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Blasting off for 2013

Blasting off We’re taking a break from the usual My Town and Misfit Mondays today for the start of a new ROW80 – and a new set of goals!

I got a late start on this as usual. A lot of people posted new year’s goals last week, but I needed to really think about what I wanted to do–and more important, could accomplish–this year. For ROW80, we’re just dealing with 80 days, or 11-1/2 weeks.

But it’s best to start with something a little longer term. Many business experts advise having a five-year-plan. I’d like to say I have one of those, but I don’t. I do have an overall idea of where I want to be, both in my writing and life in general, but that’s it.

Back to those one-year goals. One thing I learned is, they need to be written down in a place you’ll remember–and will remember to consult at least quarterly. This is the part I missed last year. I vaguely remember making them, but I can’t find anything in the areas of my computer where I’d expect this to be. I did find 2009, 2010, and 2011 goals documents. (They were kind of funny, still focused on agents, editors, and selling to NY–boy, have things changed!) I never did find one for 2012, so maybe I was thinking of the list I wrote for 2011.

This year, I put the 2013 Goals list at the front of my Weekly Status Report document. This is where I document what I did each week, what my plans are for the next week, any issues, etc. (Here’s an example of what’s in my Weekly Status Report if anyone wants to see/use it.) I add a page each week, and start a new document each year. Each week when I update it, it of course opens to page 1. So BIG DUH – that’s where I should put my yearly goals!

So here’s the list:

Edit and publish Hangar 18: Legacy
Write/Publish new futuristic romance
Write two short nonfiction works
Write/publish one short story
Publish next OVRWA anthology through my publishing company, Mythical Press (may or may not contain the story noted above)
Revise contemporary YA written for NaNoWriMo 2012
Begin planning phase of Saturn Society Book 3 or continue work on urban fantasy started for NaNoWriMo 2009
I also have some professional goals relating to my day job, which are not detailed out above

Um… yeah, seeing it spelled out like that, it looks a bit ambitious. But that’s the beauty of setting goals and working on them through a group like ROW80–if we see they just aren’t going to happen, we can change them.

And with ROW80 comes the practical part: breaking them down into doable pieces. Here’s what I hope to accomplish this round (which ends March 28):

Finish editing and publish Hangar 18: Legacy (I want this released by the end of this month)
First draft of nonfiction piece–I’m doing a presentation based on it for my RWA chapter meeting on March 16, so it needs to be done by then.
Outline futuristic romance
30,000 words on futuristic romance

Let’s break those goals down even more. Doing weekly goals helps me TONS. This is also where I add other, ongoing stuff, like fitness goals. So for this week, my plans are:

Finish edits for Hangar 18: Legacy
Fitness activity 5x
One chapter’s exercises in Get it Together, an estate planning guide. I wanted to do this last ROW, but wound up putting it off when I decided to do NaNoWriMo. This is stuff that isn’t very fun to do (or even think about), but that really needs to be done.
Be a good ROW80 sponsor and visit all the blogs I’m supposed to at minimum – yes, I’m a sponsor! It’s my first time for that, and I’m really looking forward to it. 🙂

Whether or not you’re doing ROW80, what are your plans for this year? If you are doing ROW80, is this your first time, or are you an old hand? I’d love to hear from you – please share!

Holiday Reprise

I have nothing. Well, that’s not entirely true; I did spot one new release this past week, but that’s all. Rather than feature just one, I’m saving it for next week, and re-running last week’s WANA Wednesday, as many people took a break from blogs over the holidays, and these books deserve to be seen! 😀

