Daily Check-in 6/17/08 and 6/18/08

Both yesterday and today I've been "carding" my story—writing each possible scene and plot detail on a 3"x5" notecard, in order to play with the organization and flow of the plot. It also helps you identify gaps in your story, which I did. But that's a good thing because finding creative ways to fill those gaps ends up making the story more interesting.

Multi-day Check-in 6/13/08-6/16/08

It's been a busy weekend, so I'm playing catch-up with my blog reports.

6/13/08: I wrote before work on Friday, but because we went to see a movie (the new Indiana Jones; I liked it, but Scott wasn't impressed) after work I didn't get to post a report.

6/14/08 and 6/15/08: Although I didn't do any actual writing over the weekend, I did do some writing-related reading both days. Didn't have the opportunity to post a report either day because of a spike in our usually tame social schedule—we went to a BBQ Saturday night and the Tony Awards broadcast last night.

6/16/08: Got back to my writing routine this morning—writing for my hour—then did some more writing-related reading during lunch.

Daily Check-in 6/12/08

Did you think I forgot to report in today? No way!

Wrote before work, then did some more WIP-related reading during lunch.

BTW, I notice the emails of my blog posts are going out really late. The email of yesterday's post didn't arrive in my inbox until almost 24 hours after it appeared on the blog. Blogger (my blog host) allows me to specify up to 10 address to receive email about each blog post, and since my blog's audience is very limited that might be a better alternative to the email service I'm using now. Let me know what you think.

Daily Check-in 6/11/08

Took the el all the way to work today (instead of driving part of the way and taking the el the rest), so I was able to do some WIP-related reading during my commute. Then wrote for an hour before work, and read more at lunch.

Daily Check-in 6/10/08

Hey, what happened to 6/8/08 and 6/9/08?!

I had a colonoscopy yesterday (6/9; the doctor found two tiny polyps—both were completely benign). To prepare for the procedure I couldn't have anything but clear liquids after 11:00 AM Sunday (6/8)... and that's a very long time for me to go without food! The hungrier I got the crankier I got (ask Scott), and I found it difficult to concentrate on anything requiring higher thought—like writing or reading. So, no activity to report for 6/8. After the procedure I was pretty zoned out by the anesthesia. Scott drove me home, we got me some McDonald's breakfast on the way, and I ate my first solid food in over 24 hours. Of course, I don't remember the trip home or eating the food. But then I fell sound asleep on the couch for over four hours. So, no activity to report for 6/9 either.

I'm happy to report I resumed my writing-before-work routine this morning. Unfortunately, I had to spend my lunch hour trying to catch up on work email from the weekend and Monday.

Daily Check-in 6/6/08 and 6/7/08

I decided one report for yesterday and today was sufficient, since I spent my writing time each day finishing the book I've been reading as background research. It inspired many creative ideas but also raised some interesting questions I'll have to deal with as I continue my WIP.

Daily Check-in 6/5/08 (Better Late Than Never)

Sorry, everyone, I almost forgot to report in today. I'm tempted to just type "Ditto," because today was a continuation of the background research from yesterday... and the day before... and the day before that.

BTW, if you visit my blog (rather than just read it via email or a feed reader), then you can check out a new feature I've added: a sampling of other blogs I read on a regular basis. You'll find it at the bottom of the left hand column below the "Subscribe," "About Me," "My Posts About" and "Blog Archive" features.

Daily Check-in 6/4/08

More of the same today, once again both before work and during lunch. I'm now more than halfway through the book I'm reading.

I know these daily reports must be getting kind of boring, but this blog is part of the reason I've stuck to my morning writing routine. Knowing I'd have to "confess" missing my hour of writing before work just to sleep in helps get me out of bed each morning. Thanks!

Daily Check-in 6/3/08

More background research today, both before work and during lunch. This book I'm reading is inspiring some fun ideas for improving the events I've outlined for my WIP.

Daily Check-in 6/2/08

This morning's before-work activity on my WIP* focused on some necessary background research, and began with a trip to the Chicago Public Library over the weekend. I need to be more familiar with the scientific possibility of the topic of my WIP, so I don't end up looking like an idiot or (worse) an amateur.

And yes, I'm aware of the danger research can present for writers—which is to be an attractive distraction from the writing itself. I promise both you and myself not to let that happen.

BTW, Dad, the Lowe's gift card you gave us for Christmas has been put to good use: our gas-powered lawn mower was dying a slow and painful death, so we bought me a new toy yesterday—an electric lawn mower. Thanks!

* i.e., work in progress

Daily Check-in 5/29/08 and 5/30/08

5/29/08: I did write before work yesterday but didn't had have a chance to report it here until now. After work we saw the touring production of Avenue Q, which won the 2004 Tony Award^® for Best Musical. We've had the original Broadway cast recording for years and were worried familiarity with the songs would diminish our enjoyment of the show itself.

Not at all. The book of the musical was very funny, too, and it was great seeing the musical numbers performed live. It made for a late night though, since we waited to eat dinner after the show, and I didn't get to bed until well after midnight.

