Update on my Great Big Goal.

Hi all! I'm still without Internet, but it's good, because we delayed getting Internet pending us moving into an actual house in a few weeks. Yep, I'm currently writing to you from a caravan.

But since this is my own bloghop, co-hosted by Beth Fred, it wouldn't do for me to skip, would it?

For those of you who aren't familiar with this bloghop, we're a bunch of people who set some crazy big, crazy important or just plain crazy goals with the view of actually achieving them. To keep ourselves motivated (and to make it possible for us to encourage each other), we post updates on our progress on the last Friday of every month, unless otherwise arranged. If you have a goal that you're going after, you're more than welcome to sign up. Just click here for more info, or to see who else is taking part.

Let me just say that I'm in some excellent company.

And now, on to the meat of this post.

How did I do?

These were my goals for January:

Writing:

1) Get back to sorting out the covers for Wo6C1, Wo6C2 and BvB1.

Didn't really get to this, mainly because of my lack of decent Internet. 

2) Finish final edit rounds for at least one of the three above mentioned books.

Done, with Wo6C2.

3) Finish rewriting ES1.

Done.

4) Rough draft 15k words.

I rough drafted over 16k words.

This should be what I wanted my January to look like, writing-wise: 

It really looked like this: 

The reason for the changes: 

I finished the rough draft to MDtS. 

I realized that P isn't really where I want it again, so I want to put some thinking into it before trying again. The same with DD. I was supposed to start writing it this month, but it simply won't go beyond being a concept and I just can't really see how I'll be able to turn it into a story this year, so I moved it down the priority list and swapped it with a Science Fiction project I'd planned to do next year. I didn't get to it or StW, though, because I was on a roll with BvB2. (There's a reason for that, but it'll take up  a post on its own, so I'll explain later. Preferably when I have Internet.)

Reading:

Continue reading L’Etranger by Albert Camus.

I finished it. 

Start reading Twelfth Night by Shakespeare
I finished it. 

Read 4 other books

I'll finish my eleventh book for this month (counting the above-mentioned two) today. 

Social Media:

Still having to postpone, pending me gaining access to reliable Internet.

Life:

Survive first month of building a house while still editing and writing.

This one I did, but granted, there wasn't much active building done, because legislation had kicked in (that we didn't know about) that complicates building on farms. We've worked around this, but the way we're doing it requires research and testing. Luckily, though, it looks like we got a house near to where  we live, so we might move into it in the next few weeks. 

So yeah, I did pretty dang good for January. 

My goals for February:

I have a LOT of stuff I want to do, but I'm figuring that even if I do some of it, I'm happy. 

Writing:

1) Sort out covers for Wo6C1, Wo6C2 and BvB1. 

2) Finish copy-edits to BvB1.

3) Rewrite Wo6C3 and my entry into the Untethered Realms Anthology.

4) Start with revisions to ES1.

5) Write 50k words total, rewrites included. This means about 15k words toward my rough drafts. 

So this is what I hope February will look like, writing-wise: 

Reading: 

1) Start reading Mansfield Park. 

2) Start reading King Lear. 

3) Read four other books. 

Social media: 

Survive until I have proper Internet again. Seriously. This sucks. 

Life: 

Right now, most of my life is in limbo, which I'm using to get a ton of writing stuff done. But February might bring me some more stuff to do that isn't writing, so the goal here is to juggle as best I can. 

What about you? Got goals? How are you doing with them? Do sign up and let us know! 

Just a quick check-in

Yay! I'm so excited I can hardly sit still. All because I'm going to have proper Internet again real soon. 

Think I'm being stupid for being so ridiculously happy? Try not having Internet for a month. It's sorta nice in week one. It's really nice in week two. In week three, there's a sense that you're cut off. In week four, it feels like you're going to die from withdrawals. 

Fortunately for me, the funny season is about to come to an end, which means that I'll have Internet by the end of next week at the latest. That's probably the soonest I'm going to get it too, since I now live on a farm that's more than a little remote, so ISP is collecting jobs so that they don't have to drive out for one unless they absolutely have to. 

Still, it means I'll be back to blogging soon. And visiting you all. I really can't wait to catch up with all of you. Those visits are more than a little overdue. 

In the meantime, I thought I'd let you know about how my goals for January are coming along. 

By yesterday, I've finished rewriting the Western/Romance, and finished drafting all of the books I'd been working on last year. I've also read two books. So I can safely say that progress is being made. 

Right now, though, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I have that short story for the Untethered Realms Anthology to write, but about a quarter of the way in, it's still not moving past the concept stage. As in, I have an awesome character, but the story just ain't happening. 

Which sucks. I really really want to have a story to send in, but my goals puts a wrinkle in it. Because let's face it, if I want to finish at least half of the goals outlined, I can't waste time on stories that just won't come. It's happened to two of my drafts from last year. The concept is awesome, but the story isn't there. 

What's the point on trying to force it out when I could be writing something that's got all the aspects in place already? Or rewriting. Or editing. Or even starting a new concept and seeing if I can form a story from it already? Because that's the thing. I never know unless I try it first. 

If I put something aside for now, it gives that story months, years even to incubate. Yes, I will write every single one of them, for as long as I see the merit. 

The thing is, this short story is messing with me now. It has a deadline which isn't my own. That means I either find a way to write it this week, or I don't publish in the anthology this year. See the big thing is that my brain isn't wired for short stories, but I'm proud of the few I have written in the past few years. I want to be proud of the work I create. 

All of the work I create. So I'm not just going to put a story together that's below my standards. It's either there, or it's not. And if it's not by Sunday, I'm moving on. That is my goal for now. (If it's not a goal, I might end up clinging to the story when it's really just wasting my time.) 

Everything else going on in my life is on hold pending either the return of Internet or the end of the holiday or both. I do feel like I have a lot to say this year, though, which bodes well for my blogging. Soon. 

How are you doing?