Wednesday, March 7, 2018

IWSG: March 2018

I missed a few weeks blogging in February, but no way was I going to miss the IWSG blog hop held on the first Wednesday of every month. Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh for starting the group and all the administrators who do so much work to keep it running and growing. Join us and share your woes, successes, and ask questions. There's lot of talent here to help. Check out all the participants on this complete list.

The optional question this month: How do you celebrate when you achieve a writing goal or finish a piece of work?

I BUY BOOKS, OF COURSE! Not just buy them, but go meander around a bookstore for hours. And books plural, not just one.

Speaking of bookstores, here's an interesting article where comparing the buyer experience at an Amazon physical store and a Barnes and Noble bookstore. I know lots of us are bracing ourselves for the coming doom of Barnes and Noble. At my most recent writers' meeting, more than one author referred to Amazon as the evil empire.

I ordered a new printer. I had my last one for probably six years. I don't know if that's a good lifespan for a printer or not. It's arriving today so next Monday's post could be full of curse words in reference to how difficult it was to get it all figured out and WiFi active.

I'm almost 20K into my next WIP. Starting a new series that I don't have a title for yet, but I'm back in space for a little space opera romance. I'm writing a bit more than one thousand words per day but I'd like to up that to two thousand. I do use some of the techniques described in this article on how to write fast.

A member of my local writing group, Hope Stephan, gave a presentation on procrastination at our writers meeting. It was extremely interesting. There's an entire industry of books, podcast, and every other form of self-help stuff aimed at procrastinators. Hope shared this quote:

"Work finally begins when the fear of doing nothing exceeds the fear of doing it badly." Alain de Botton

Also,last Saturday, my granddaughter turned one year old. That year went so fast. She's walking though only when she wants to. She loves being outside though the weather isn't always cooperative. She's my little joy. We all need some joy.

My youngest son has a birthday tomorrow, so we're all in on a week of celebration. Not good when it's snowing again and I can't get outside to walk.

I'm looking forward to the return of Timeless this coming Sunday. I re-watched the first season last week. And my favorite summer show, Salvation, did get a second season. March Madness is almost upon us. I played basketball in high school and all my children played the game at some point in their athletic careers. But I'll be so sick of it in a few weeks, I won't be able to enjoy it. Way too many hours of it on TV.

Don't forget to turn your clocks ahead this weekend for Daylight Savings Time. And remember this:
"Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana." Groucho Marx

How do you celebrate reaching a goal? Are you a procrastinator? How long should a printer last? Are you dreading springing ahead?



54 comments:

Heather R. Holden said...

Ooh, books! Definitely an excellent way to celebrate. ^_^

And a space opera romance sounds like a lot of fun. Many congrats on all the words you've written for this WIP so far!

Pat Hatt said...

No procrastinating here. Onward we go. 1000 words a day sure isn't too shabby indeed. haha printers can be a pain in the arse to set up sometimes.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I like that quote.
I hate spring forward though. I need that hour!

Natalie Aguirre said...

Yes, books are a great way to celebrate. And awesome that your grandchild turned one. Such a fun age and it just gets better. Hope your writing goes well. I don't have a title yet either except for: New Story.

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

The Barnes and Noble near me is always crowded so fingers crossed it stays a good long while.

I don't like changing the clocks - it always throws me off for about a week.

Jo said...

Another comment similar is "Failure is never so frightening as regret. Came from the movie The Dish. I haven't been in a book store in years. I either get library books or ebooks for my Kindle. I can see that the failure of book stores would not be good for writers.

The clock changing rubbish was introduced during the Second World War - that's over or hadn't anyone noticed.

Nicki Elson said...

I sympathize with an UG for getting the new printer up and running. Maybe since you expect it to be a chore it'll be easy peasy this time.

Happy birthdays to your crew! Have fun celebrating.

S.A. Larsenッ said...

Yeah, buying new reads is a great way to celebrate! Gosh, I hope bookstores will always be a mainstay. But honestly, when I look at my youngest (14yrs) and his friends, they literally do almost everything online. It's where they're comfortable and what they know. I don't like it. :(

M.J. Fifield said...

Happy birthday to your son and granddaughter!

I am definitely a procrastinator. I'm scheduled to give a presentation at my local writers group this Saturday, and I'm trying really, really hard to not procrastinate on preparing for it. :)

Best of luck with your new printer...and I hope this latest round of snow melts super fast!

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Susan - great quotes! Wonderful to read about your granddaughter ... so enjoy the celebratory week with your son and all the family ... then Spring will almost be here - just enjoy and cheers Hilary

Anonymous said...

Books sound like an excellent way to celebrate.

Cherie Reich said...

Buying books is a fantastic way to celebrate! I'm so excited that Timeless is coming back, and I hadn't heard about Salvation getting picked up for a second season. Yay!

Michael Di Gesu said...

Hi, Susan,

Yay for books! Certainly one of my passions... I just wish I had enough room for all of mine. I never give them up once I get one! LOl

J E Oneil said...

Buying books sounds like the perfect way to celebrate! And I think six years is a good life for a printer. I don't think I've had one that lasted that long!