StrongerThanMagic YA fantasy author Melinda VanLone celebrates the release of her debut novel, Stronger than Magic. Being attacked by a demon in Philadelphia shouldn’t have been a big deal. Tarian Xannon is, after all, heir to the Dolphin Throne and the strongest magical talent in generations. Never mind that demons aren’t even supposed to exist. Never mind that the demon managed to swipe some of her blood. She’s never met her match before and she’s confident she can handle the situation. She creates a plan to find the demon, and kill him, before he destroys her, or worse, steals her power and the Dolphin Throne. Of course, she hadn’t counted on the throne insisting that now would be a great time for her to provide the next heir. She’s a modern woman with a demon to kill, and a baby to produce. What could possibly go wrong? More info at: http://www.melindavan.com/2012/12/20/its-here-and-its-stronger-than-magic/

Kristy K. James has been busy – she’s had two releases in December! Most recently, novella “Erin’s Christmas Wish,” in which Erin has been in love with her neighbor, Scott, for nearly two years. When working together to raise food for the less fortunate in their community, it appears that Scott may return those feelings. Or does he? Will a bad experience from the past come between them?

Someday_Maybe_cover Earlier in December, Kristy also released a short story, “Someday… Maybe.” In this story, one young girl is killed in a tragic accident. Another is forced to make a choice that results in long-term consequences. Twelve years later, Evie realizes exactly what she gave up. The question is, does she regret the decision she made so long ago? Kristy sneaked this one out under my radar – if she blogged about it, I missed it! Both stories are available exclusively at Amazon, so visit Kristy’s author page there for more info.

Christmas-on-the-Run Louise Behiel released her Christmas romantic suspense, “Christmas on the Run,” just in time for the holidays! I read this last week, and it’s really good! In this short story, Ramon Ramirez is found not guilty of first degree murder, so Adelina Ramirez grabs their six year old daughter and leaves Atlanta, determined to keep him from taking Sadie to Brazil and keeping her there.

A bad snow storm on an almost-deserted road in Montana forces Lina to stay in Bandit Creek for Christmas. New friend Todd Black is bound to help the quiet woman and her child. He knows there’s more to her story than she’s saying, but it’s none of his business. In the midst of Christmas preparations and a record snow storm, Ramon tracks her down. He doesn’t care about Lina but he wants his daughter and he’s going to take her. With Todd at her side, Lina is forced to confront her worst fears. Together, they will face Ramon and forge a new future – a gift from her Christmas on the Run. This is a Bandit Creek romance, and fellow Bandit Creek author Sheila Seabrook has the scoop at: http://sheilaseabrook.com/2012/12/15/christmas-on-the-run-by-louise-behiel

Finally, I have some news of my own! I’ve collected my Saturn Society series into one, convenient, value-priced “boxed set” of ebooks. Times Two includes Time’s Enemy and Time’s Fugitive, plus the short story, “Time’s Holiday.” As a special bonus, Chapter One of my upcoming science fiction romance, Hangar 18: Legacy, is included.

Time’s Holiday
In this short story, Taylor Gressman’s initiation into the Saturn Society is a baptism by fire when she sneaks away on Christmas Eve, hoping to find the angel who saved her life a few weeks earlier. Instead, she takes an unexpected trip back in time, and finds herself in the midst of a murderous street gang. Now it’s up to Taylor to ensure that she and a newfound friend don’t become the gang’s next victims, and in the process, learn that giving is the best gift of all.

Time’s Enemy
When a freak accident leaves Tony Solomon with the ability to travel in time, he becomes an unwilling initiate in the Saturn Society, a secret society of time travelers. Wanted by the Society for a crime he hasn’t yet committed, he seeks help from Charlotte Henderson, the woman whose life he saved decades before he was born. Loyal to the Society, Charlotte faces a terrible choice-condemn the man she loves and to whom she owes her life, or deny her deepest convictions by helping him escape and risk sharing his sentence.

Time’s Fugitive
Violet Sinclair remembers nothing of her past, but she’s certain she loved Tony Solomon… and did something terrible to him. Time-traveler Tony Solomon is sure he never met Violet, yet she bears an uncanny resemblance to the woman he loved and lost decades before he was born. After an impulse encounter leaves Violet pregnant with his child and targeted by killers from the future, their only escape is to jump into the past, something Tony swore he’d never do again. But when they jump back much further than planned, their troubles are only beginning—and secrets can get them killed.

