It's About Time

Today, I wrote a writing plan.

Somehow that just doesn't communicate the complexity of the thing, or the difficulty. Allocating dates and times to tasks a half-year in advance is not easy. There are so many variables, so many unknowns.

Now that it's done, my plan looks good and it just might work. Unfortunately, I can't pass on any how-to tips because I honestly don't know what I did or how I did it. It was like walking up a black-iced hill in old cowboy boots--which I've done, by the way, and barely lived to tell about it.

There was precious little I could find on the Internet to give a bird's-eye view and help me find a place to put my feet. 

There's plenty on setting goals, of course, but whatever there is on outlining professional freelance writing goals is well hidden. Setting these goals demands a deft touch because of the unique nature of freelance writing. The spectrum is broad and, if you're anything like me, you're trying to move forward in ten areas at once, each of which has its own particular rhythm and requirements. And unreliability.

Writing-World.com offers a series of general articles on the business of writing, which includes a handful on writing plans. If you're wrestling the same octopus, you might find something helpful there.

Finally having a plan written down, even for just the next few months, certainly eases my mind. I'm relaxing now after a hard day of climbing ropes. There's enough time to start checking off boxes.

Tomorrow.

Putting the Artful into Day Job

There's been altogether too much "day job" and not enough "artful" going on around here lately.


While my pile is getting more beautiful, it's still an awful lot of rocks. But part of the creative process is sorting and tossing and hoping you keep what you should. Today, I do believe I came across a really good one.


If you're a writer, you must check out FundsforWriters , C. Hope Clark's amazing site for writers who actually want to make money. Hope spends her time ferreting out grants, foundations, contests, and publishing venues of all kinds for writers--specifically because we can't--and offers them in regular newsletters and e-books.


Please note that she refuses to list any venues that don't pay money. In other words, no booby prize of three free copies for a 5-page essay. Thank you, Hope. Her hour-long interview on The Writing Show is also worth listening to, with tips not mentioned on the website. 


By the way, I'm not affiliated--just impressed, and very, very happy to have found her!


Well, back to the quarry.

Piling Rocks Instead

Okay, maybe building an empire was a little overblown at this point. Maybe for the moment it's enough to build...well, a pile.


I was sorting through some old articles yesterday with the idea of uploading them to Bukisa so that people could read them and my millions could come pouring in. And I ran across an article I wrote a few years ago and I thought, "Hey, this one's really good."


It occurred to me that if I put it on a content website, I might not be able to get it published anywhere else--like with a real publisher. So I've decided to send it to a magazine. The subject covers day jobs and creativity (big surprise), and I'm wondering where it will find a home. Maybe an art industry journal like ArtCalendar, where I was published once before, or perhaps an open-minded business magazine.


Writing query letters  is a task that's bewildered me for years, not least because of the oddball topics I write about. Sad to say, there doesn't seem to be any way out. Freelance article writers have to write query letters. Bleh. Let's hope they don't turn out like these . 


You should see my To-Do lists. They're at least as long as yours. I want to do everything at once, and I want it all done now so I can sit down and weave beads.


But time is chronological. This is a slow planet and I'm particularly slow. Building a pile is about all I can manage these days. An uploaded article here, a query letter there, and wa-ay over there a translator application form.


In the end, my pile will look like something. Not an empire, maybe, but perhaps a well, or even a fountain. I'll just keep putting one rock on top of the other and stand back to have a look when the last one's on top.


Still, it'd sure be a lot easier with one of those nifty tripods.

Building the Empire

Wikimedia's great. I just learned about Sweden's Bernadotte Dynasty, which must have one of the nicest coats of arms I've ever seen.

However, this is not the kind of empire I'm building.

Especially not today. Today, I'm staying home with my cat. He's got the right idea. Lie down here, lie down there. I completed a freelance writing job this morning, so I have the luxury of taking a few minutes off.

