four words over and over again, day after day, how could she grow up and not succeed?

When I read that excerpt, I highlighted the text and marked the page. I've gone back and read her quote at least fifty times in the past couple weeks. I especially find it helpful during editing, when I'm ready to walk away from a paragraph I just can't get right. I go back and give it a tenth or twelfth try and eureka, it comes out right.

Four Kinds of People

With the end of the first half of 2010 rapidly approaching, I've decided to change my mindset for the remainder of the year. So first of all, I'm setting new goals for the next 6 months. Second, I'm pulling out the inspirational books to give myself a much needed pep talk. The first book I pulled off the shelf is Miracles Happen by Mary Kay Ash. No I'm not a Mary Kay Lady. I had used their products for years until my soy and gluten allergies got worse. Enough said. Anyways, the first thing you read in chapter 1 is this:

There are four kinds of people in the world:

• those who make things happen

• those who watch things happen

• those who wonder what happened

• those who don't know that anything happened!

For this later half of the year, I will be one of those people who makes things happen.