Mar 06 2024

New Store, New Perspective

Author: Jamie DeBree

In case you were wondering, setting up an online store from scratch is a pretty intensive and time-consuming process. I suppose if one uses Shopify or one of the big pre-packaged store builder services, it would be somewhat less so, but I did that when I first started selling books (in 2011), and ended up not making enough money to pay the rent, so to speak.

So this time, I decided to be smart, use my web developer skills, and set up a store (check it out on my BSB site here) that wouldn’t cost me more than it will possibly make back. If I eventually start making enough money on a regular basis, I’ll move to a “prettier” solution, but for now, it’s free WooCommerce and a few choice plugins. Plus PayPal as the sole processor, because they’re the only remotely affordable processor willing to process transactions for the more adult ebooks my Trinity alter-ego writes (if you’ve noticed her site was down, yes, I know – it was my mistake, and I’m working on it. It’s back online, but still needs some backend fixing.).

Yes, I know lots of people just ignore the Terms of Service, do what they want and hope for the best. I’m risk-averse, so I’d rather have permission before anything bad happens, thanks.

Anyways, that’s where all my blogging energy has gone lately. Setting up the store has required a lot of futzing and learning new things from taxes to shipping to order fulfillment and just managing to create and list products. Plus securing the store forms, and testing, testing, testing everything. And now that most of that (not all, but most) is out of the way, there’s the tedium of simply creating and listing all the books – and testing the delivery for each ebook to make sure it works. I’m trying to list at least two books per day (I have about an hour each night to work on this). Once I get all the ebooks up, then I’ll work on print.

In the meantime, I’m still writing, and I have several micro-fiction stories that I really want to make into bookmarks and story cards. I also have several little bits that need to be slotted into larger works-in-progress, and still more that will make very nice short stories and novellas as they’re expanded.

The new perspective I’m really trying to cultivate with all of these projects is one of not having to do everything “right now“. Being able to be okay with working on things in small chunks that don’t require a lot of focused brainpower for long periods of time. It’s very much a workflow and mental shift for me – all my life I’ve preferred to start and finish a project in as few “large chunks” of time as possible, and as quickly as possible, so this doling things out in a trickle is new and somewhat uncomfortable for me.

But that’s how we grow, isn’t it? By doing uncomfortable things, and allowing ourselves to change and flex depending on where we are in our lives at the moment.

I’m mostly just happy to be making the time to be creative. Even if it’s not as much time as I’d like, and it’s still somewhat frustrating to work in such small chunks, it’s better than being frustrated at not doing anything creative at all.

I’m also happy to be working on the business side of things again – something I haven’t done in a long time just because it was just too daunting, and often overwhelming to even try. If I wait until I “have time” to sit down and do the whole thing at once (whatever that “thing” happens to be at the moment), it won’t happen.

So I’m working on tiny pieces at a time, and accepting the fact that it’s not work that will ever actually be “finished”. It will just go on until I decide it’s time to stop.

Hopefully that won’t be anytime soon. Oh! I almost forgot. Smashwords is having their “Read a Book” week sale, and some of my books are on sale over there until Saturday. If you like cheap ebooks, check it out! You’re sure to find something interesting and entertaining!

Also, my apologies for having to add Captcha to the comments. The amount of spam written in Cyrillic was just seriously getting to be way, way too much to keep up with. And since most readers comment more on social media than here anyways…I figured it would affect a minority. Please do let me know if it gives you problems, and I’ll see what else I can figure out.

That’s it for this week! If you have a favorite thing to share, or want to recommend a book, TV show, video or podcast, comment below, email me at jamie@jamiedebree.com, or catch up with me on Facebook or Instagram.

Dec 29 2023

Year in Review: 2023

Author: Jamie DeBree

Well That Was…Something.

You may want a snack and a beverage…it’s gonna be a long one. 🙂

This past year has been the weirdest and least productive I can remember in recent history. That includes 2020. Looking back at my resolutions and goals, it was mostly a bust, with pockets of unexpected and redefined success. But that’s not unsurprising considering how much of this past year revolved around medical procedures, including the anxiety leading up to them and various significant side effects after that added to my recovery times.

In many ways, it was a “lost” year as far as doing the things I want/like to do, but for the most part, the medical concerns that have been plaguing/distracting me for the past three years have been resolved and/or explained, which is good. I have some residual issues that will either heal or they won’t, but they’re things I can live with whether or not they improve, so I have zero plans to interact with medical personnel next year with the exception of my optometrist, because I really need a new pair of glasses, and my dentist for the normal preventative stuff (and that’s only ’cause I like and trust him…otherwise I’d be skipping that too, honestly).

On the other hand, I’ve experienced a few significant mental shifts as well, and those are really shaping my perception of the future and what direction I want to take things moving forward. One of my goals was to cultivate better impulse control, which I pretty much failed at. But I’m well aware of it and I’ll definitely be working harder at reigning that in for the long term.

The fact that I made a goal of 6 hours sleep per night is laughable – my sleep has been all sorts of messed up this year with over 12 weeks combined surgical recovery, and even now, some nights I can’t get comfortable. Add the absolute gem of menopause & hot flashes waking me up mid-sleep to the mix, and I’m doing really well to sleep a full 5 hours in any given night…and even luckier if I don’t pinch a nerve doing it.

