Quarterly Writing Goals #2 [2017]

Taking a look back over the previous quarter's goals, I only got about half of them done and only if I am being generous. I had six goals to accomplish in the first three months of the year: 1) Finish Courageous Heart, 2) Get Courageous Heart through the editing and beta reader process, 3) Work on the Tragedy of the Traitor, 4) Post weekly vlogs, 5) outline the third book in my Finding Hope series. 6) stay on top of my Author social media (facebook, twitter, blog, etc).

I did finish Courageous Heart (yay!) and I did start the editing process. Only half of my editors/beta readers have finished though, so the the editing part isn't done. It's half done. But I'm counting it, because I did my part, I'm just waiting for everyone else to do their part. The other goal that I did accomplish was working on the Tragedy of the Traitor. But I wasn't on top of social media, I didn't post weekly vlogs, and I most certainly did not begin outlining book #3 in the Finding Hope series.

All in all, I do actually feel good about the first quarter of the year. I did finish Courageous Heart and work on the Tragedy of the Traitor which were the two more important goals for me.

And now I've set my goals for the second quarter (April-June):

-Publish Courageous Heart. All that is necessary for this one is that my editors and beta readers finish their portion of the work and then I will have no obstacle to getting this book published! :)

-Brainstorm/outline book #3 in the Finding Hope series. There is no set deadline on this, which is probably why I didn't get it done last quarter. It is just something that I want to get done and the sooner I start working on it the sooner I can write the book. I have beta readers clamoring for it now, since they've read book 2, so maybe that will motivate me to get it done.

- Finish the Tragedy of the Traitor. I was able to get a little bit done in my fourth Robin Hood book in the last couple months. So now I want to actually finish the book.

-Edit the Tragedy of the Traitor This might not happen this quarter, but I'm throwing it out there in the event that I do indeed finish writing the Tragedy of the Traitor.

-Post weekly vlogs I did not do a good job of this, so hopefully this quarter is better.

-Stay on top of social media. I wasn't good at this either this last quarter, but I do want to grow and maintain my presence as an author online so hopefully this quarter I'm more on top of things.

So those are my goals for the next three months. I am confident I can get at least some of them done. My focus will most likely be on the Tragedy of the Traitor now that I've got Courageous Heart out of the way (other than publication, but that part is easy once my editors & beta readers are done).

Marketing

What do I enjoy about marketing?

Nothing.

What do I hate about marketing?

Everything.

I believe there are several things that have fueled my hatred of marketing. One of those things being my own laziness. Or rather, my dislike of anything that isn't easy. I don't mind working, if it's simple and easy. If I have to use a lot of brain power or energy...well, I don't enjoy that as much. So yes, my laziness is a big reason I dislike marketing, because marketing takes a lot of work.

Another reason I dislike marketing is because I still don't have a clue what I'm doing and I hate the new and unfamiliar in all walks of my life, marketing included.

One of the biggest reasons I dislike marketing is because I hate talking about myself and my work. Don't get me wrong; I could talk about writing all day. I could go on and on about my books. But not about why you should buy them. I just love talking about what I am passionate about; my stories. I don't love telling people to go buy said stories or why they should buy them or convincing people I am a great author (that might also be because I don't believe I'm that great yet, but that's another topic). I am very wary of being narcissistic. I don't know why, particularly, but I am extremely paranoid about it. I don't want to be all about me. And marketing has always felt like it was just me singing my own praises and I hate that.

So...that's why I hate marketing.

On a sort of brighter note: I am doing a lot of research and also taking a class on marketing so that I do know what I am doing. That will alleviate at least one of my reasons for disliking marketing and hopefully I'll enjoy it more or at the very least be better at it.

Guest Post//Cassy Wilmark

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

My name is Cassy Wilmark and I'm one of three. I have a sister, Cinderella, whom we call Cindy. There's also the last of the triplets whom I have not met yet, so I have no comment on that subject. I guess I grew up poor, but that doesn't matter.

Tell us about your childhood.

There's not much to say. I was happy; I had my mom and sister. And Dad too, not that I remembered him.

What did a normal day look like for you?

I'd collect eggs and herbs and other edible plants in the forest and make breakfast for the family. I'd sell some of our eggs to Mr. Crane, and other things too, so I could make money to buy the things we needed. I took care of Mom. That's how my days went.

How did you find out who you were?

Well, an army came and ruined my life and then my stupid amnesia wore off and there you go. I remembered who I was.

What was your first reaction?

I don't know...glad my sister Cindy was really a princess, I guess. She always seemed like one to me.

How did your life change?

Finding out who I was didn't change my life. It was my grandfather and the lobsters that changed things.

Did it affect your relationships?

It didn't change my relationships with Cindy or James, and those are the only people who matter right now.

What do you want people to learn from what you have experienced?

Don't trust the King and hide when you see lobsters.

What are you going to do next?

Save the world. Duh.

Interviewer: Rebekah Hutchinson

Interviewee: Cassy Wilmark

Hey, everyone! Amanda here. That, if you haven't picked up on it, was an interview my sister conducted with Cassy Wilmark...for those of you keeping track of these things, Cassy is a character in my novel Isolated. She also appears in the sequel, Courageous Heart which is going to be published very soon! 

Distractions

Life is distracting, people.

Of course, this isn't news to anyone. Life is busy. Life is crazy. Of course we get distracted. That's just how humans roll.

Today, I'm going to share some personal distractions. More specifically, the five things that, more than anything else, distract me from writing.

I feel like "life" as an answer is just a cop-out, so I won't use that as one of my examples...but it is so true. Life is so very distracting.

Anyway...

Facebook is a huge distraction for me. I open my computer and almost the first thing I do is check Facebook. Only Facebook, as I don't really do other social medias. I do have a Twitter but I haven't checked it in like...a month? But Facebook? Facebook, I am always checking. And I get sucked in so easily! And then forty minutes later my niece is waking up from her nap and I'm wondering what on earth I did with that time I was meant to be writing. Oops.

YouTube. This is an even bigger distraction than Facebook, to be honest. I watch other authors' vlogs, I listen to new songs, I watch silly videos...and hours upon hours could pass without me even noticing. YouTube is dangerous, people. It's a giant black hole and it will suck you in! Beware!

Other books. Usually my own. I'm currently trying to actually write The Tragedy of the Traitor instead of just thinking about it...but every time I open it up I get distracted by my other books. I'll open up Courageous Heart instead and do some editing or I'll work on my outline for my Next Generation series of Robin Hood stories. I have not made much progress on the book I intended to write this month...but I have worked on other ones...so...at least I've been productive...sort of...

Sleep. I get exhausted watching a baby all day long and sometimes I just want to sleep. Sleep is not necessarily a bad thing. But seeing as writing is technically my "job" then I do need to be a bit more strict about my hours. Even writing for an hour before going to bed would be better than just going to sleep right after dinner (which happens more often than not, I'm afraid...).

Addison. Hands down, my niece is the biggest distraction. Whether that's waking up from her nap when I am in the middle of writing the climax of a story or if that's me sharing all the pictures I take of her with my friends when I should be writing, or anything in between. To be honest though...I don't really mind her being a distraction. She's the best thing ever :)

So those are five things that distract me from writing. What are some things that distract you from your responsibilities?