I’m not going to lie – I spent the last few days moping as I’ve done the last few years (as one college friend put it, birthdays tend to go downhill once after your 21st) . I just think of all the stuff I should have accomplished in life because anyone who is my age should’ve done so by now. Yesterday was no different, I skulked around and melted into nothingness as I watched the boob tube.

Then a thought came to me –
It’s a new year, a new me. I don’t have to wait until January 1st to do something different and new with my life. I can start today and use the New Year to reconsider the goals I’ve already set and put into motion.
So, that’s the plan – I’m going to spend a portion of the day listing out things I want to achieve by the end of December 2009 and even, possibly, 2010.

Off the top of my head, I already know I want to:
• -Get into shape (haha, is this ever not on anyone’s New Me list?)

• -Do what’s important for my future career aspirations (and in that vein, stay somewhat organized – lots of goal, not so much time…)

• -Ignore those who are petty and just stay positive (happy minds, happy bodies, happy everything – one of my many mantras (those of you who know me may be groaning right about now, don’t think I don’t know that;). Life’s short enough as it is and I think it’s so much better when you can stay optimistic.

• -Stop sweating the little stuff if I can help it. I decided to step back from NaNo (not completely; I’m still going to write as much fiction as I can, but due to outside events a couple weeks ago, 100k is out of my scope). I decided to forego entering the Golden Heart (after thinking about it, I decided it really wasn’t for me, at least not right now…maybe that’ll change in the future, who knows)

• -I do know I want to keep reading novels for fun. I barely read for fun the last four years and, well, it sucked. I carved out time this year to read more and I realize I’m a happier person because of it. It’s important to keep stuff that makes you happy and keeps you sane. 

So, yeah, I’m looking at new beginnings and to be honest, I’m kinda stoked about it.

How about you? What are some things you’re looking forward to changing or doing or even keeping the same for 2010 or your next birthday?

Balance, however, is a different matter. As I noted on Blueboards, I’m a full time student and work multiple jobs that require a lot of time flexibility. I try to have an active web presence by maintain multiple blogs, checking out various forums (writing or otherwise), etc.

To keep myself organized, I’ve created a writing schedule, a schedule for work, another for class assignments, etc. I take all that info and shove it all into a planner for convience. I like to make daily To Do charts the night before and plan my day around that. I figure out which times are best for writing and try to work then. I also tell myself I must write X amount of words a day (the story’s not going to write itself, after all!) – sometimes I hit my word count and even go way above, sometimes I don’t get close (this past week’s been more of a don’t). Nonetheless, I still try to eek out some words on a daily basis, be it 60 or 600.

The problem with my various schedules and To Do Lists is that Real Life doesn’t quite enjoy cooperating with me. You know, when life throws you that curveball

-you’re friends somehow ‘coerced’ you to see the midnight showing of a brand new movie with your favorite actor so you didn’t go to bed early like you had planned to prep properly for that 8am presentation….

- you meant to take a quick half hour nap before settling down to write chapter two of The Amazing Story, but ended up falling into such a deep sleep because the week’s been so exhaustive, you didn’t wake up until four hours later….

-a favorite show (in my case, True Blood) has a new episode airing tonight and you try to convince yourself you can totally multitask television, internet, talking on the phone, and writing at the same time…. (What? You think this is an example from my own life? Whatever gave you that idea?)

You know, Real Life (and yes, Real Life has to have capital letters).

As classes start to wind up again, I worry about keeping everything I have to/want to do in order. I’m nervous because school is a huge part of my life right now and I really rather not screw it up. So (so!), I’ve created a list of ways to keep myself balanced (like I said, makings lists aren’t the problem ):

-“Shoot for the moon because even if you fail, you’ll still land among the stars.” – In other words, give myself room to mess up. I’m going to try my best to do everything I set out to do, but I’m also going to keep in mind that sometimes, I can’t get to everything I’ve set out for the day. And that’s fine. I have tomorrow and the next day and the next….