Times Two is available on Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes and Noble. Coming soon to other e-book retailers!

What about you? Do you like Christmas stories? Do you buy boxed set collections? Whatever the case, I hope you’re enjoying the holiday season! See you next year!

Jennette Marie Powell writes stories about ordinary people in ordinary places, who do extraordinary things and learn that those ordinary places are anything but. In her Saturn Society novels, unwilling time travelers do what they must to make things right... and change more than they expect. You can find her books at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Kobo, iTunes, and more.

Changing the calendar, or something more?

Today is New Year’s Eve. Historically, this (and the real holiday, tomorrow) used to be my least-favorite holiday.

New Year’s Day was just like any Sunday in the winter when I was a kid, except that you couldn’t go anywhere because everything was closed. It was boring, because it was nothing but the parents sitting around watching football, which I was never into. Then the retailers started wising up, and realized not everyone was into football and there was money to be made from those of us who weren’t. Now everything’s open, so there’s shopping to do if you need or want something, and it’s less boring. Football is spread out for several days both before and after New Year’s Day, so that’s less of a Big Deal too.

But for many, the real holiday comes the night before, when we gather with family or friends to cheer the clock striking midnight.

New Year's Eve The allure of this, too, escaped me for many years. Of course, the big attraction for many is drinking. I was a boring, rule-abiding teen and didn’t drink. In fact, I was usually babysitting for people with glamorous parties to attend. I didn’t even get dressed up, and I drank Coke. TV was usually boring–I never liked any of the entertainment on those New Year’s Eve shows (still don’t). New Year’s Eve got better when I met my husband, and actually had someone special to kiss at the strike of midnight, but it was still just another night at the bar. When we owned the bar for over ten years, it also meant I saw little of my husband, as he was always working, and I needed to help distribute the champagne. This was okay in and of itself, but there were always the one or two PITA patrons who either tried to scam us out of an extra bottle, or who bitched because we hadn’t gotten around to them yet (everyone always got their champagne before midnight). The best part of New Year’s Eve was having my best friend from college over–there is no such thing as a dull moment with her around, especially with alcohol! 😀 But that stopped when she found a significant other of her own, and they stayed closer to home.

At any rate, all the New Year’s Eve stuff seemed a big, freakin’ deal to make over what, IMO, amounted to nothing more than swapping out the calendar.

It got better after we sold the bar. All of a sudden, my husband didn’t have to work!

We got together with friends, and went bowling a few years there. I suck at bowling, but it’s still fun. The past few years, we’ve gotten together with neighbors, either at our house or theirs. We aren’t friends with them any more (long, stupid story), so I’m not sure what we’ll do this year. I’ll leave that up to my More Sociable Half to determine.

But it doesn’t matter. Because somewhere along the way, New Year’s Day became more than getting out a new calendar, more than a day to put away Christmas stuff while my husband went somewhere to watch football.

It became a new start, a time to set goals (never resolutions for me!), a time to evaluate last year’s goals and accomplishments. I’ve revised one long-ass book and published it, written and published a short story, written another short book (and won NaNoWriMo!), and designed covers for/formatted two anthologies, plus my Saturn Society Boxed Set, and revised a third novel, which is currently with my editor. It didn’t feel like I’ve done that much, but when I list it out like that… yeah!

I’m in the process of that evaluating of goals now, and it’s exciting to see not only what I’ve done, but what’s to come. I think 2013 will be a good year.

What do you do to celebrate New Year’s Eve/Day? Is it something special to you, or just time to change the calendar? Do you make New Year’s resolutions? I’d love to hear from you!

Holiday Suspense, a Little Magic, and Tons of Time Travel

It’s WANA Wednesday! Our authors don’t take a break for the holidays, so neither will WW. We have five great new reads this week!

