Time Management Tuesday: My 2015 Time Management Disaster

I made a decision in May that knocked me off the time management wagon the rest of the year.

I decided to give up the unit system to work "in bits and pieces" because that work strategy was triggering breakout experiences that were extremely helpful while working on the first draft of The Mummy Hunters. Now, some people would say that the unit system is working in bits and pieces, anyway, because you work for 45-minutes (or another segment of time) and do something else for 15. But I'm talking smaller bits and pieces. Bits and pieces that stopped leading to breakout experiences. Bits that eventually led to pieces spent on-line.

My impulse control is shot.

I did finish a first draft of The Mummy Hunters, though the last portion of that draft was pretty weak. And I've nearly finished a second draft.  But I'm not at all satisfied with how much I've done on other projects these past seven months. Plus the last portion of that second mummy draft is like doing a first draft again, because, as I said, the original first draft was pretty weak. First drafts...Yeah.

In The Throes Of The End Of One Unit Of Time And Eagerly Looking Forward To A New One

I'm hoping to have this second draft done by New Year's Eve. Even with that deadline, I'm struggling to stay on task. Why? My theory is that it's because this deadline involves the end of a year, a significant unit of time. It's an ending. At the end of a unit of time, we're kind of worn out. If nothing else, our willpower, which is finite, is wearing thin. Plus, if you're unhappy with what you've been doing during that unit of time that is almost over, as I am, it's hard to stay psyched. Or is that just me?

That new year that's coming up is an entirely different thing. It's like starting the day over, rested and with impulse control intact. There will be new goals for next year. Hey, everything is going to be different.

It's kind of a Zenny thing, isn't it? We put the old year, the old unit of time, behind us and try to live in the new one.

It's going to be a lot easier for me to do that, if I finish that draft.

The Weekend Writer: Publications For Shorter Work--Is Exposure Like Money, But Different?

The Price of Writing by Jennifer Niesslein in Creative Nonfiction is an interesting piece and informative for us. Her essay deals with different types of publications for short writing. Niesslein describes them as existing in three different realms. Whether or not the publications can pay contributors, or even staff, is a factor in determining its realm.

Payment Or Exposure?

A lot has been written over the last couple of years about publications wanting writers to work for nothing. Niesslein refers to one such case involving The Atlantic. Just two months ago, Wil Wheaton wrote about being approached by The Huffington Post, which wanted to republish a piece of his work for no compensation. I've also heard stories about self-publishing writers asking illustrators to work for nothing, on the theory that publishing with them will give the illustrators exposure that will be wonderful for their careers.

The exposure is like money, but different argument, has not gone over well with that portion of the publishing world that creates work and supports itself by doing so. But Niesslein's article gives a different spin to this issue. Some journals that are very "poor" in terms of finances have given their unpaid authors their start in publishing. She gives Brevity, which publishes flash nonfiction and that I thought was quite well known, as an example of a publication in that category. It's been around for eighteen years.

So where should an author submit? In particular, where should new, Weekend Writers submit? Go right for the money and the high-end paying publications? Or hope exposure is like money, and, like Niesslein, look for publications that publish work they like?

Everything In Life Is Situational

This is another one of those things in life that is situational. As Wheaton said about his experience with HuffPost, "I’m very lucky to not need exposure or “reach” or anything like that, at least not right now and not this way...If I’d offered this to Huffington Post for nothing, because I hoped they’d publish it, that would be an entirely different thing, because it was my choice." And as Niesslein said, some people are in a life situation in which they can work for nothing, gaining some connections within the publishing world by doing so.

