We all get them on occasion. I always have a ton of stuff to do, but never quite get to it all.
Last night the Rave Reviews Book Club announced another writing contest. I don’t always enter these, because I don’t always fit the mold. They had one for women writers at one point. Yeah.
This time, it’s about “Building a Better Me.” I’m sure there will be a bunch of redemption stories, maybe some about boot camp, or kicking drugs.
I’m a speculative fiction author. I stayed up late last night and wrote one anyway. I’ll probably get booted off the island, but when they asked about building a better me, I wrote about building a better me. What else would I write, right? Submissions open tomorrow, and I’m sending it in. If nothing else, I can use it for Macabre Macaroni come October.
I also managed to assemble and schedule a hosting post for a guest author. Then I assembled and scheduled the next edition of Lisa Burton Radio. Also on this front, I built the shtick for a future radio show and sent it back to the author. That’s going to be a really fun one, but it’s weeks away from appearing.
I picked through my critiques this morning. There weren’t a lot of adjustments to make, but they always see something I did not.
My wife turned on The Lord of the Rings about 10:00 this morning. It’s just after 6:00 and it just now ended. I cannot write new fiction with that kind of distraction. I wrote another guest post for when The Playground publishes. At least it’s something. If I add a couple of excerpts, I have enough for a blog tour. I won’t pick those until the last minute, but there is one with some creative dentistry that ought to draw attention.
I also tried one of those new Amazon giveaways. I have no idea what I’m doing, but I’m giving away three copies of Will O’ the Wisp through Amazon. If anyone is interested here is the link. It lasts for 15 days, and if it proves productive, I’ll probably do it again. Most of the regulars have read it by now, but maybe you can tell your friends.
We had the kids and grandkids over for dinner tonight. My wife makes awesome ribs and everyone left well fed.
All in all, it wasn’t a very productive weekend. There’s always tomorrow though. I took a vacation day tomorrow, and would like to add words to The Yak Guy Project.
I also received some feed back on The Playground, and need to address those issues. Distractions aren’t a problem when it comes to edits, so I’ll probably save those for the week nights. The best news is the book was well received. I honestly worry about that every single time, and until someone tells me – I have my doubts. My imagination is pretty far out there, so I never know if I’ve pushed things too far. That capped the weekend on a high note.
I kept all the email from those who volunteered for the street team. It won’t be too much longer and I’ll send out things to share across your social media.
I hope everyone managed more than I did. It seems like a lot, but it’s all little stuff.
I was going to enter the contest but kept getting stuck in a weird place about a better me. I don’t think the judges would like my offering. So I’m going to forget it. Happy Monday
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They may not like mine either, because it’s more literally what they said.
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I can imagine. You may shock some faint hearts.
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Funny. My mind went to what I think you’re thinking as soon as I saw that topic. Still sounds like a productive weekend. At least for small projects. By the way, where do people set up the giveaways? I can’t figure out where the links for that are.
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I found a step by step by Chris McMullin. Nicholas Rossis reblog fed it. You have to go to your book on Amazon and the link is there.
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Thanks. I guess I didn’t scroll far enough to find it.
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Let me know and I’ll tweet the link around for you.
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Thanks. I’m thinking of using it for when the next Windemere book comes out. Probably for the bundle.
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I don’t see how you can edit with distractions. I’m glad my husband is a reader. It’s pretty quiet around here most of the time, unless the grandkids are visiting. Or the dogs are snoring.
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I need my focus for reading, and to keep larger things together like character arc, plants & payoffs, seasonal changes. By the time editing rolls around those are already sorted out. Even writing short fiction doesn’t require the solitude, because there aren’t as many balls to juggle.
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Sounds like you still got a lot done though Craig! I might have to check out the Amazon giveaway idea. My task today is to write another chapter of the next novel!
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Small steps add up, that’s what I keep telling myself. It seems like I test drive a lot of stuff. Ebook only folks have a hard time doing Goodreads giveaways and such. This Amazon tool looks remarkably similar, and it doesn’t cost a fortune to try it. I signed up to build Twitter followers, but I wish Facebook followers were an option. You can also gear it toward gaining Amazon author page followers, but that advantage isn’t real clear to me yet. Looks like it might be more of an advantage for Amazon.
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More than likely, I’ll be interested to see what happens. And you’re a pioneer Craig, always looking for the next thing đŸ™‚
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I’ll know more in two weeks. If there is an identifiable result, I’ll post about it.
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It has taken The Mister going to school, ie studying, to get him to understand the importance of The Quiet Room. Sometimes he’ll go to the library before he comes home, just for improved silence. I can’t demand quiet all the time, but I get a lot more of it lately đŸ™‚
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That’s why I’ve learned how much I can handle with peripheral noise. When the golden opportunity comes along I concentrate on things I need solitude for. Other projects I can peck away at while music is blasting or The Hallmark Channel is on.
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I always worry about how the story will be received, too. I’m in final edits for my new thriller and even though my editor loved the book, panic has set in to stay till its release. Unfortunately I’ve heard from authors with over 60 novels published, and they tell me the feeling never goes away.
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That actually makes sense to me. I’ve heard before that most authors feel like posers who got away with something once. I think it also indicates the desire to deliver a good product.
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I’m having one of those days today. Thus the short reply.
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I must have missed the news about the contest, but couldn’t have squeezed anything in at this point anyway. In addition to the current WIP, I just committed to a short I need to turn around by mid April for an anthology. I had a really productive writing weekend (almost 8K) and am zeroing in on the end of Mothman book 2. I really need to take that pressure off.
And the worry thing about how a book will be received, I don’t think ever goes away. I’ve also come to the conclusion that for everyone who likes something I write there are sure to be others who won’t and will be vocal about it. I guess it just goes with the territory.
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The contest is for what I call micro-fiction. I think mine came in at about 1300 words. Getting an anthology invite is pretty cool. I just bundle mine and sell it myself. I think the worry thing hits us all, and never goes away.
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I just found my email from RRBC. I’ll be looking forward to reading your entry.
Yep, it’s going to be a freebie anthology but hopefully it will garner attention for the authors in the collection. And your right…worry is just part of the profession!
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I kind of expect my entry to get booted off the island, but I sent it off anyway.
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Ha! We’ll see! đŸ™‚
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