StrongerThanMagic I was actually going to take the week off what with the holidays and not many people reading blogs, but these are too good to wait, not to mention it’s the perfect time to read a Christmas story. I may take next week off, and leave these up so they get the exposure they deserve!

YA fantasy author Melinda VanLone celebrates the release of her debut novel, Stronger than Magic. Being attacked by a demon in Philadelphia shouldn’t have been a big deal. Tarian Xannon is, after all, heir to the Dolphin Throne and the strongest magical talent in generations. Never mind that demons aren’t even supposed to exist. Never mind that the demon managed to swipe some of her blood. She’s never met her match before and she’s confident she can handle the situation. She creates a plan to find the demon, and kill him, before he destroys her, or worse, steals her power and the Dolphin Throne. Of course, she hadn’t counted on the throne insisting that now would be a great time for her to provide the next heir. She’s a modern woman with a demon to kill, and a baby to produce. What could possibly go wrong? More info at: http://www.melindavan.com/2012/12/20/its-here-and-its-stronger-than-magic/

Kristy K. James has been busy – she’s had two releases this month! Most recently, novella “Erin’s Christmas Wish,” in which Erin has been in love with her neighbor, Scott, for nearly two years. When working together to raise food for the less fortunate in their community, it appears that Scott may return those feelings. Or does he? Will a bad experience from the past come between them?

Someday_Maybe_cover Earlier this month, Kristy also released a short story, “Someday… Maybe.” In this story, one young girl is killed in a tragic accident. Another is forced to make a choice that results in long-term consequences. Twelve years later, Evie realizes exactly what she gave up. The question is, does she regret the decision she made so long ago? Kristy sneaked this one out under my radar – if she blogged about it, I missed it! Both stories are available exclusively at Amazon, so visit Kristy’s author page there for more info.

Christmas-on-the-Run Louise Behiel released her Christmas romantic suspense, “Christmas on the Run,” just in time for the holidays! I’m reading this right now and it’s really good. In this short story, Ramon Ramirez is found not guilty of first degree murder, so Adelina Ramirez grabs their six year old daughter and leaves Atlanta, determined to keep him from taking Sadie to Brazil and keeping her there.

Times Two is currently available on Amazon and Smashwords. Coming soon to other e-book retailers!

What about you? Do you like Christmas stories? Do you buy boxed set collections? Whatever the case, I hope you’re enjoying the holiday season! See you next year!

Dancing with Suspense and Romance, and ROW80 Wrapup

It’s WANA Wednesday, with suspenseful reads and romance!

She’s here, and she’s bad… CC MacKenzie celebrates the release of Run Rosie Run, the latest in her Ludlow Hall contemporary romance series.

A wise man once said, ‘Be careful what you wish for because you might just get it…..’

Pastry chef Rosemary Gordon had worked hard her whole life to be successful… Now the wedding cake business she runs with best friend Bronte was winning awards life should be perfect…

But Rosie has a deep, dark secret…

And the steadily bubbling chemistry with Bronte’s brother, Alexander Ludlow, has suddenly become way too hot to ignore…

More info at: http://ccmackenzie.com/2012/12/12/shes-here-and-shes-bad/

Alicia and Roy Street have released their popular Dance ‘n’ Luv Boxed Set of three contemporary romance novels plus a short story. The Dance ‘n’ Luv series shines a spotlight on women of the dance world. Not necessarily the stars, but the unsung heroines, the dilemmas they face and the men who capture their passions.