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Thanks, Heather, for stopping in with all your great projects going on.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Even with a thousand a day, I'm sure I'm way behind you on productivity.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I hate losing that hour too. It always seems like it's 3 hours.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I always name the file after my protagonist. New story would work though.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

My Barnes and Noble is always packed too. Fingers and toes crossed.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I wish we'd stop the time changing too though my sports loving children are fans.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Too much celebrating. Also have three friends I usually do dinner with for their birthdays.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I know. I have sisters who live in the middle of nowhere and they get all their books online, usually Kindle.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I don't procrastinate much, a little now and then. Snow is mostly gone already. Yippee.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

So ready for spring. Granddaughter is lovely as usual.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Nothing better, but so many good ones to choose from.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I have more books than I have room for too.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

Since my children are older, I've noticed my tech lasts a lot longer.

messymimi said...

Buying books is the best way to celebrate anything. And i wish many happy returns of the day to your family members who are celebrating (i hope they get good books for gifts).

Diane Burton said...

Groucho could really come up with some good quotes. Grandchildren makes us glad we didn't kill our young. LOL I love having mine close.

Sarah Foster said...

Books are definitely a good reward! I think I own too many unread books to go buy more, though!
I think writing 1000 words a day is still impressive! I'd be thrilled to be writing that much.

Jemi Fraser said...

Love both quotes! - especially the de Button one :)
Enjoy that grand baby - they are the best!!!

Chrys Fey said...

I think many authors dislike Amazon for many reasons, mainly their restricts on us. I hope Barnes & Noble sticks around for much longer. We need it!

J.L. Campbell said...

Congrats on the new series. Yes, the time does fly!

Chemist Ken said...

I love the idea of buying books to celebrate. Heck, I love the idea of buying books, period.

Unknown said...

My printer gave up the ghost a while ago, it only prints one paper at a time. But I’m holding on to it, till my next manuscript is ready.

I buy books to celebrate, too!

Damyanti

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

Congrats on your WIP progress.
And I love how you celebrate. I can't pass a bookstore without going in.

Elizabeth said...

Books make great rewards! That sounds pretty good for a printer. I don't think I've ever had one that lasted longer than three years. I am a procrastinator, and it is a tough habit to break.

I'm also looking forward to the Timeless return. It's such an awesome show :)

Bish Denham said...

Books, the best reward ever! And yes, I do tend to procrastinate...

Christine Rains said...

That is awesome progress on your WIP! I love the idea of rewarding yourself with books. The several pages of books on my Kindle says I should do some reading before I buy more, though. I do procrastinate sometimes, especially when it comes to rewriting and editing.

Patricia Stoltey said...

Buying books is the best way to celebrate!

Juneta key said...

Celebrate with books. I like that. Happy IWSG day

Tyrean Martinson said...

Celebrating with books is always good! I try to do something like that at least twice a year ... even when I'm not celebrating. :)
I'm definitely springing forward - and in answer to your question on my post, the hours I listed are for the month not each week, so yes, I do sleep. :)

Tamara Narayan said...

I love that quote about procrastination! It is so true for me. I am totally dreading the time change this weekend because on Monday mornings, my alarm goes off at 5:15 which will now feel like 4:15. The horror!

Sandra Cox said...

I love your response to meeting your goals. Buying books is perfect:)
Writing 1k a day is great...writing 2K will be seriously kicking butt:)
Heading over to read the article on Amazon/BN now. Thanks for sharing.

Liza said...

The snow has interrupted my walks too. Sigh. I like that procrastination quote. So true.

Toi Thomas said...

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. It means a lot. Buying books in celebration of a writing goal sounds pretty cool. Your daily word count is impressive. I don't consider myself a procrastinator in any aspect of my life, not even the planning part of writing, but the writing itself isn't something I can schedule. I've tried and it's stressed me out. I can plan with the best of them, but the writing has to come to me when it's ready... Is that procrastination?

Loni Townsend said...

Books are a great way to celebrate! And fun update on your family. The young ones grow up sooooo quick.

Raimey Gallant said...

Have you ever heard of tsundoku? I love it. It's a Japanese term for people who buy more books than they'll have time to read in their lifetime. :) Yea for books!

Jo said...

What a wonderful word Raimey. I have copied it and spoken about it in my blog for Monday. Thanks

Gwen Gardner said...

You can never have too many books. B&N can't go out of business. I so enjoy the book store experience...I go every week. Thanks for the links! I especially need the one on word count ;)

Ellie Garratt said...

The Amazon vs. Barnes and Noble article was both fascinating and depressing. Like you, I know which one I'd spend several hours in.

I have a gold medal in procrastination, so I loved the quote.

Sending a belated Happy Birthday to your granddaughter!

dolorah said...

I do miss going to an actual book store. I can never buy just one book, no matter which I shop at. Its finding the reading time that discourages me.

Arlee Bird said...

Buy books! I don't think I read where anyone else said this, but I think it's a brilliant idea. A reward of promised leisure time as well as an incentive to keep writing more.

Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out

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