100 Day Creative Challenge Day 64

100 Day Creative Challenge Day 64: The Paradox of Busyness 

If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do. Lucille Ball

I didn’t feel like I did much in 2015, but when I look back over my calendar it was pretty full.

I travelled for three months of the year, presented at TEDx  in San Francisco, participated in a writing master class, attended the Art of Writing retreat in Tuscany, worked on Steve Fraser’s new book Fragile, wrote articles for magazines, finished the first draft of my next YA novel, wrote 50 000 words of another one and about 20 000 of yet another, our son got married, I had two surgeries, blogged for three sites as well as my own and in-between managed to cook and clean and manage our home. Phew!

My life is full, and as the years have gone by, I’ve absorbed more and more things into my life. The year I wrote my first book I worked as principal of a primary school, worked as a creative assistant to a friend, volunteered and led a creative team on the weekends and looked after my family.

Now that I work as a writer full-time I thought I’d have more time. However, it’s easy to either say yes to things that keep me busy, but take me away from my primary work (writing novels) or procrastinate. Isn’t that the paradox of busyness?

Here’s my writing challenge for the next three months:

1. Publish Amazing Grace (Book 3 in the Beautiful Lives Series — It’s in final editing as this goes to air!)
2. Complete the draft of Solo Traveller (A contemporary women’s novel—I’m 50 000 words in.)
3. Complete the draft of Scarlett Love  (Book 4 in the Beautiful Lives Series—I’m up chapter 13 out of 32)

We’re in the last month of summer here in Australia so by the beginning of May (late autumn) I want to be able to move into a new season of writing.

The first draft of a book—even a long one—should take no more than three months, the length of a season.     
― Stephen King

I can see why it’s taken me so long to finish each of these projects. I should never attempt to have three writing projects on the go at once. It’s too confusing!

By the end of 2016, my writing goals are:

1. Complete the draft of Finding Joy  (Book 5 in the Beautiful Lives Series — the final in this series! Yay!)
2. Edit and submit The Solo Traveller to publishers)

My friend Jodie at onlyhalfwaythere wrote this today:

There are days when getting the words out is a real wrestle. Days when the words won’t lie down on the page and behave. Days when they elude me, and I have to chase them, track them down and pin them to the spot where they are meant to stay. 

By Jodie McCarthy from onlyhalfwaythere.net