Snow Dance – Divorced Broadway dancer moves to a peaceful fishing village for solitude and instead encounters a needy teen, a pesky ghost and a fisherman who makes her believe in love again. While complete in itself, this 13,000 word story is also a prequel to the novels.
Kiss Me, Dancer – A rollercoaster of a ride between a dance instructor and a divorced dad. Can she save her studio without losing her heart?
Touch Me And Tango – Ballroom dance star Tanya broke Parker’s heart when they were teens and seeing her again brings back all the fire and fury–plus a secret danger that will change both of their lives forever.
Stars, Love And Pirouettes – Two careers, two men. A ballerina faces the choice of a lifetime. Will her heart show the way?

bemineforxmas-400x600jpeg They also sneaked in a short Christmas story that released a month ago, and somehow I missed it! So if you’re looking for a fun holiday-themed read, check out “Be Mine for Christmas.” More info at: http://thewritersguidetoepublishing.com/bestselling-author-alicia-street-looks-at-her-first-year-as-an-indie-epublishedself-published-author

Finally, Diane Capri‘s Fatal Distraction has been out in ebook for a while, but is now available in paperback!

Relentless victims’ rights advocate Jess Kimball and Jack Reacher both deliver justice when the legal system fails. Reacher waits until trouble finds him and then he does whatever it takes. But Jess pursues legal justice and draws lines she will not cross. How can she win against killers who refuse to follow the rules?

Three years ago, beloved Florida Governor Helen Sullivan’s world shattered when her only son died in a senseless car crash, killing his best friend, too. Helen quickly discovered Eric’s crash was no accident and lured the killer to her son’s funeral to be caught.

When the shooting ceased in the small country church, Helen believed her nightmare was over. Instead, she’d unwittingly escalated her duel with a cunning and patient assassin.

Now, investigative journalist Jess Kimball is driven to find the horrifying truth. Is the Central Florida Child Killer guilty? Or is the real killer still out there? More info at: http://dianecapri.com/books/fatal-distraction/

ROW80 Wrap-up: The challenge doesn’t officially end until Thursday, but I now blog on Wednesdays, so I’m posting my wrapup here. This week’s goal was to get Times Two, my Saturn Society boxed set, formatted for upload to Smashwords. That’s done, and I went one better – it’s already published there! Look for an announcement when it’s available in other channels.

All in all, this was a very successful ROW80 for me! I finished edits for Hangar 18: Legacy, which is now with my editor, and will release sometime in the next few weeks. I also won NaNoWriMo by writing a completely new book! This one really stretched me creatively – it’s YA, which I never thought I’d write, and contains no speculative elements. Even more surprising, it came in short! But I filled in some holes I’d normally save for revision, hitting the 50,000 word mark for a NaNoWriMo WIN! Finally, I did well with my fitness goals this ROWnd – always a plus!

The next round starts on January 7th, and I’m going to be a sponsor! That means if you’re doing ROW80, I’ll be cheering you on even more!

What is WANA? It stands for We Are Not Alone, a guide to blogging, social media and networking for authors by Kristen Lamb. It’s writers helping writers, whether or not we’ve taken the course, and proving that we really are not alone!

What about you? Do my WANA friends’ books sound good, or what? If you are doing ROW80, how did you fare this round? I’d love to hear from you!

The Wright Time to Celebrate

It’s time for a My Town Monday post, and I wasn’t sure what I was going to blog about today until I saw the date.

It’s not a significant date to everyone, but if you’ve ever flown in an airplane, it’s significant to you, because December 17, 1903 was when Wilbur and Orville Wright made their historic, first flight.

“But Jennette, why are you blogging about something that happened in North Carolina? You’re from Dayton, Ohio!” you might ask.

The historic first flight at Kill Devil Hills, NC

Yes, I am from Dayton, Ohio–and so were the Wrights! That historic first flight might have happened elsewhere, but ninety percent of the work that led up to it (and followed) happened in Dayton.

In 2003, when the city was awash in celebrations and special commemorative events, The Dayton Daily News conducted a survey. I don’t have access to it now, and don’t know how large or scientific the sampling was, but the results were surprising regardless. While most people did indeed know that Wilbur and Orville Wright invented the first powered aircraft, less than half of the respondents knew the airplane was invented in Dayton, or that there was any connection with Dayton at all. A surprising number didn’t even know where the first flight took place, and many thought all the work had been done in North Carolina.

