8 Things to Give Up for NaNoWriMo

National Novel Writing Month.

50,000 words in one month. Sounds crazy. Ready to give up? Great! Me too. I'll give up lots, just so long as I don't have to give up writing my novel. It's all about the words and we know getting words on  the page can often be all about finding the time to write. What are you prepared to sacrifice?

Here's a list of the things you could give up for November to win NaNoWriMo:

1. Plot - 'But I'm not a pantser!' I hear you shout. That's okay. Maybe you spent all of October planning every scene for your novel. Fine, try that. But if you don't have your story plotted out already - now is not the time to do it. Just go with it. And if you do? Add some random things on the days you feel stuck. Sometimes knowing what you have to write can slow you down. Have your character pop into a cafe for a bowl of jelly and find a fly in it. The thing is you'll get your word count, it's great writing practice and you can always delete it in the edits.
2. Perfection - Repeat after me - 'This will be a crap draft, but at least I'll have a draft.'
3. Cleanliness - Now I'm not suggesting you stop showering, that's a great place for inspiration. But forget the vacuuming, washing clothes, mowing lawns etc. Kids can wash their own clothes and wear their uniforms crinkled. The family will figure out how to make baked beans on toast, and maybe they wouldn't mind whipping up something for you while they're at it. It is a universal rule that NOBODY EVER visits an author's home in November. Make sure you don't visit a writer friends house and comment on the cobwebs either. That's like killing puppies, you don't want to kill puppies... do you?
4. Television - Ooh this is going to be a hard one for some people (me). I can't remember the last time I turned on tv to see what was on, but we watch a lot of DVDs and download tv series from iTunes (I love Castle, The Walking Dead, Justified & Bones). But for November I've pledged to watch NOTHING. My family are sadly not supporting this challenge, so I'll be spending a lot of time alone in my room typing.
5. Company - Those people called family and friends will only weigh you down dude! Ditch 'em now. You may however, hang with other writers and encourage each other with word races and accountability for word counts. If you can't trust yourself not to wander off for coffee with mates, hide all your shoes for the month.
6. Stress - Nothing slows action more than worrying about it.
7. Blogs - Don't panic, I'm not suggesting you HAVE to close down for the entire month (although many bloggers are), but you shouldn't let yourself on until you've met your word count for the day (at least). I'm not planning to do much blogging over November and I doubt I'll be visiting blogs, unless I get ahead of schedule. There's a zillion blogs to visit, no one will mind if a few of them slow down. Plus, I don't like to blog unless I'm reciprocating by visiting blogs, otherwise I think it's a bit selfish and rude. And I don't want to be rude. I want you to like me :)
8. Internet time - Schedule a reduced time, maybe thirty minutes a day, to check emails, Facebook, Twitter etc, or again, let yourself online AFTER you reach your daily word count.

That's my list. I'll be giving up all these things for November. How about you? Another one for the guys is shaving, let your stubble go wild this month!

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Insecure Writers - Time Management

Every 1st Wednesday of the month is a time for insecure writers to group together. This month, my mind is obsessed with time. 

I have a bad habit of taking on more projects each day than can possibly be tackled in a 24hr period. My to-do lists grow into epic quests. Some of the projects I'm trying to juggle now are:

• Organise a launch, distribution and sales points for My Zombie Dog.
• Finish writing first draft to Undead Kev, sequel to My Zombie Dog.
• Edit/rewrite DOGNAPPED? My tween girl mystery.
• Find time to write my love project Warracknabeal Kids, a mystery set in 1939 outback Australia.
• Edit and submit short stories into competitions.
• Set myself up to run workshops at schools/libraries for creative writing.
• Together with my team, organise an Indie Expo for Australia's music, film, art and writing industry.

Each of these projects have many tasks to complete, and I want them all done NOW! I start to feel panicky, like I'm running late (I CAN'T run late EVER). Of course I also need to fit life in around these tasks. 

I am taking steps to manage all these projects:

• Downloaded Pomodorable from the Mac App store. This uses the method of set time limits per task. You work on one task for twenty minutes, then take a ten minute break (stretch, move about).
• Morning pages - I write three pages longhand when I wake up. It's not always useful words, but it does push me to keep going.
• I'll (try to) limit my task numbers on my to-do list. Do you know if you have more than five tasks on your list you're less productive on each one? A to-do list needs to be achievable, otherwise it just becomes a reminder of failure and a form of punishment. I need that reward of ticking boxes.