Do we need to write to pay the rent and feed the kids? Or can we write to support our careers with writing credits? Answering those questions will help us determine our situations and what kinds of publications we can submit our work to.

no editor is getting paid, and writers are paid nothing or almost nothing. - See more at: https://www.creativenonfiction.org/online-reading/price-writing#author-biography

When we talk about “the publishing industry,” we’re really talking about three different realms, both in terms of business and writing. - See more at: https://www.creativenonfiction.org/online-reading/price-writing#author-biography

When we talk about “the publishing industry,” we’re really talking about three different realms, both in terms of business and writing. - See more at: https://www.creativenonfiction.org/online-reading/price-writing#author-biography

When we talk about “the publishing industry,” we’re really talking about three different realms, both in terms of business and writing. - See more at: https://www.creativenonfiction.org/online-reading/price-writing#author-biography

"Company's Coming" For #Readukkah

Okay, I know I said I was going to have to pass on Readukkah this year. Then I said I was going to read The Hired Girl after all. Well, let me tell you, Hanukkah is nowhere near as long as I thought it was when I was a kid. ("They get presents for eight days! And nights!") Well, it is eight days, but I only have three of them left to finish reading The Hired Girl and get my Readukkah post posted. That's not going to happen.

However, I had what I would call an interesting Readukkah experience while I was making dinner Wednesday. I kid you not. While I was browning chicken wings, I listened to the Enough with the Holocaust Books for Children! podcast at The Book of Life. In it, panelists discussed an abundance of children's books dealing with the Holocaust while other aspects of Jewish life and history don't get as much attention in children's literature. I particularly enjoyed the bit about wanting to find trashy Jewish YA for those teenage readers who would embrace that. How to make other types of Jewish children's books successful? our panelists asked.


Well, if you listen to the entire podcast, as I did, toward the end the panelists start discussing nonHolocaust Jewish children's titles. Imagine my surprise and delight when one of them mentions Company's Coming by Arthur Yorinks with illustrations by David Small. It is a marvelous picture book that absolutely should not be out of print. (Oh, my gosh. I just discovered there's an oop sequel.)

Company's Coming had a huge impact on my life. The day after I read it to my sons, it inspired my short story, How Mom Saved the Planet, which was later published in Cricket Magazine. And another version of How Mom Saved the Planet became the first chapter of my first book, My Life Among the Aliens. I may not have had a writing career, if not for Company's Coming.

 I just reread this book for this post, because I own a copy. Now that it has been pointed out to me that there is a Jewish vibe to this story, I can see it. The characters have names like Moe and Etta. I can definitely imagine a character in Seinfeld telling this story about one of his family members going over-the-top because unfamiliar dinner guests are expected. "They brought a hostess gift, for crying out loud! When do aliens bring hostess gifts?" (Which is, of course, the punchline/climax in Company's Coming.)  Jerry Stiller could play Moe in a movie. Shirley's voice may have a tone we've come to associate with Jewish characters. "They look like nice boys." "So they look a little different, I'm sure they're friendly."

Now that it has been pointed out to me that there is a Jewish vibe to this story, I can see something deep and subtle going on here--Oh, let it go, Gail. This is a funny book about your favorite type of humor--the culture clash that occurs when two different groups come together. The aliens bumping up against middle aged Jewish characters inspired my books about aliens bumping up against suburban child characters.

Another interesting point I realized about this book this morning: This is a picture book with no child characters and no animal characters filling in for kids. Adult characters, Jewish connection...Some enterprising student in a child lit course could do a big paper on Company's Coming. 

Holiday Reading

Readukkah is back on for me! I got my copy of The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz last night.

The extended Gauthier family gave up massive present exchanging a few years back in favor of one of those gift swaps. They don't take much time, so we added various Christmas Day activities to fill in the time. Last year we had a poetry slam. This year I'm conducting a literary salon.  I'll be reading a section from The Hogfather by Terry Pratchett. So, yeah, I'm reading that right now.

And, finally, I am actually reading the November-December The Horn Book while it is still November-December. Doesn't the cover look Christmasy? The content hasn't been too Christmas-like yet.