That's what I told myself, anyway, but I keep gravitating toward the keyboard. Stuff wants to come out. Isn't that grand?

So yesterday I joined Bukisa, where I might just be able to earn a little bit of money by writing what I really love to write. Of course, $4 per 1,000 hits on an article doesn't sound like much, but you know, it's all cumulative. If you've got old articles or ideas lying around you might want to spruce them up a bit and post them. There's a networking element to Bukisa, so if people sign up under you, you'll benefit from their hits, as well.

Last night, I spent some time with my evergreen article, 11 Tips For Surviving a Day Job With Your Creativity Intact, and sent it on up. And I've got a store of others I can dig out and tweak. Bukisa accepts previously published articles as long as you own the copyright.

All in all, an interesting concept. Whether or not the website lives up to the idea remains to be seen. I'll keep you posted.

But today I'm calling in the generals and mapping the advance, i.e., my career plan as a writer. From the looks of it, we may end up in Sweden. At this point, I'm pretty much following my nose. And the light from above.

The Homogenized Life

It's a good thing for my clients that they don't pay me by the hour. I live a homogenized life. I wouldn't know where to start billing.


Writing for me is like living. Well, it is living. I eat a banana, let the cat lick my nose, type a word, scrape dust bunnies off the floor, write a blog post, type another word...you get the picture. Rarely do I sit at the computer and Just Write--until I get to the revision part, when I'm glued to the keyboard because slashing and burning my own work is just so much fun.


But that first draft? How do people do it? I know there are writers who barrel through pages of material just to get it down. At least, that's what I hear. Who are these people? Is this skill or heredity? I give it a shot it periodically, but I think I'd get better results milking a cow.


My pea-picking way of writing overflows into my work, of course, so I always bill by the project. Want to see me squirm? Watch a client ask me for an hourly rate. It's not possible. There's no way I can tell you how much time I spend on a project because 90% of that time was probably passed watching flies and moving paper around on my desk.


I may not make it as a freelance writer. This method can't be cost-effective over the long run.


On the other hand, I remember my first attempt at copyediting. It took me six hours to do a half-hour job. The agency was shocked, but of course I didn't bill them for that. "It's my on-the-job training," I told them. And in fact I got much faster and now everyone's happy.


Still, I'm not a novice writer. And I've always preferred the homogenized life. Nine-to-five never suited me, even when it was possible for me to do. So maybe difficult billing and jobs that take an eternity are just the price to pay for being able to meander through a job like I would through the botanical gardens.


Working at home. The adventure goes on.


By the way, I just discovered the greatest site. Probably everyone in the world has known about this forever, but in case you don't, here's a link to Wikimedia , where you can get public domain pictures to plaster all over your blog or whatever you're making. Because, in case you were wondering, no, I didn't shoot the milkmaid.

When Your Home Is Your Studio (or is it the other way around?)

Look closely. Bet you thought this was a photograph of a real quilt.


I've had this photo in my file for a long time and have no idea who did it. If someone knows who the graphic artist is, please let me know. I'd like to give very full credit!


In the meantime, today it represents a perfect meld of home and studio. How many of us work in our homes or live in our studios? I do. My floor looms, thank heavens, are in an airy larger shed on the property, but my more immediate art--my writing, painting, and beading--live here with me in my new little cottage.


Since there simply isn't room to carve a studio from my living space, I'm creating a sort of "living studio." All my choices for decorating and arranging things in my limited space are based on whether or not they serve my work with words and colors. Watercolor table in the sitting room? Why not? It's a feature. Desk in the bedroom? No, that's a bed in the writing room.


This last juxtaposition worried me before I moved in. I've always had separate office and bedroom, and I have to admit I was concerned about not being able to relax, what with my work staring me in the face every night. But I've discovered that I sleep very well surrounded by what I love. When I look at my shelves of books about writing, poetry, creativity, and children's literature (even those stern dictionaries in five languages), I see possibilities for creating my future. If anything keeps me awake these days, it's too many ideas!