Where it all began – the Wright home at 7 Hawthorn Street, Dayton, Ohio

Home in Dayton is where the Wrights studied birds in flight for countless hours. It’s where their bicycle shop was, where they studied the workings of gears and chains, much of which later found its way into their early designs–for example, they used bicycle chains to connect the two propellers to the engine. Home in Dayton is where the Wrights flew kites to study how wind interacted with cloth-covered panels (and where many people thought they were crazy, or at least weird). It was where they built a wind tunnel, and experimented with miniature aircraft and propellers to determine the most flight-worthy designs. It was where they hired mechanic Charlie Taylor to develop the most powerful engine possible with the technology of the day, in the lightest weight. It was where their sister, Katharine Wright, sewed yards upon yards of white sateen fabric for the Wright Flyer’s wings.

They started traveling to the Outer Banks in 1900, when they began experimenting with gliders large enough to carry a person. They needed steady, straight-line winds to fly it–something not in good supply in Ohio. The area they chose was remote, difficult to access, and the weather was often miserable. On December 14th, a week before they’d planned to leave for the winter, they flipped a coin. Wilbur won the toss.

The plane got off the ground, but immediately crashed. Wilbur was unhurt, but the aircraft wasn’t, so they spent the next three days repairing it.

On the 17th, the winds were a bit on the strong side, but they both decided if they didn’t fly then, they probably wouldn’t that year, so Orville took his turn manning the craft. He flew, for a whole twelve seconds, and about 100 feet beyond the end of the launch rail. They made three other flights that day, the longest being 59 seconds and about 800 feet, before the craft again crashed and required extensive repairs. But this time when they packed it in, they’d accomplished what they’d worked toward for many years.

Just like publishing a book, that first flight wasn’t the end of the Wrights’ work, but the beginning. They researched and experimented over the winter. When they returned to Kill Devil Hills in the spring, it was to pack up their campsite there. They continued their work in Dayton from that point forward, with a craft that could fly in variable winds and make turns.

What about you? Did you know that Orville and Wilbur Wright did the vast bulk of their research and development work in Dayton, Ohio? Have you worked on something for years, only to realize the achievement wasn’t an end, but a beginning? I’d love to hear from you – please share!

Photos are public domain (copyright expired)

Cruising through the Holidays

Planning ahead makes all the difference! That’s what I say when people ask me if I’m stressed this holiday season. No, I don’t have all my shopping done, but I feel good about where I am with it – and everything else.

I decorated two weeks ago. The main reason that’s done is because I kept it simple: Christmas tree, mantel decorations, nativity scene. My family doesn’t care about elaborate decorations, as long as we have the basics!

As far as keeping up with writing goes, I managed that by setting smaller goals. This is an area where I’m not always successful–I’m hopeful that means I’ve learned from those times I wasn’t!

Here’s what I accomplished this week:

Hangar 18 – write up front and back matter
Hangar 18 – create full cover for paperback
Physical activity 5x this week – partial – got it in 4x

I’ve already met my ROW80 goals for the overall quarter. In addition to Hangar 18: Legacy, which is now with my editor, I’d like to release Times Two, the ebook-only boxed set of my Saturn Society novels. Since they are all already written and edited, and I already have a cover design, that leaves formatting. It would be great to get this out before Christmas. The ROW is over on Thursday, and check-in day is on Wednesday, so before then, I’d like to accomplish:

Times Two – assemble boxed set and format for Smashwords
Physical activity 5x this week (2-3x by Thursday)

If you’re participating in ROW80, how are you doing so far? Are you ready for the ROW to be over–and are you ready for the holidays??

The Best Medicine – In a Surprising Place

Everyone knows that laughter is the best medicine for whatever ails you, and I’m no exception. And the other night, I found it in a surprising place.

