All the organization tools in the world won’t get your story written if you don’t commit to that one most important exercise–writing!

Since starting this blog back in May, I haven’t had much time for working on Sliced Vegetarian, the second Daisy Arthur novel. Correction–I haven’t made much time. June and July are my busiest social months, with my annual ballroom dance competition, visit to family in Detroit, and art switch out at the gallery where I show my paintings.  Then there is this little thing called “work” that needs the occasional effort.  I am a marketing consultant for a couple of businesses here in the Denver area, and today, this is how I earn my bread and butter.  Writing is more my avocation than career right now.

Can’t be a writer if you don’t make time and write!

But doesn’t the above sound just like a bunch of whining and excuse-making?  Organization is a key element to avoiding the “dog ate my homework” attitude in life.  Organization is how you make time instead of accidentally stumbling across an extra hour here and there. Organization isn’t easy, but it is necessary, especially if you have a vision of success from your avocation.

So…

This weekend I am going to work on my personal plan to include writing my novel.  My mornings are running on a good schedule at this point, but I’ve noticed that the end of my days–anything from lunch onwards–are more cluttered than controlled.  I think I’ll focus there, and bet I can find an hour or two to write.

Just so that you don’t get the impression I’ve been totally sloughing off, I do have 18 chapters drafted of this second book.  I had just lost excitement for the story in some of the things going on in my life, and I think that ennui showed.

My thought was to go back and “sparkle” things up a bit before moving forward, but that is an excuse for not writing. If you stop to do heavy editing in the middle of a project, you’re only inviting that nemesis “the inner editor” to come out and put you in a state of tharn. I can’t allow this, so I’m going to hop right on the writing train. Next Friday, my Daisy Update will have these things:

• A schedule of when I will write (even through writing badly)
• A set of goals for getting the first draft done
• Chapter 19 at least partially written

What about you?  What are your writing goals for the next month? When will you write? What are you working on?

Good luck– or better yet–good planning and execution.  No more “oops” for either of us.