Round 3 ending: Look in the Mirror

Day late. But I'm making those daily writes on Rivers of Stone, so all is good. This Weds marks the end of Round 3. I almost want to say hooray and yahoo! Because now we have a little break between now (the end) and the beginning of Round 4, the last for 2013.

Rather than simply meditating on goals at the turn of the New Year, ROW80 gives us that opportunity to consider how we are doing week by week and quarter by quarter. I am grateful for this structure.We all face obstacles in our lives, but this commitment to ROW80 makes achieving my goals a little more possible.

Now to the mirror!

Here is the final update to my goals from Round 3, the what-I-did and the what-I-didn't:

WRITING.  Both Standing Stones and Years of Stone are in Beta read AND Standing Stones was subbed to an indie publisher with 1-3 month turn around. Still committed to self-pubbing this year. Began serious writing on Rivers of Stone with daily writes and a commitment to 7,000 words a month (starting in September). Posted The Mermaid Quilt to Smashwords. NEED TO DO: prepare Afterword, notes, formats for SS and YOS. Continue research, plotting, and writing for ROS.  

WRITING COMMUNITY. My blogging is rather hit and miss. I'm keeping up (sort of) with Row80's 2x a week, and hooray! have hosted two guest blogs on my travel blog with another 2 on the way (one for the travel blog and one for the writing blog). But I'm finding it hard to post to my writing blog. Perhaps an identity crisis? Don't know what people want to read? Don't want to just post any old thing? Don't have the energy? And I haven't written any guest blogs for anyone else (other than ROW80). Yet.

Re guest posting and beta reads: I've gotten involved with both this round, 3 Beta trades pending (1 completed), 2 reviews pending, and now guest blogs to think about.

Met my commitment to read other ROW80 participants (ending in -4 this time) most weeks. Am feeling more comfortable with social media (Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, GoodReads). I want to participate in local writing groups (F2F writer's group x2/month, SASP x1/month, INWG x1/month), but family commitments intervened. Participate in NOVELS-L with subs/crits 3x/month.Oofta on this one. I'm barely making the required 2 to stay on the active list.

Still undecided on whether to sign up to be a sponsor for Round 4. Just 3 slots left! Of course, I would notice that only women have signed up. Hold up the earth!

MARKETING/PUBLISHING. I have continued to work on Marketing skills and plan. I originally planned to write about my progress with marketing, but I don't feel knowledgeable enough -- yet. But, DuoLit's free download Weekend Book Marketing Makeover has given me a sense of direction and I can't say enough positive about it. Outstanding!  Still to do: Evaluate success of Mermaid Quilt marketing.

CRAFT. Hit or miss but still working on: Apply principles learned from revising YOS to SS. Keep current with writing magazines. You should see the pile of magazines. But I do read those writing strategies that come in via e-mail.

WASHINGTON STATE QUILTERS. My goals were to continue to support guild activities through the summer to promote annual quilt show, guild meetings, speakers, and program. Interview Sherry Thompson. Get Membership Brochures out to local shops. Post weekly on WSQ Facebook page. Big decision: This is my last year of this volunteer post, but I still love this group of quilters!

PERSONAL. Cherish each day with family and friends. Quilt, quilt, quilt. DONE: Finish Raffle block by July 9 and Charity Quilt by July 25 <--NOT DONE (I can make this by Oct and still be fine). DONE: Prepare presentation on Africa trip by July 23 but got sweet-talked into doing another one on Egypt in October. 

Some of you know that my daughter had a bad fall, breaking one ankle and bruising the other. Our 15-month old daughter was not hurt, but my daughter is now in a wheelchair through most of October. She's making remarkable progress, bones regenerating, but still can only use the walker for very short bursts (and pays for too much time standing with aches and pains). So, she cannot really care for little Leda when hubby goes off to work. My life has been turned topsy-turvey. I feel behind in most things and exhausted on most days. But I'm thrilled to be close enough to be helpful. The writing comes first in the morning, and then all else is a crap shoot. Unedited. Sorry.

Resting Warthog (Camp 2012)

Onward to Round 4. May it go well for you. Write on!