-“It’s alright to make changes and/or get help” – you’re never actually alone in the world. Besides one, friends in real life currently have about 0.5% interest in my writing as far as I can tell (maybe if I became the next JK Rowlings or Nora Roberts, that 0.5% will double). However, there are a number of forums I visit where there are like minded people who have no problem talking about writing – from brainstorming to the publication process. Great communities! I love ‘em all!
In Real Life, I sometimes have issues with saying ‘No.’
Okay, let me rephrase.
I’m fine saying ‘No’ most of the time, but it’s the feeling that comes after uttering that two lettered word, that sometimes tangles me up. I end up thinking, You’re such a cool person/you’re my boss (<–maybe a combo of the two even), maybe I can fit XYZ into my schedule. I’ll just multitask there or wake up earlier here…’ More often than not, I end up falling flat on my face and things go pbbht! Even when things go well without a hitch, at the end I may breathe a sigh of relief and say “never again” (until the next person approaches me…). *Facepalm* This brings me to point number 3.

-“Stay focused on what you’re trying to accomplish” – I’m honored when someone asks me to work on XYZ project because I’ve “proven myself,” but between those activities (many of which are things I enjoy/honestly love doing) and my ever growing lists of Things to Do, I’d go stir crazy. Keep your eye on the ball and Getcha Head In the Game and all those wonderfully happy sayings. As long as I have clear goals in mind — things I truly want to accomplish — and am striving to reach them so that one day I actually do reach them, I’m happy.

How do you keep balance in your life?

I know this is kind of ironic considering my last post about patience and doing things one at a time, but hey, when life throws you curveballs (or in this case, plot bunnies), you gotta at least swing (or write:).

So, basically, I need to pull myself together. Organize what I want to accomplish, set some deadlines, and be realistic. Here we go.

I. WIPs:
Back Burners

MT: I’m not going to make the deadline and that’s okay. Seeing as holidays tend to be a yearly event, I’ll be ready next time there’s a call out.

TTR: The plot bunny that’s been hopping alongside me since 2005 and all I have to show for is 22k eeked out for this year’s JulNoWriMo. I’m not trying to meet a submissions deadline, so this is going on the backburner once again for a little bit of time. I will, however, be working on it when I have downtime/contemplating other works.

DD: The MG novel I actually finished and had edited so long ago (4+ years), I know I really need to go back and read/edit again. I’m in no rush to do so, hence its hiatus/current back burner position.

*Various Others: stories that I’m currently ignoring because if I start paying attention to them now, nothing will get accomplished (but at some point…their time’s a-coming…)

Front Burners

(SS): I saw this post on RD and was immediately captivated by one of the covers. Shoot, its what spawned this sudden kick for organization and order.

(S): For weeks, I’ve been lurking in this thread debating if I should enter or not. In the midst of the writing/plotting  frenzy of last night, I decided to go for it. The deadline is around my birthday and if, for some reason, I’m lucky to be accepted/receive feedback on the novella, I’d be on cloud 9.

II.Goals:
1)Write a minimum a day of 1.5k for SS and S – a grand total of 3,000 words a day for both WIPs. I will also be trying to hammer out TTR’s first draft and a couple of short stories/novellas (MT and V) that I’d like to submit a couple places….

2)I rather like organic writing, but I do need to make basic outlines for WIPs so I know where I’m going and how I’m getting there. I want to do this before I start writing, so I don’t find myself suddenly stuck and aimlessly typing nonsense…

3)Organize WIPs for easy reference. I have a thumb drive with WIPs, notes/research, outlines, character plots. I plan on protecting that usb like a child, but I’ll also make additional backups, just in case.

4)Two hours a day, maximum, for what I successfully convince myself is research ( lurking through forums, reading blogs, checking email, etc) and actual research (world building, character building, essentially making sure things are realistic).

5)Read more. It’s been so long and I see so many authors with links to their enticing stories…. 

If you have suggestions for things/goals I should keep in mind, please share!

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Also, a goodie: Dawn Halliday is holding a contest to celebrate the release of her novel Highland Obsession! This week, all you have to do is send in a tagline for your book. I just sent one in – nothing ventured, nothing gained!