Usually at this time of year I'm reading off the Cybils nomination lists. It helps me catch up with the books that were released recently and supports the Cybils. Since I'm going to be a second-round judge in January, I thought I'd stick to that for my Cybils reading this year, freeing me for seasonal reading. 

Time Management Tuesday: Multipliers

Multipliers are activities that meet more than one goal. This way of using time is the first really new time management concept I've come across in a while. At least, it was new for me when I read about it a couple of weeks ago.

Jennifer Aaker is the name I see most often associated with multipliers. In Rethinking Time: The Power of Multipliers, you can see her speak, and briefly, on the subject.

Multiple Goals, Not Multiple Tasks

Note that we're not talking about multi-tasking here. You're not trying to do more than one thing at a time, something that researchers now say can't be done, anyway. Multi-tasking is simply quickly flipping back and forth between tasks, not working on them simultaneously.

Multiplying is doing just one task that addresses more than one goal. It's the goals that multiply. One activity is working toward more than one of them. That's why you're getting more done. You're not having to work on one goal at a time.

Which Goals?

When I've read about multipliers, the writers played up this strategy as a way of helping people meet personal goals. One example was a parent who has to bring work home and does it with her children while they're doing their homework. She meets a work goal and a parental goal. Another example is a woman who has goals related to fitness and maintaining social connections, so she invites a friend to run/hike/whatever with her. (I've got to pause and say how poorly that would go over in my circle. I mean it. I was part of a social walking group. As my sister would put it, it was like herding cats.)

How about using multipliers on multiple work goals? Because I've been assessing how well I stay on task with goals and objectives this past year, I'd already noticed that I sometimes do take part in activities that meet more than one of this year's work goals. I just hadn't realized it was "a thing," and that maybe I could be thinking about doing it in a more organized, pro-active way.

For instance, The Mummy Hunters draft is a goal for this year. So is community building. When I attend writers' group and we discuss Mummy Hunters, I'm hitting two goals with one activity. When I attend a book fair and use the material here in the blog, which markets me, I'm hitting the community building and marketing goals.

You Need Goals And Objectives To Make Multipliers Work For You

 

You recall, I'm sure because I'm always yammering about it, that goals are what you want to do and objectives are the tasks you will undertake to achieve the goal. Those objectives/tasks are the activities that you can use to meet more than one goal. To make multipliers work, you have to be aware of your goals and objectives. If you hope to find activities that can meet personal goals, too, you'll need to be thinking about objectives for them even if you don't formally create them. For me, a lot of my reading could be described as a personal goal, something I simply want to do. Yet a lot of my personal reading ends up in this blog, part of my professional marketing goal. (And community building, for that matter.) This post is an example. I read about multipliers in More Magazine, not Poets & Writers.

I've read that the multiplier concept is a new way of thinking about time. But I wonder if it isn't also a new way of thinking about goals and objectives.

Since January will be here shortly, it's time to be thinking about goals and objectives for next year. Try to think about objectives differently so you can try to get more out of them.

Yes, I hope you'll be hearing about this a lot from me next year.

I'm Missing Readukkah

Yesterday was the first day of Hanukkah and the first day of Readukkah, sponsored by the Association of Jewish Libraries. Readukkah is a challenge to read a Jewish book during Hanukkah and review it on-line using the #Readukkah hashtag.

I wanted to take part, but I didn't make a book decision in time. My final choice was The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz, but I don't think I'll be able to get hold of a copy before December 14 when Hanukkah and Readukkah end.

Hey, but other people can take part.

What held me up on book selection was that I would have liked something like The Inn at Lake Devine by Elinor Lipman, which I read back in September. Except YA or middle grade. I will keep my eye open for Readukkah books for next year.

The Weekend Writer: Working With Illustrators

10 Things to Know When Working With an Illustrator is a very fine piece by illustrator and editor Marlo Garnsworthy. She's specifically writing about picture books and aims "to include the least you need to know when working with an illustrator and navigating the pre-publishing process." If you're interested in writing picture books and are considering either submitting to a traditional publisher or engaging an illustrator yourself in order to self-publish, you'll want to read what she has to say.

