Random Thoughts: Setting Those New Year Goals

Are you setting those writing goals for next year?

I have turned into a list person. If I don't make a list I forget to do something and most of the time it is important so I find they help me but I have learned not to put one big goal on that list. It can seem insurmountable. I do it in small chunks. I recommend doing that with your writing goals.

Making the goal to make a million dollars off of the sale of one book is great idea but what about all the little goals that lead up to it? It's not like you're going to sit there and just expect it to happen.

Make your goals realistic for you. If you can write a book a month then do it. If that is more than you can handle then focus smaller. A chapter in a week, a scene in a day, whatever works for you.

What are my goals?

Finish editing Stolen Desire
Finish editing book 8
Come up with a title for book 8
Write book nine
finish the rough I started of book 10 - yes I'm writing them out of sequence but it's the way the muse is driving me
finish the rough draft I started to Melange Books
Post to my blog more - not going to commit how much more but will try to do better
promote, promote. promote

What are yours?

Random Thoughts: A Christmas Poem

Tis a month before Christmas

And John is in the attic

What is he doing?

Snarling and growling because I’m in a panic

There are trees to put up – I’ve now go three

And rooms to decorate

There’s shopping and cooking – will I ever be free?

There’s the writing and editing and blogging for sure

My brain is spinning

Is there a cure?

But somehow I do it

Year after year

How I don’t know

But I succeed – never fear

I take a deep breath and do what I must

I write, then I edit then work on my blog

I push and push until I could bust

Now the holiday is here

And everything is done

I’m happy for my family, friends and my fans who are dear

My crazy mind that comes up with the wild stories that I share

For my job and my passion to write

Sometime they make me pull out my hair

But I love each story

I wish all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Barbara Donlon Bradley

www.barbaradonlonbraldey.com

Random Thoughts: Sometimes a Glitch Can Work in Your Favor

I write everything on a computer. I find it easier than writing it out by hand then reentering it into a word document. Not all writers will agree with this but it's what works best for me right now. I try to make sure I save everything regularly, but I have to admit that I'm not that good at it.

I start writing and get into a grove and that is all I think of. I must finish the scene. If I'm editing my latest book I want to finish the chapter. Once I'm done I move onto the next thing. Unfortunately I don't always remember to save my document and I'm horrible about making copies of it for those just in case moments.

I have lost pages of work before. Back when I first started writing I lost whole chapters. I was working in WP and would hit two keys at the same time when I went to save so instead of saving what I had done was ask it to delete then gave the command yes at the same time. It was a horrible feeling because I wasn't the fastest typer. The only great thing was all I was doing was imputing scenes that had already been written.

Now when I make a mistake like that I want to cry. All that hard work down the drain. I have to rewrite everything. You know what I found? Sometimes the scene I had to rewrite was stronger.

I always recommend you save and save and save again. I save to my computer, to a thumbdrive, I send the document to myself in an e-mail - one of the accounts that doesn't download the e-mails into my computer and I upload to something like the cloud. My cable company offered that to members and I take advantage of it.

But...if it does happen you need to remember as you rant and rave at the horror of it but that sometimes it could be a blessing in disguise.