Math

My goal for today is to set my goals for 2011. Not just set them, but break them down into daily / weekly / monthly goals so I can nibble away at them until they're done rather than staring at an overwhelming project.

I want to finish Big Dixie by the time I go to Nationals at the end of June. That means I need to complete draft one, The Discovery Draft (a much nicer name than others may give it), by the end of April. I write Single Title, so I need 80-100K words. That's in the range of 350 to 400 pages. I've written page ONE. (Speaking of nibble...)

Starting January 2, I am participating in Kelly L. Stone's 90 Day Writing Challenge. Set a daily goal, do it for 90 days straight. Build a habit. Finish a book.

Simple math, write 1000 words a day and you've got 90K words when it's finished. Hmmm. Ever sit down to write and stare at a blinking cursor for an hour or so? Because some days the well has run dry and others, my cup runneth over, I'm setting 10 day goals, word count-wise. My daily goal will be based on a clock.

90 Day Writing Challenge Goals:

Devote 2 hours every day to writing (research, learning craft, or actual writing).
Every 10 days, I will have 10,000 new words on virtual paper. 
I will make this a daily priority, as my goals are not as important to any one else as they are to me.
If I fall short one day, I will get back into it the next day with renewed focus.

If you'd like to join the 90 Day Challenge, visit Kelly's website http://authorkellylstone.com/ or visit the 90 Day Writing Challenge on FaceBook.

Happy Writing!

Ava

Accountability

Early December for me is like the calm before the storm. It's time to evaluate and set goals for the upcoming year, because if I don't set my focus now, the craziness of my day job will overwhelm me January through April 15th. I'll grab whatever writing time I can and when I look back it will be like I was on one of those supermarket game shows where people just reach for anything and everything they can get their hands on, only to realize they've missed the prize.

I have a goal of finishing a manuscript between now and April 15th. Which means I also have the goal to START said manuscript sometime between now and April 15.

Two of my writing groups, the LaLaLa Sisters and the GIAMx5, are great for keeping each other on track. We're supposed to post our goals for next year and break them down into manageable, bite-sized daily / weekly / monthly goals. This is what I need to make things happen.... I will admit to being that kid who waited until Sunday night to tackle Monday morning's Science Fair project.

What are your goals for 2011? How do you stay focused?

Happy Writing!
Ava

Epiphany

In October, I attended Moonlight and Magnolias, a fabulous conference hosted by Georgia Romance Writers. Day 2 was a Michael Hauge workshop which changed the way I thought about my writing goals.

Publication is one of those far-of goals for a lot of writers, the thing we want more than anything else, to see our name (or pseudonym) in print on a book jacket on a shelf at the local B&N. Sitting down to WRITE the dang book is hard, but finishing the manuscript is only the beginning. The writer has to turn into a seller - a promoter of our work to garner the interest of an agent or editor, enticing them to say, "Yes. I want that."

Mr. Hauge posed this question, a fill in the blank. "I will do whatever it takes to sell my novel, just don't ask me to _________________."

It took me weeks to figure out the answer. It's not a matter of giving up time or devoting the energy to write, it's not even networking, which I'm decent at as long as I can take breaks to recharge. I'm nervous when it comes to pitching and querying, but I know that if I don't do it, no one else will do it for me, so logic says self-promotion is a given. What then?

During my third round of revisions on Dark Water, in the midst of a love scene, when I was contemplating a word choice, it hit me: I'll do whatever it takes to sell my novel, just don't ask me to disappoint my mother.

Huh. The thought was at once freeing and disconcerting - I am, after all, an adult, and have been for several years. As much as I'm worried about my mother accepting her daughter as a romance author who allows the occasional F-bomb to sneak in (with purpose, not just for shock value, mind you), it also forces me to recognize that I can't spend my life trying to live up to the expectations that I believe others have of me.

I'm sure my mother is proud (she calls me Ava sometimes now, which is not the name she and my father bestowed upon me), maybe not because she's a fan of what I write, but because she's a fan of ME.

I got an email from someone the other day and her signature line said, "Be yourself. Everyone else is taken."

Now it's your turn, fellow writers, to fill in the blank. "I will do whatever it takes to sell / finish / promote my novel, just don't ask me to ____________________."

Happy Writing!

Ava

Taking a Breather

The craziness of November is finally passed - GH entry has been sent and first round judging of the Unpublished Beacon is complete. NaNoWriMo is also finished, but my eyes were bigger than my calendar and I had to cut something. Dark Water was slower to revise than I anticipated, and I didn't want to start something new. I still haven't started Big Dixie (officially), but I have made progress on finishing Dark Water business.

I sent in my GH entry with days to spare, but had a minor coronary when my package dropped of the tracking grid. Now it's posted as received, so I can breathe easy and hope the first round judges are impressed. I've also written a query letter and sent it to an agent who requested a full at the Moonlight & Magnolias conference. One more agent and an editor to go to get the requests caught up, then on to general querying of other top-choice agents. Fingers crossed that I find a good fit.

I'm working on my 2011 goals now and hope to get them posted before the week's out.

Happy writing!

Ava