A couple of other thoughts on this subject:

What Do Illustrations Do In A Picture Book?

Years ago, pre-blog, I believe, I heard a art director from a major publishing house give a talk on picture books. She said that illustrations in picture books are not just pictures of something described in the text. Pictures are supposed to carry some of the story. They don't duplicate what you're reading. Description of appearance and action don't appear in the text, they appear in the pictures. 

This information was a revelation to me.

 Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo is an excellent example of what the art director was talking about. At one point, the child narrator says that the city is noisy. The text doesn't describe what causes all the noise. The illustration shows it.

Getting word and image to work together in a picture book is not a simple task. Pay particular attention to Marlo's section "How does the illustration process work?"

Illustrators Don't Grow On Trees

My Aliens books and my Hannah and Brandon Stories had interior art. My publisher found both artists and supervised the work. When I republished Saving the Planet & Stuff as an eBook, I had to commission a new cover. And, yes, yippee, I was self-publishing and was in control of the artwork. But that meant I had to find an artist myself. And that was easier said than done.

What I learned when I went hunting around the Internet for an illustrator is that many of them specialize. Some illustrators specialize in children's art for very young readers. Some work with very realistic art, some less so. Some artists who do cover illustrations specialize in romance images, some fantasy. Finding someone to create a cover was not a quick and easy task. Now think about finding someone to illustrate an entire book.

There All Kinds Of Issues Involved With Working With An Illustrator

Go read 10 Things to Know When Working With an Illustrator.

What Did You Do This Week, Gail? Dec. 4 Edition

Since I last did a self-check, which was actually three weeks ago, to make sure I am spending time on on this year's plans, I have worked on the following goals:

Goal 1. The Mummy Hunters. I'm note sure how many chapters I've revised in this period, though I know I finished Eight and am well into Nine. Revising the second half of the book has involved generating a lot of new work. I did 1800 words this past Wednesday, which is enormous for me. I also attended a NESCBWI program where I was able to present this project to two agents. I was happy with the response.

Goal 2. Short pieces. I've made a few notes on a couple of short projects.

Goal 5. Community building. I created this month's Connecticut Children's Literature Calendar, promoted it, sent out the newsletter, and was able to add a couple of new people to the newsletter mailing list. I also attended the Connecticut Children's Book Fair and did a series of blog posts about it. I also promoted those posts.

Goal 7. General marketing. Many blog posts, which were promoted at Google+, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads, when appropriate.

Now You Can Get "Original Content" In Your E-Mail

As a result of interest from a reader, we are now offering the option of following Original Content by e-mail. You can submit your address to the left and get OC delivered right to you.

Time Management Tuesday: Maybe We Need To Plan Our Holiday Work Ahead Of Time

Well, sprinting wasn't everything I'd hoped for last week. I did get a couple of sprints done on Tuesday, but only one on Wednesday. Over the rest of the week, I got some marketing done (the Connecticut Children's Lit Calendar, for instance, posting it, promoting it, e-mailing the newsletter), but little on the revision I need to finish. And, to be honest, I did most of the marketing work in the evening, when I usually do it.

Last year at this time, I was all enthused for a structured hourly sprint system. And I raised the question of using sprinting for writing tasks that don't involve creating new material. Creating new material usually requires getting into a world and staying there a while. Maybe you can do that if you're sprinting for twenty minutes every hour or so, but it's going to be a lot harder to do in twenty minutes a day or twenty minutes over a weekend.

Working on a calendar, checking out a journal as a potential market, making a submission--those are entirely different stories. How much could we get done sprinting if we had the right work planned for the sprints? For a week or more of sprinting?

Of course, that means remembering that we have to do the planning. I think we're talking a goal for next year--planning work for the holidays.