Revising WIP...again.

I am currently taking the How To Revise Your Novel (HTRYN) by Holly Lisle //howtoreviseyournovel.com/login.php?s=noauth.

Each week a new lesson is presented, and currently there are fourteen lessons out. I'm on number five. It took me seven weeks just to get through the first one. I found it extremely helpful, and enjoyed diving into my neglected WIP again.

That first lesson was extremely in-depth, requiring a thorough reading while analyzing every single word. As I completed the final sentence of this lesson, a great sense of accomplishment filled me. Whew, now I can move on to something different, get my muse juice flowing again.

As I opened lesson two and read what was required, I couldn't help the disappointment that caused my body to sag. Another deep reading!

After trying to convince myself over and over that I was just really busy with "life" as a way to rationalize the reason the lesson wasn't even started, I came to the conclusion that I needed to skip it. I don't want to just give up when the work is something I don't think necessary.

I felt like lesson two could have been combine with lesson one. Why not look for some extra information WHILE you are doing the thorough reading, rather than having to do it all over again. Either that, or put the lesson later on in the course, so students don't get burnt out in the first two weeks.

So I skipped and went on to lesson three, which I really enjoyed. Lesson four proved difficult as I wasn't really able to find anything "missing or broken" with my plot and subplots. Am I being ignorant? I'd like to think that the fact that I'm not finding any issues is because I have edited this manuscript at least seven times and I've been working on it for two years. So all those issues were resolved many revisions ago, but believe me, there were plenty back then.

Motto of this blog: do what works best for you. Don't give up just because something gets hard or you don't feel like it. Either move on and be confident in the decision, or feel free to go back to it later.

Not sure which I will do yet.

Goodbye Facebook, hello Blogspot!

I've been MIA. Facebook stole me away from everything important to me, including my writing.



I've realized that in my normal job, I push myself hard, taking the initiative to do anything and everything I can, and striving to be the best that I can. It makes me feel good to it. Gives me a sense of accomplishment and pride it being my best, no matter what I have to do to get there.



So why can't I do that with my personal goals? I always come up with an excuse, it's so easy to do. Yet, accomplishing those goals will make the sense of accomplishment and pride a million times better because the goals are so much more personal.

What am I doing different with my professional life? There seems to be no choice when it comes to what needs to be done. I thrive on pressure, being busy and making my mind learn and grow.

So all I need to do is transfer that to my personal goals and life. From now on, when I set a goal, I will decide if it is a necessity. If it is, then I will apply those characteristics that make my professional life thrive, towards my personal goal. Doing that, I will accomplish that goal in no time, and I will constantly be full of pride and joy with every aspect of my life.

I already have a few goals that are necessary, and yes, one major goal is finishing my first novel and getting an agent. Another is regularly posting to this blog.

Starting immediately, I will apply my professional attributes towards my personal goals.