Done!

I finally finished my rewrite of An Unbalanced Line.  But I'm not done. I made some notes on the manuscript along the way, which I want to fix, then I print it out and read it aloud. Reading aloud helps me get the voice and dialogue right and it also is useful for finding little mistakes, typos, punctuation problems.

Then I do revisions.

The step after that, I get some beta readers. I usually pick four or five people. A couple readers, a couple writers, and I have one friend who is a writer and an excellent editor. 

After that, I do another set of revisions, then maybe another. I do as many as it takes to get it to a place that I feel is good enough to send to agents.

How do you get feedback on your work? Who do you count on to give an unbiased opinion? Do you read aloud?

I'm interested in other writer's process.

Find a Mantra Make it Work

So yesterday I posted about the advice my BF gave me yesterday because I've been stressing a lot lately and sleeping bad. You know, Be, Do, Have. I really took it to heart.

Money is one worry, so I made out a budget and I showed it to my kids, and I'm really going to do my best to stick to it until I get some bills paid off.

He also gave me some advice on how to get caught up and stay in the black, which I'm definitely going to follow. (if I haven't mentioned it before, my BF is a pretty smart guy)

Another thing weighing on me was having enough time in the day to get things done, so I made out a schedule. I also showed that to my kids so they'd know exactly what I wanted to be doing when. I decided that writing time needed to be done anywhere but in the house. I just worry about too many other things when I'm home like dishes in the sink, weeds in the herb bed, or laundry in the basement.

One of the things I'm vowing to do is write every day. I'm putting aside and hour and a half. Now, that's my schedule, but I know sometimes things don't work out the way you want them too, so I'm going to carry a notebook in my car so if something comes up, I can still write I will say that last night I went to Forza and did 27 pages on my rewrite. And it felt good. And now I'm 107 pages into a 180 page book. I'm that much closer which is a big motivator to keep going.

Be. Do. Have.

I've figured out what I'm going to BE. That is a person with a budget and a schedule to get things done. And I will Do those things. Then I will HAVE the financial freedom and time to be and do whatever I want.

:)

Okay, now I'm accountable to you. Here it goes.

Insomnia and other side affects of writing

Every so often I go through bouts of sleeplessness. Last night was one of those nights. I'd only slept for four hours when it was time to get up. I couldn't function, so I called in sick and went back to bed.

Why couldn't I sleep?

You know when you wake up and then your mind goes and you just can't get it to shut off? That was me last night.

I was thinking about my agent search, worrying about how long it was going to take. Wondering what happens if I don't get one.

I thought about finishing this rewrite that I've been working on for months now with no motivation.

Money
Relationships
Work
Writing
Medical issues

You know, all the life worries that pop into your head at 2 am.

I talked to my BF today. He gave me some very good advice. First, I need to make a list of the things that are in my control and work on them, the rewrite, the budget, querying agents.

Don't worry about the things that are beyond my control. There's nothing I can do about them.

He said I'm thinking backwards. He says I think "have, do be". If I have this, then I can do this, than I can be this. He says I should be thinking in reverse.

Be. Do. Have.

It makes a lot of sense.

Now, to make that list.