5/30/08 : Because I was up later than usual I thought I'd have trouble getting up to write before work this morning. But I managed to drag myself out of bed by 6:15 AM and wrote for about an hour before work. Spent another half hour writing during lunch, too.

Daily Check-in 5/28/08 (or: Excuses, Excuses)

I knew 5/27/08 wasn't going to be a good for writing because it was our travel day home from Poplar Tree Bay. Instead, the day was spent getting ready to leave; driving first to Syracuse (to drop off Scott's sister, Kathy, at the Syracuse airport) and then to the Buffalo airport for our own flight; finally ending back at our house around 10:00 PM. There was time during which I should have been able to write—the almost four hours spent in the car; the hour or so in the airport before our flight; the almost 90 minutes of the flight itself—except I can neither read nor write in a moving car without getting motion sick, and I'm too self-conscious to write among so many people sitting so close in the airport and on the plane.

Even though we didn't get to bed until almost 1:00 AM, I set my alarm for 6:00 AM fully intending to get up and write before work today. But expecting to be creative and deal with vacation aftermath in the office on only five hours of sleep wasn't going to work, so when my alarm went off at 6:00 AM I reset it for 7:00 AM and went back to sleep.

Daily Check-in 5/26/08

Just spent some time doing research-type reading today. It is a
holiday after all.

--
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Daily Check-in 5/25/08

Put in a couple of hours today, some research as well as actual
writing. My face got a bit sunburned because I spent some of that time
outside.

--
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Daily Check-in 5/24/08

We were stuck at the trailer today waiting for a new refrigerator and
stove to be delivered, which was perfect time for writing. I put in a
good three hours at least. Not bad for a vacation Saturday.

--
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Daily Check-in 5/23/08 (A Day Late Again)

Yesterday I wrote before bed again. Worked on another version of that
"Hero's Journey" outline to try out my new hero character.

--
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Daily Check-in 5/22/08 (A Day Late)

Greetings from Poplar Tree Bay!

Despite hours spent traveling by both plane and car, I'm proud to
report I still found time to write last night before going to bed. I
continued working on an outline I'd started the day before, in which I
was aligning the events in my story with something called "The Hero's
Journey" by Joseph Campbell (as adapted for writers and screenwriters
by Chris Vogler). It was an incredibly useful exercise... even though
it made me realize I'm using the wrong character as my hero! And it's
better to discover that now rather than later.

BTW, I'm posting this via email from my Blackberry (our only form of
Internet access right now). Call it blogging-to-go! I can't tag my
post with categories this way, but it's just cool I can post at all.

--
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Daily Check-in 5/21/08

Another really good hour of writing before work this morning. Once again, I want to skip work and just keep at it.

We're off to Poplar Tree Bay tomorrow morning for our first visit of the season. I plan on writing while we're there, and less than ideal vacation weather may mean there's time for it. No Internet access in the trailer though, so I don't know if I'll be able to keep you updated on the ol' blog here.

Daily Check-in 5/20/08

I had a much better hour (or so) of writing this morning before work. Did a little research during lunch, too. Nothing much else to say today.

Daily Check-in 5/19/08

Stupid Mondays.

Okay, I need to try harder to carve out some writing time on the weekends, because when I don't write on Saturday or Sunday I lose any momentum I've built up during the week... and that makes writing on a Monday morning about as easy as starting a car that's been sitting out in sub-zero weather for two days.* This morning, I spent 45 minutes basically spinning my wheels. Hopefully, I'll be able to put in some more productive writing time during lunch.

It sounds backwards, but getting up and writing for an hour in the morning before work is easier than making time to write on the weekend. During the work week, it's simply a matter of forcing myself to get up an hour earlier and then sitting down to write. As long as I've gone to bed at a decent hour the night before, half the battle is won. But on weekends we tend to stay up later and have more and varied things to accomplish. Plus there's usually two of involved in the scheduling of weekend activities, and that makes setting aside at least an hour on Saturday and Sunday a little more difficult. Not impossible though, of course. It's just another new writing routine to be implemented. I've succeeded (so far) in implementing my workday morning routine, so why not a weekend routine as well?

* I promise the similes in my "real" writing will be better than that one!

Daily Check-in 5/16/08

Sorry, I'm a day late reporting in! It was a crazy day at work, then last night was Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica—and I had to cook my own dinner because Scott is out of town. After all that I just kind forgot to post. So, anyway....

It was a good writing day (yesterday), with both an hour before work and another half-hour or so during lunch.

Daily Check-in 5/15/08

Had a good hour of work on my current idea this morning, although at one point I found myself fixating on a plot detail that it's way too early to be worrying over. I may try to write a bit at lunch again today.

Daily Check-in 5/14/08

A really great morning of writing, marred only the fact I had to stop to go to work. I considered calling in sick, just so I could keep writing, but I've got way too many things on my work plate this week to not be in the office every day.

UPDATE: I was able to squeeze in another half hour of writing during lunch today!

Daily Check-in 5/13/08

Not as late as yesterday, but still posting today's activity well after the fact.

