Sunday, July 31, 2016

ROW80: End-of-month check-in

The last day of the month brings a sense of closure. Already, before August begins, I'm seeing the tops of trees change color to that harbinger of winter, and we're fast moving to the end of the year. So, for A Round of Words in 80 Days, here's my report for July. 

Blue = completed. Green = In progress. Red = Not yet!

1. Participate in Camp Nanowrimo by editing Rivers of Stone at least one hour a day. Missed 5 days, but only need 1.5 more hours of editing to meet my goal for this month. Will try to squeeze this in later today. Overall, progress is steady but so much slower than what I'd like. What's in the way? That pursuit of perfection, or at least as good as I can make it. Big picture goal? Finish edits by October. 

2. Blog minimum of 3x a week (12 posts) on Writing and ROW blogs. Blogged 11x. Even a weekly post to the Writing blog seems difficult, though I love sharing ideas and updates from my wip. Not sure how best to tackle this one. Read a minimum of 2 other ROW80 writers each week. Need to improve. Some weeks, yes. Can I blame summer heat?

3. Marketing: Work on one event/week & planning. Last month's presentation led to three presentations at local senior centers. Now organizing authors' table at Artisans Fair (August 13-14) and Indie Author Day (October). Newsletter not yet.

4. Create project file on ACX for Years of Stone's audiobook by August 1. Darryl Kurylo, a wonderful voice actor, will be the reader! 

5. Write one article. Wrote an article for SASP's August newsletter, "Trolling the Internet" (vlogs, deep point of view, and Ten Minute Novelists on FB). Got word my article on "Quilting with Compassion" was accepted by The Country Register.

6. Work on quilt show program for WSQ: Cover front finished! Completed interview with featured quilter. Outstanding vendor identified. Now to keep writing sections and format. Will receive exhibitor info late September. Have 3 new volunteers to train for next year.

7. Reading: At least one indie author & one SASP author. No progress on reading Yasmin Tirado-Chiodini, Antonio’s Will. Finished beta read of Nancy Hartley’s Justice. Still want to read one more SASP author by August 4 meeting.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm slowing down because I'm getting older or if summer heat affects my stamina. I'd rather blame the heat. 

Still much work to do. Which project brings passion and excitement? The editing -- and a new quilt block just at the planning stage. This week we'll take a short, 2-day trip north, our first road trip for many months, to explore the country around Colville, Washington, once a key stop for voyageurs, now under a man-made lake. But the mountains remain.

May you have a good week with writing goals for August set to motivate you! Check out what other ROW80 writers are up to and cheer us all on. Maybe even volunteer to be a sponsor! Or, if you're not a part of ROW80, why not join us?








8 comments:

  1. Love the cat pic!

    Nice job on your goals this week!

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    1. Thank you, Erin. I'm rather fond of virtual pets. :)

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  2. Looks like you are moving right along. I am trying not to panic because August is upon us. That means we are charging into Autumn and Winter is right around the corner - that long, dark, cold, miserable Winter we always have around here. But, as I lamented in my blog post today, Summer means so many distractions. I should be happy to see the end of Summer on the horizon so that I can hermit myself away in my office and become productive.

    Have a great week, Beth.

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    1. Thank you, Chris. You have the best of distractions ahead with that new popup -- a bed on wheels. Enjoy every moment!

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  3. I'd love to hear more about your adventures in creating an audio book. It's something that I'd one day like to tackle.

    Awesome progress on your goals, Beth!

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    1. Thank you for your interest, Denise. I'm using Amazon's ACX (very easy to set up the account) and offered my second book (Years of Stone) on a royalty share basis. You can see the audition page here https://www.acx.com/titleview/A2LZ0FHKY4CIS5 but Darryl already has the paperback and has committed to be the narrator. My challenge? The marketing! Any questions you can e-mail me directly -- and you've given me an idea for a blog post. Once the dust settles. Thank YOU for visiting and commenting.

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  4. A lot of blue and green there, so that's great.

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  5. Oh, the pursuit of perfection! It's the downfall of so many of us, isn't it? Not that we should settle for good enough, but sometimes, for me at least, there comes a point when close enough has to do. Otherwise, I don't finish anything.

    Wow!!! 3 presentations! Busy lady! That would be why I slowed down, personally. I usually like being around people, but social events like that have a way of taking more out of me than stuff I can do from home.

    I hope the road trip goes well. :-) May your car be smooth-running and may nary a disaster, minor or major, befall you.

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