Procrastination Bug Bit Me - Now I'm Biting Back!

When writing was a hobby I could punch out anything at anytime - poems, short stories, long stories, anthologies, whatever.  But when I decided to take it on full-time, all of a sudden that stupid dung beetle (aka procrastination) writhed into my life and bit me.

He crawled on my keyboard, slithered on my outline, stole my notes and creeped his way into every conversation I had with my main characters.

I'd really like him to take a permanent vacation.

So I went searching for the Eradicator – something, anything to help me get rid of the pest.  I’ve jotted down a few of these tools in the hopes that maybe they can help you too, sweep that bug from your life.


Tool 1- Kitchen Timer -- am I writing or am I trolling the Internet?

Tool 2- Word Count -- do I have a word count goal or am I cleaning out the fridge today?

Tool 3- Page Count – how about a page count goal or is this organizing-the-office day?

Tool 4- Scenes -- do I want to finish one scene or two, or maybe I’d rather watch TV for more "research" ideas?

Tool 5- Time of Day -- do I write at the exact same time every single day or do I keep filling that space with essentials like alphabetizing my book collection?

Tool 6- Favorite Place -- do I write in the same place every day (well-lit, uncluttered and mine) or is it filled with bills, homework or other fun stuff?

For me, the best tool has been to create a habit that works.  Experts say two weeks of the same thing at the same time and you’ll have that habit down.  I’m on day 10 – wish me luck!

Do you have favorite techniques for staying on task and fulfilling the dream of a completed, well-edited, ready-to-go manuscript?  Please share!




The sketch is from my good friend Chris Watt, please see more of his illustrations at http://macgregorsisland.com/

Summer Writing Deadlines - Unrealistic!

I had a deadline of 1 July to finish my novel. I didn't make it.

For writers, I am a firm believer in self-imposed deadlines or we will make up every excuse in the world not to sit our butts in the chair and write. For me, it is certain conferences and contests throughout the year. My Writing Year runs April to April, coinciding with the Pikes Peak Writers Conference, cause it's my fav.

But this year, I did not make my first deadline and I attribute that to the exorbitant amount of time I've been able to spend with my daughter. It's the first summer I have ever taken off work. The whole summer!

So, I took our 11-year-old and hit the road.

First on a cross-country trip visiting Graceland, then boating with my brother on some lake outside of Dallas, painting the stars at the children's museum in Amarillo, and three full days of fun in Santa Fe. That took up the first week of June. Camps of all variety took up the rest of June.

July was spent in California. We got our free beach towels at the Padres game and watched Charlie Sheen throw out the first pitch. Thanks Wild Thing!
The zoo nearly took my legs and fed them to the alligators, but pics with the pandas were just too cute to pass up. Temple time with an old friend was a wonderful respite and an eye-opener in Buddhism for him. Couple that with down time in LA with my mother-in-law and I was well-rested for the second half of summer.

Mid-summer found us in Orlando and our view of the ocean kept us on the beach during the day and on our balcony during the evening with the Olympics playing in the background. SeaWorld had us pretty busy on the weekend.

Now in August, we are finally back from Florida and are learning how to bake vegan. She is less enthused than I but that's only until she tastes the finished product. After which, she drags all her neighborhood friends over for an afternoon snack of the yummy treats she just made.

All of that being said, I did finally finish the novel in mid-July and am in the rewrite phase, a phase I consider akin to a daily workout. Can't get motivated to go but love it when I get there. And with school just days away, I have no doubt the manuscript will be finished in time for the Rocky Mountain Writer's Conference in September.

I'm only a few weeks behind but when my excuse gives me a relationship worth millions and a zillion story ideas, who can complain?