 I set out late last week to fashion a DIY Writing Retreat that would span five days. Here's what happened along with some tips about how you can set up your own period of focus and why you should.
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What happens when you decide to create your own writing retreat to power through the revision of the last 1/3 of your novel? That's what I'm finding out this weekend.
 Because I'm in the midst of revising and editing the last third of Elegant Freefall, I've been considering options lately. And, it still seems to me that there are a lot of ways to spend a ton of money for little to no exposure.
NOTE: Unless you just like reading about my own quandary about exclusivity, this post is likely going to be very boring to everyone but me.  The Yellville Chamber of Commerce announced Friday that it will no longer sponsor Turkey Trot after 72 years of Miss Drumsticks beauty pageant and years of the National Wild Turkey Calling Contest.
I'm six months out of my old life. Why do I keep setting up situations that could lead me to slide back into it?
 Recently, I stopped listening to a podcast that used to be on my weekly listen list. In last week's episode the hosts encourage people to use the Author Earnings Report to find out what genres are "hot" and to then go research those best-sellers among indies and copy what they do. Make your covers look like theirs. Write similar book descriptions and write in the same genre--even if you don't read that genre or don't write in it usually. Write what sells, they say.
I'm still sniffing marshmallows over here.
In the 1960s, Stanford began the Marshmallow Experiment. In that experiment, they put four-year olds in a room with a marshmallow. The children were told they could eat the marshmallow, but if they waited 15 minutes they would be given a second marshmallow. Two out of three kids ate the marshmallow before the 15 minutes were up.
The 1/3rd of participants who held out for the second marshmallow were more successful later in life. In today's culture, we need more marshmallow sniffers.
As most of you probably know already, I am working for myself these days. I used to work for other folks, and I was a darned good remote employee for almost 14 years. When I worked for other people, I had clearly defined tasks and deadlines. While grading papers was not fun, it was a clearly defined task with deadlines. Now, those deadlines and tasks are all loose and I don't have the cheerleading squad to validate me on a daily basis.
I loved this movie and anticipate watching it again. The whole idea of Doris finally embracing her own weirdness and living the life she wants probably resonates with everyone.
Over the last few years, there have been plenty of stories of adjunct and other contingent faculty dying in poverty. Sometimes, it's just the persona that dies, though, thankfully. |
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