So what do you do to manage time wisely? If it's time to write you need, you can check out this post:

10 Ways to find Time to Write

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Are you blogging too much?

Is blogging and visiting blogs taking up all your time?

When I started blogging I was hooked straight away. There are so many awesome blogs on writing, I'm sure I gained more information and help from the online world than I did from my studies at school. I was starting at scratch learning the art of writing and I wanted to share that with other peeps. I guess the focus of my blog is - if I can fumble through this, think how easy it will be for you.

I blogged my butt off. Some weeks I'd blog up to four times. My opinion now is that's just not necessary. I know you can reach out to other writers and build a platform for your writing. That's the marketing side, you'll also make great blogging friends, I know I have. BUT. Now I blog about once a week, twice if something special comes up. This gives me more time to visit other blogs, improve my writing skills and work on my books. Less blogging means each post is live longer and has more chance to actually be viewed by readers.

So rather than update you every time my dog does something cute or I have a weird dream, I think about what will be helpful to my reader. The tip I'm suggesting today? Social media is a tool, a great tool, but if your goal is to publish a novel or write flash fiction or poetry, then make your craft your priority. Spend time on your art and balance that time wisely with your platform building. Let social media feed and propel your productivity, not steal from it.

Are you making time for your writing?

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The Art of Not Getting Stuff Done

We all have a lot to do. There's stuff you have to get done for work, family, the dogs, the house, your blog, your health and somewhere way down on the list is the stuff you have to do for your writing. Sometimes it can't be helped, we have to prioritise and we can't always ignore work deadlines, or leave the kids to starve, but if you want to get that manuscript written, it might be time to move it to the top of your list.

I blog a lot about lists, I've always created them and love ticking items off. There's different ways to manage your tasks, lately I have a tick-box list on my calendar on the computer. iCal has become increasingly more important as I've been going to more and more writers events and courses. If you're a visual person, you might like The Writer's Kanban. I used to use a day-to-a-page diary to write my lists, and I expected to finish every item before the next day.

This month I'm including at least one meditation session each day, which would seem impossible when I think about how quickly my day fills up. But this has been great because it's helped me to shift my priorities. I've still got a big list of things to do, lessons to prepare for my workshops, homework for my writing courses, signing up, visiting blogs, blogging, tweeting, reading and writing. Difference is, I don't need to tick everything off. I'm taking a mellow 'don't get stuff done' approach and it's working well for me.

My writing is prioritized and I just stop everything else sometimes to fill a page in my notebook, or take my laptop out on the deck to be alone and type. If you're feeling busy and overwhelmed, take some time each day to just do nothing. And if stuff doesn't get done? Eh.

Somebody who is very productive at the moment is my good friend Denise Covey, Denise and I are in a great writing group, but you might know her from .... Well, she's started another blog! Check it out:

FLASHQUAKE - Friday Flash

If you want to find ways to get more done in your day (not less, like me), or you want to prioritize your writing, you might like these posts:

8 Ways to Prioritise Your Writing

Best Free Apps for Productivity

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A Writer's Year

Been quite a gap since my last post (I'm giving you my sheepish look, it's really very adorable). Time melted away from me, but I did wind up my school year and managed to sell our Yass home.

With only a few days until I make my New Year To-Do List, I thought I'd reflect on the past year to see what achievements I've made with writing and how I may be able to improve my productivity over the next year. New Year's resolutions are common this time of year, we all think about how this will be the opportunity for us to pursue forgotten dreams, shed our bad habits and connect more with those we neglect. But it's also a good time for reflection. What were your resolutions, goals, ambitions at the beginning of 2011? Did you make any progress? What worked well, and what did you neglect to address?

I'm pretty happy with 2011, Not only did I finish MY ZOMBIE DOG, but I had an interview with an editor from a children's publishing house. Like most years, my productivity was condensed at the beginning of the year and tapered off the last two months to almost non-existence.

What was your best achievement this year? What do you need to work on? 

Now to celebrate my return to blogworld, I'm gonna go visiting my favourite blogs!

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