I’d been hormonal and cranky that day, and wasn’t really looking for anything other than an excuse to avoid doing work (this was at home, in the evening, so no, not shirking the day job!). I had won a kids’ book in a contest a few weeks earlier, and wanted to read it before I gave it away, mainly because the author is one of my WANA* friends. Curse of the Double Digits is a middle-grade chapter book, targeted toward kids ages 7-11. I’d planned to give it to some friends from high school who have a 7-year old son who likes to read, but that day, I’d learned one of my coworkers’ daughter was turning 10 this weekend – and the book is about a girl celebrating her tenth birthday, when everything that could possibly go wrong, does.

So I sat down to read. I knew the author, Lynn Kelley, is one funny lady, and the book looked cute. I figured it would be amusing and would make me smile. But holy smokes, I was literally laughing out loud from Chapter One! Curse of the Double Digits is about a girl who turns ten on the tenth day of the tenth month. Becky expects it to be magical, and her family has planned what Becky’s sure will be the Best. Birthday party. Ever. for a couple days later. Her whole class is coming, including a boy she really likes. But on her birthday, she realizes her bangs are too long. She doesn’t want her mom to cut them, because Mom always cuts them too short. So she enlists her best friend to help.

Becky’s scissors are too dull to cut hair, so they find her dad’s electric razor. At this point, I could just imagine what would happen, and was already laughing. What did happen was even worse (for Becky) and funnier than what I imagined, and I ended up laughing through the whole thing as poor Becky suffered one mishap after another. But all ended up well, and I was no longer grumpy, that’s for sure!

My daughter is seventeen. I haven’t read a middle-grade children’s book since she was young enough to still want to be read to, so it’s been a while since I read a kids’ book. Boy, am I glad I did!

So next time you’re down in the dumps, consider picking up Curse of the Double Digits, or another kids’ book. Because really, your bad day couldn’t be as bad as Becky’s–and you just might laugh yourself right out of the dumps!

Quick ROW80 Update: Hangar 18: Legacy is now with my editor. While she has it, I’m working on front and back matter. Acknowledgements page is done – so far, so good!

* What is WANA? It stands for We Are Not Alone, a guide to blogging, social media and networking for authors by Kristen Lamb. It’s writers helping writers, whether or not we’ve taken the course, and proving that we really are not alone!

How long has it been since you’ve read a kids’ book? I know a lot of adults enjoy teen books (me too). But what about books for younger kids? Got any good ones to recommend?

Misfit Monday: When Facebook Sucks

I’m such a Looooooooser!

Have you ever felt like this: You’re cruising around on Facebook, clicking links, Liking posts, catching up on all your hundreds of friends’ statuses–oh, look, over there on the right, your friend just Liked something else. Your brother made a funny observation. Your friends’ baby said his first word–and it was “daddy,” your sisters’ kid just got a full-ride scholarship to an A-list college, your cousin just sold a novel–to a big, NY publisher, in a three-book deal; your friend over there just sold a zillion copies of her self-published book (which means she’ll be making a cool three-zillion dollars come Amazon Payday), your friend from high school just hit the lottery…

and you’re ready to pick up your computer and toss it through the window??

While you’re sneaking that look at Facebook as you take a short break from the same job you’ve had for years, after getting the upteenth rejection from a publisher on the book you wrote that you were sure was IT, while your self-published book molders in the five-millions in the Amazon rankings, and your kid brought home a report card full of C’s, your other kid needs to be picked up from detention, and the electric bill’s past due because it was buried in the pile of crap that never leaves the kitchen table???

Yeah, I know, me too. OK, things aren’t quite like the above paragraph, but definitely not like the first!

And it’s not just Facebook–it’s Twitter, and blogs, and Tumblr, and Pinterest…

Enough!

I’m not talking simple social media overload, I’m talking when it seems like everyone but you is doing great things, having great things happen to them, their perfect family, their awesome tons-of-money-making job, you name it. While you’re pretty much standing still.

In the old days, this could have been called Holiday Newsletter Syndrome, you know, when it seems every other Christmas card you open contains one of those newsletters where everything is wonderful and while you feel happy for your friends, you can’t help but feel like you’re a big, stagnant LOSER.

