I can't juggle. Metaphorically or literally.
I sometimes forget meetings.
I drop balls.
I miss appointments now and again.
I forget to take my gingko supplements.
The only effective technique I've come across in this attention deficit, multi-tasking-obsessed world, is to keep my obligations to a minimum.
As mom/taxi-driver I go to one field trip per kid per year and help out at class parties. Regular, weekly help is too much for me to commit to. I also try to be helpful when I go to extra curricular stuff at school. Plus, I usually get my kids to school on time, and I've remembered to pick them up every day this year.
As a wife and housekeeper I always say thank you after Daniel does the dishes!
And as a writer, I don't seek out deadline based jobs, and I try to stick to one project at a time.
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| The almost-ready cover. |
Hearts to God, a historical romance in the Sarah Price Amish Fiction collection is coming out around Thanksgiving.
The third Plain Jane is inches away from heading to an editor.
I've got a solid start on a short story for an anthology that I'm really, really excited about.
And last, but not least, I have a little something non-fiction going on. I expect I'll be working on that one for most of the year, but it might be the book I'm most excited about.
I may wish that I could work on one project at a time to make life easier for myself, but with a non-fiction book that has traditional publishing dreams and a lot of research needs, I don't foresee simple 2014!
Sounds like a productive life to me - good luck on all your writing endeavors!
ReplyDeleteThanks Nancy...It's exhausting! I am so thankful for all of the opportunities I have right now, but I have to say, I feel pulled in a million directions at all times!
ReplyDeleteOur last child didn't leave home until I was 63. Then after three years of an empty nest our oldest son and his family moved in with us. Fortunately, we live separate lives, but the responsibility of a family takes a huge amount of time. Yours will get easier...maybe. :)
ReplyDeleteThe family home sure looks different now than it used to, and you sure have a lot of good company in the world of Adult-kids-who-returned! I have many, many friends who have had to do this for a lot of reasons.
DeleteAs for my family...the girls have both said they never, ever want to move out--except the oldest does want to live in a dorm for a while before she comes back, lol!
Better to be busy writing, Traci! Granted, too many projects at once is stressful, but I'd rather be writing than doing anything else. And writing is so much fun--especially now that my girls are away at college!
ReplyDeleteWriting is great fun! I have to agree. The only think I enjoy as much as writing is marketing. (Call me a weirdo!) Today is school "Thanksgiving" so I get to split my time today between driving the kids around eating two turkey plates (one with each kid) and signing papers on my hubby's new truck. ;) Fun day, but little time to write!
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