If working at home is a problem for you, there are ways to shift the orientation of your living space to support your creativity.

• Ask yourself what sort of home would feed your creative dreams. Give more space to what you love and give it a place of honor. Surround yourself with things that make you want to be creative. Cut out the clutter that keeps you stuck in the uncreative past.
  
• What about setting up a dedicated workspace? Think about how that would change your life. Clearly, the more of your home that is dedicated to your art or craft, the stronger the constant creative energy will be, pulling you in and jump-starting your work. But even if all you can manage is a convertible corner or a roll-out unit, it's a seed waiting to grow.
  
• Think about what you would pack in a portable studio. A space-saving backpack stuffed with miniature versions of your favorite tools is a possible solution for a crowded living space (and a great idea for taking advantage of odd moments on your job, by the way).
  
• Another question: What sort of inspiration would a fairy sprinkle on you? Got it? Now sprinkle it around your house.

One of the best ways to grease your gears is to keep a steady stream of exciting and interesting ideas coming into your brain. What sort of inspiration tickles your fancy? Literature, music, motivational tapes? Films, friends, the Buddha? 

Select things that make you want to strive for the very highest within yourself, images or objects that remind you of who you really are: a magnificent spiritual being, a naturally creative soul. Surround yourself with messages in a language that speaks to your heart. Put them in places where you can't help but see them. What is it that touches you right where you live and makes you want to be your very, very best?

-- from The Day Job Survival (and Escape) Kit

Time and Space are two of the issues I look at in The Day Job Survival (and Escape) Kit --hopefully coming soon to a computer near you. And am I glad I've finally got a living studio. Time to edit! 

Dancing While the Floor is Moving

It's official. Looking for a day job is now my day job.

I don't know why it's always been so hard for me to see how to make money by writing. Lots of people do it. I can see my professional life hovering on the horizon: a colorful patchwork of books, articles, this and that. But how to get from A to Z? For some reason my mind's got butterfingers.

Still, I think I'm getting closer. I've narrowed my search to three areas. The ubiquitous translation, writing articles for corporate magazines, and writing book reviews, which I just realized can actually be done for money.

If you're interested in investigating some avenues for yourself, I've started researching those last two activities with these basic texts: Top Dollar for Your Articles by Harry Husted and Get Paid to Read by Steve Weinberg (both edited by Bob Bly). 

My painting teacher once told me, "If you look inside a how-to book, you'll find you already know it." This may be true with painting, but I've found these how-to's very helpful in sorting out the first baby steps of professional writing--and calming me down besides.

In addition, today I'm starting to work with a packet by Angela Booth called Your Just-In-Time Cash Machine. Get past the title, if it grates. This looks like a very clear and helpful e-book about tip-toeing into marketing your services online.

The book includes a seven-day action plan, which I plan to implement starting today. I'll let you know how it goes.

On the creativity front, early next week, I'm moving from a big bedroom in my house to a cottage close by on the property. I'll have room there to set up a table for picture-booking and maybe even my tapestry loom. It involves a bit of pre-move room painting, but it's a cheerful little place with lots of windows and good energy.

My first loom-beaded necklace is almost done. Well, that means the necklace itself is beaded and now I have to figure out how to sew in all the warp threads and attach the clasp. Oh, and the fringe. It's ridiculously hard to photograph because of the shape of the loom, which is solid behind the warp and blocks the wonderful light that makes the piece worth looking at, but I'll keep at it and post pictures at the first opportunity. I may have to put it on for a photo session!

If you're wondering what loom beading is or would like to see the loom I'm using, here it is . Its name is Larry. Don't ask me why.

And now, back to the dance. Time to critique a fellow critter's novel in exchange for one on my own. I haven't said much about them, but these critiques are the most valuable input to my writing I've experienced in a very long time. I'm inching up to submission.

Do I have stars in my eyes?

And a-one and a-two...