Of course, we don’t put the bad stuff in those holiday newsletters–or if we did, it’s something we gloss over and that was, of course, no fault of the writer’s–a death in the family, perhaps, “we miss her, but we’re getting through it.” And we don’t usually put that stuff on social media either, because who wants to read a whiner? “(Sigh) another rejection” or, “my publisher’s dropping me because I didn’t even come close to earning out my advance,” or “well, that’s nice for her; I sold a whopping three ebooks last month on Amazon.” It’s easy to tell ourselves people don’t post stuff like this, but it’s still tough not to feel like a big, stagnant LOOOOOOOSER.

In the 2004-6 or so, I read a lot of blogs–industry blogs, and a lot of authors’ blogs, which back then, were “Follow me on my road to publication!” And over those couple of years, many of those authors did indeed sell to publishers. So many, eventually, that it seemed everyone was writing something like: “Oh, look! My contracts arrived today.” Or, “Squeeee! I got cover art and it’s beyoooooootiful!” or “I hit the best seller list again this week!”

It got to the point that with each blog post like that I read (and it seemed most of them were like that, for a while), I got more and more bummed out. It wasn’t that I begrudged those authors their succes; I just wanted a little of something like it for myself.

Finally, I realized it had to stop–not the successes, or even the blog posts, but me reading them. I unsubscribed from one blog after another, until I stopped reading blogs altogether.

Most of the blogs I read now are either strictly industry-focused, or they’re authors blogging about something besides writing. Some of them are further along than me in their careers, some are just getting started. Their blogs are fun to read, and it’s fun to cheer them on. Some of them come to my blog and cheer for me, too, and that means a lot.

And guess what? Facebook’s the same way. Sometimes it’s one big cheering section, other time’s it’s better to just step away, sometimes because of time constraints, sometimes when Holiday Newsletter Syndrome threatens. But I don’t stay away for long.

What about you? Do you ever get Holiday Newsletter Syndrome? Ever need to step away from Facebook, blogs, Twitter, whatever? Or does it roll off you, no matter how far along you are(n’t) in your career? Please tell me I’m not alone! And if you haven’t already, maybe Like me on Facebook? 😀

Just Say No… to Stress, and ROW80

Last year around this time, I put up a post on ways I’ve found to deal with all the extra stuff we have to do around the holidays, that can add greatly to our stress level if we aren’t careful. One of those was evaluating which holiday events we really need to attend… and which we can gracefully decline.

My primary decision-making process for this is quite simple: just ask yourself these questions:

If I don’t go, will someone be disappointed or hurt?
Are there people there I care about, who won’t understand why I can’t make it?
If I don’t go, will it adversely impact me (for example, career or business issues)?
Are these people who don’t live nearby, and whom I don’t see at other times of the year?
Do I really want to go? (<- This one is the most important!)

I had to make one of those decisions yesterday… then woke up not feeling well, so that pretty much made the decision for me. I felt well enough to sit at my computer and play games, and the party I had to skip was one where my friends understood.

I also got some work done, including my ROW80 goals for the week! Here are the details:

Hangar 18 – finish type-in – Done!
Hangar 18 – get answers for new/remaining few research questions, and send to editor – Done!
Hangar 18 – put together book info sheet – Done!
Physical activity 5x this week – Done! (Good thing I did it Monday – Friday!)

I’ve already met my ROW80 goals for the overall quarter. But I’m not going to take the next week and a half off. There’s still much to be done, although with the holidays coming and all the extra to-do that entails, I am going for small goals. So for this week, I’d like to:

Hangar 18 – write up front and back matter
Hangar 18 – create full cover (for paperback – ebook/front cover already done)
Physical activity 5x this week

If you’re participating in ROW80, how are you doing so far? Do you have any tips on beating holiday stress? If so, please share – I’m always looking for more!