“A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper.”
E.B.White
Writing is a solitary occupation, and to get the creative juices flowing, the ideal is to set aside a period of quiet concentration each day and just write and do research. It’s a luxury I enjoy. I call it a luxury because it is sometime hard won when my personal life needs attention. The first few months of this year have presented many demands which tested my writing discipline but needed doing. So, while I wrote something every day, I also got other things done.
January: On the 1st, I published a blog called Lost Luggage, Airport Hack, and Human Kindness. On the 2nd, I accompanied my husband to a medical appointment. On the 3rd, I sent out my fifty-third author newsletter to subscribers. On the 5th, I had to take time out for a routine bone density test. That same day, our microwave died and my husband and I made a trip to the appliance store to order a replacement. On the 6th, our new microwave was installed in the morning, and in the afternoon, I discussed Chapter Two of my fourth Slate book with my critique group and gave my input on chapters submitted by the other members. That evening, I participated in a planning meeting with my SinC (Sisters in Crime) chapter. On the 8th and the 15th, I accompanied my husband to medical appointments. On the 19th, I submitted a 500-750-word story to my prompt writers’ group. I participated in my SinC Chapter book discussion (Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz) on the 20th. On the 22nd, I discussed Chapter Three of my fourth Slate book with my critique group. On the 24th, my husband and I drove to Gainesville, FL and attended a reception at the Sunshine State Book Festival. On the 25th, I had a vendor table and sold some books. We drove home from Gainesville on the 26th, and I began reading the 25 books and 5 short stories that were nominated for Agatha Awards in preparation for voting at the Malice Domestic Conference in April. That evening, I participated in my prompt group meeting, reading my story and commenting on others. On the 29th, I had a dental checkup and my dentist recommended that I arrange to have a wisdom tooth extracted. The month ended on a sad note, with a celebration of life on the 31st for a fellow author and beloved member of our SinC chapter.
February: On the 1st, my blog was called A Road Trip to Fethiye and Oludeniz, and on the 3rd, I sent out my fifty-fourth author newsletter, had a consultation with an oral surgeon, discussed Chapter Four of my fourth Slate book with my critique group, and my SinC chapter hosted a Zoom presentation with a guest speaker on the topic “Using AuthorScale to Market Your Books on TikTok.” I went to medical appointments with my husband on the 5th, 6th, and 12th. On the 7th, I attended a Zoom webinar, “The Organics of Outlining,” by author Ellen Byron. Our prompt meeting was on the 16th. I discussed Chapter Five of the fourth Slate book with my critique group on the 17th. (Afterwards, we agreed to take a break from meeting for a while, due to the health of one of our members.) That same evening, I participated in my SinC Chapter book discussion (The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentil). On the 20th, I had my annual eye exam. My husband was transported to the hospital on the 22nd and I spent several days going back and forth to the hospital until he was released and doing well on the 25th. On the 26th, I had my wisdom tooth extracted and a home health nurse visited for post-hospital monitoring of my husband. On the 28th, I agreed to moderate a panel of historic mystery writers at the Malice Domestic Conference in April. Throughout the month, I continued reading Agatha-nominated books and short stories, and I began working on a PowerPoint presentation for an event, “Tell Your Story, It’s Your Write,” at the North Broward Public Library in March. (Car note: One day during the month, my car wouldn’t start and we called AAA for a jumpstart. The service guy said the battery was good and suggested it was because I didn’t drive the car enough. It didn’t make sense to me.)
March: My writing began on the 1st with publishing my blog, Navigating Email Author Scams, as well as starting Chapter Six of my fourth Slate book. My husband had a home PT visit on the 2nd. I sent out my fifty-fifth author newsletter on the morning of the 3rd. That evening, my Sisters in Crime chapter hosted a Zoom presentation with a guest speaker on the topic, “So You Think Your Book Could Be a Movie.” I accompanied my husband to a medical appointment on the 5th, and he had a home PT visit on the 6th. On March 7th, I drove to Coconut Creek, FL and presented my PowerPoint presentation, “Building Your Mystery Novel.” I also had a vendor table and sold some books. I accompanied my husband to medical appointments on the, 10th and 12th, and he had home PT visits on the 11th, 13th,and 16th, as well as a home health nurse visit on the 13th. On the 17th, I participated in my SinC Chapter book discussion (The Rose Arbor by Rhys Bowen). I accompanied my husband to a medical appointment on the 19th and he had a home health nurse on the, 20th. On the 23rd, I had my prompt meeting and my husband had both home nurse and PT visits. The home health nurse also came on the 24th, and I accompanied my husband to medical appointments on the 24th and 25th. Throughout the month, I continued reading Agatha-nominated books and short stories. I also began reading books by the authors on the historical mystery panel I would moderate in April, contacted the authors, and began coming up with a list of questions for the panel discussion. (Car note: Once again, my car wouldn’t start one day this month and we called AAA for a jumpstart. The battery was declared good again.)
April: My writing began on the 1st with publishing my blog, Figuring Things Out in Antalya. I sent out my fifty-sixth author newsletter on the morning of the 3rd and also went to a medical appointment for me and accompanied my husband to his appointment. I went with him to another appointment on the 7th, and in the evening, my SinC chapter hosted a Zoom presentation with a guest speaker on the topic, “Advanced Uses of AI for Book Marketing.” I finally finished the first draft of Chapter Six of my fourth Slate book on the 8th without my critique group feedback. On the 9th, I went to another medical appointment with my husband. On the 15th, we had a technician come to the house for an AC checkup. On the 17th, I submitted a story for an anthology consideration. From the 19th thru the 24th, we had a nice disruption with a visit from our son, who lives in Colorado. I had my six-month dermatology checkup on the 20th. I participated in my SinC Chapter book discussion (The Tuesday Night Club by Agatha Christie) on the 21st. I continued reading Agatha-nominated books and short stories and books by the authors on the historical mystery panel until I attended the Malice Domestic Conference in Bethesda, MD on the 24th thru the 26th and moderated a panel on the 25th. I accompanied my husband to medical checkups on the 28th and 30th. (Car note: This month, I had another incident when my car wouldn’t start. Instead of calling AAA, my husband’s nephew gave it a jumpstart then he and my husband took the car to an auto place to have the battery checked. They claimed it was OK. After 3 times of non-starting with a so-called good battery, I was fed up, so I drove to the dealer in the pouring rain and told them I needed the problem fixed ASAP, especially since I was going to be gone for a conference for 3 days and didn’t want to return to a dead battery. They ran some diagnostics and determined it really was a dying battery. I now have a new battery and, hopefully no more starter problems.)
Life goes on. Last night, April 30th, I did a final edit on this blog and some edits on my next newsletter. Happy May!