Housekeeping

Sorry I disappeared yesterday, but I had to buckle down and get some editing done. I didn't get as far as I would have liked, but it was some progress. Tonight, I had to complete some housekeeping, both literal and figurative.

For any new readers who don't know, I am not a full-time fiction writer, but I am a full-time writer. I have a day job that is very demanding and takes up a lot of hours throughout the whole week -- yep, Monday through Sunday. So, when I finally roll into my house with my cats eagerly awaiting my return, I generally have to make a choice of whether I am going to do my night job (fiction writing) or take care of my personal life.

Unfortunately, tonight was personal life. Oh yes, as a fabulous published author, I must still face the ultra-glamorous tasks of sweeping, dusting, laundry, kitty litter cleaning, and scrubbing bathrooms. All of which have been sorely neglected recently.

The other housekeeping I had to catch up on was email. This was a more enjoyable task and I felt very guilty for neglecting it. I had several other writer friends who had been kind enough to check my pulse after I received my edit letter, but I had not yet checked back with them. (To all my lovely friends who have been concerned about me, thanks! and I'm sorry I have not written sooner.)

While I am still in the early stage of this being published business, I will say that the thing I have had the most trouble with is budgeting time and figuring out how much time I do need. I wrote the rough draft of my first novel in three months, but then I didn't have a deadline and the book has changed greatly from that version. I know how long I have until the book is due, but figuring out where I need to be at the end of each week in order to make my deadline is rough, particularly since I haven't actually started writing yet... I'm still making notes and planning things out. I am confident that I will figure it out and make my deadline. (I'm very stubborn when it comes to deadlines.) If I figure out a good plan for budgeting time, I'll be sure to pass it along!