Another hour of writing time before work today. Had a tough time avoiding the self-censorship trap this morning though... not sure why.

Daily Check-in 5/12/08

Sorry, but I forgot to update the blog earlier today. Squeezed in an hour's worth of writing time before a busy day at work.

Daily Check-in 5/9/08

Woo woo! I succeeded in getting up at 6:00 AM all five mornings this work week--the first step in my new writing routine. A baby step, sure, but a step nonetheless... and in the right direction.

Worked on my idea for another hour this morning. Spent time organizing some of the week's thoughts into an extremely preliminary outline of story events. Don't know which events will end up in the actual story, or if the ones that do will be plot or flashback or back story. It all feels like a game right now and that's good. The object of the game at this stage in the process is to be creative while avoiding the self-censorship traps (i.e. I'm not allowed to decide an idea sucks before I write it down and explore its potential).

Daily Check-in 5/8/08

Back to McDonald's this morning to eat breakfast and work on my current idea. Got in a little over an hour of writing time before I had to pack it up and go to my office. I like writing in the morning because it feels like my mind is more alert and I'm able to let the ideas flow more freely. But it's tough having to stop--sometimes in the middle of a good train of thought--to go earn a living. Of course, that won't be a problem during the four months of my sabbatical.

Daily Check-in 5/7/08

Ate my breakfast at home this morning, sitting at the dining room table while working on my current idea for an hour. I use a little digital kitchen timer that I set for 60 minutes (or up to 99 minutes and 59 seconds), so I don't have to watch the clock as I work.

Daily Check-in 5/6/08

Worked on my new idea for a little over an hour this morning. Tried something new: since we were out of milk at home, I left the house early and went to a McDonald's close to MPOW. Sat there and ate breakfast while I wrote. Was fine, except for the woman at the next table who was clipping her fingernails. Ick, who knows where the clippings landed. Yes, it was distracting, and it was a good test of my ability to focus on the work in front of me. But I plan on buying milk on the way home from work tonight. ;-)

A New Writing Routine

Yesterday, I confessed to Scott my my plan to get up early to write before work each morning; a plan I've had for awhile but not yet implemented. Scott had his own plan: to get up early to go to the gym before work each morning; a plan he had implemented albeit inconsistently.

So, we mutually agreed to jump start our respective plans beginning this morning. And we did!

I got up at 6:00 AM; showered; dressed; ate breakfast; then plopped myself down at my desk and continued fleshing out a new fiction idea I've been toying with. Scott got up at 6:15 AM; put on his workout clothes; and went to the gym.

Here's your first official "virtual boss" assignment, family: give me endless grief if I fail to continue this new writing-before-work routine. I'll keep you posted here.

A Full-time Writer...

...for four months, at least.

I had some good news this week: MPOW granted my request for sabbatical leave, to allow me to pursue writing on a full-time basis. So, for four months beginning September 1, 2008, my (temporary) full-time job will be writer! Sabbatical leave isn't a benefit most employers offer, and I'm incredibly lucky MPOW does.

The goal of the sabbatical, as stated in my application, is to produce a book-length manuscript for a scifi/fantasy idea I'm developing. Obviously, four months isn't nearly long enough to crank out an entire book. I've a lot of research and planning and writing to do before my leave even begins. And I'm recruiting all of you to help me!

Hey, procrastination runs in our family, and I definitely inherited the gene. Since most fiction writers aren't fortunate enough to have a book deal that sets a deadline for a finished manuscript, we control our own schedules and set our own deadlines--which we're free to meet or blow off as we feel like. That lack of accountability is dangerous for a well-practiced procrastinator like me.

On January 30, 2008, the Write to Done blog published a post called "How to Hold Yourself Accountable as a Writer" that suggested the idea of a "virtual boss"--someone, perhaps even a blog audience, you answer to about your writing:

Blogs work great for this. If you tell your blog audience that you're going to post your writing one section at a time, every day, then you'll have pressure to actually write, or you’ll look bad in front of a large crowd of friends. No one wants that. Ask your blogging audience to hold you accountable. Of course, if you're looking to publish this writing elsewhere, you might not want to publish it on your blog, but instead you could just give them a word count or some other update like that each day--as long as you’re honest!

See where this is going, blog audience?

I'm going to set some goals and deadlines, and share them with you on this blog. I'll also report my progress, and (this is the important part) you'll call me on the carpet if I don't post when I'm supposed to or fail to meet one of my goals or deadlines. Fun, right?!

Now, I probably won't be saying much about the content of my writing. Writers are warned against talk about their ideas too much, because you risk depleting the creative energy of those ideas: Don't talk about your ideas; use them to write!

None of us have been very diligent about keeping up our blogs. I mean, there's a whole basement remodeling I never posted for you to see. But to be honest, my life usually isn't so extraordinary to tell you about. Using this blog to let you share in my writing process, and to keep my writing on track, seems a lot more fun and exciting anyway.

TIA for your help. I'll list you all in the acknowledgment of my first published book. :-)