Needless to say, I’ve given up on sleep goals. I gave up trying to get to bed before 1am as well, and now the “quiet time” I had scheduled for 11:30pm – 12:30am runs from around midnight to 1am. It’s working for me, and that’s a resolution I did successfully keep, which was to spend an hour every night planning for the next day and then reading before bed. So that’s a “loss-win” combo.

Speaking of reading – see that empty white rack in the photo above? That was overflowing with comic books at the beginning of the year. One of my goals (not resolutions) was to read a comic book every morning to get caught up with several year’s worth of back issues, and…that was a resounding success! The only unread comic books I have now are the larger graphic novel formats, a Spider-Man huge issue I plan to read this weekend, and then a few more Spider-Man and Venom issues that are now in my hall TBR rack. Which is where my new issues will all go from now on, because I am officially caught up! Huzzah!

I did not meet my goal of journaling daily, but I did start the year journaling, and I’m ending the year having discovered I like “art journaling” (a cross between traditional journal writing and scrapbooking, basically), and while I don’t have a definite schedule for it (yet), that will continue on into the new year with me.

My exercise goals were thrown way, way off track (and down a hill, as I couldn’t even do yoga for long stretches of time), so that was a complete bust, and I’m both heavier and more out of shape than I have been in quite awhile (currently rehabbing a wrist that atrophied more than I realized during “recoveries”, and then got strained when I started lifting weights again). Alas, there wasn’t really any way to avoid that, so…onward, with more movement in the new year.

As for my writing goals…I started out okay and then with everything else going on, I found myself trying and repeatedly failing every night during my allotted writing time. I just…couldn’t, mentally speaking. It sucked. I found myself seriously considering quitting for the first time in a long time – giving up the business name and packing it in.

Which is where one of the more significant mental shifts comes in, and I’ll talk about that more next week.

Financially, I’m not anywhere near where I wanted to be by now, but…medical expenses. Next year will be better. I also spent more than I should have on things like my rediscovered love of fishkeeping and plants, but I’m not going to feel guilty about that. This year wasn’t a good one, financially, and I’m just going to keep working on it and hopefully have better luck (and less medical issues) in the coming year.

All that said, this time last year, I was in a much worse place, constantly worrying about the near constant pain I was in, anxious about what would happen in the coming weeks, and feeling like a total failure for being unable to focus on anything productive and *yet again* having gone through another year without publishing anything.

This year, I’m in a far better place both physically and mentally, and I’m looking toward the next year with a healthy optimism and plans for making it much more productive. And even without any of the successes above, that would make this year a win.

Next week, my resolutions, goals and plans for 2024. I think I’m gonna need a (new) pair of shades. 😉

How was your year? Did you accomplish any goals you might have had, or learn something while missing them? What are your goals and/or plans for the next year?

Dec 27 2022

Year in Review Final – 2022 Resolutions Report

Author: Jamie DeBree

If you celebrate, I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend! And also that you’re not regretting the choice to eat far too much of…well, everything, like I am.

Ah, resolutions. I know some of you hate them, and a few of you know that they’re just another means to an end, and a way of making goals and then checking back to see how much progress you made. That’s what I use them for, anyways, and while I had a decent list this past year, these are the “Big Three” that I highlighted here at the beginning of the year:

– Write Daily: 10 words min.
– Read Daily: 1 piece of fiction or poetry min.
– Move Daily: Meaningful movement, something to make the body stronger or more flexible.

Did I complete all of these goals? No, but I did a lot more writing, a lot more reading, and a lot more moving than I did the year before. I wrote far more weekdays than I have in probably five years, I actually finished reading a few books and am in the middle of a couple right now, and I’ve definitely been moving more with an eye toward getting stronger and maintaining flexibility.

I mean, I was injured a lot this year too, so there’s that, but I made a conscious effort to keep moving and stretching, even while I was healing from my various injuries.

So this was a good year for reaching goals. I completed a little over half of my longer list, and on the goals I didn’t complete, I made progress toward more of them than not. That is absolutely success in my book, and I was pretty happy to look back and see that I’d mostly stayed focused and kept moving in the right direction.

More importantly, I learned a lot about how I work and how I can fit different things into my days, and what I want my priorities to be going forward. Overall, it’s been a good year. Busy, hectic, and quite painful here and there, but definitely good.

Next week, it’s a new set of resolutions to reach for, and a fresh start (even if just mentally).

Happy holidays, dear reader, and I hope you’re able to spend the first day of 2023 doing something you love (begin as you intend to continue)!

Dec 13 2022

Year in Review Part 1 – The Two Keys

Author: Jamie DeBree

Welcome to my year in review!

No, this isn’t an ad for one of my books, but the title is appropriate here and I like the cover, so I figured I’d use it. Read on for the relevance.

It’s been a crazy year. I’ve done a lot of trial and error on my day-to-day life, a lot of analytics and problem-solving, and a lot of reworking routines, habits and workflows. I wouldn’t say it’s been fun, exactly, but I think it’s important to “refactor” things every so often, and especially so when you’re trying to make room in the day-to-day for more projects.

Throughout this whole process, there were two things that kept coming back into focus as absolutely necessary if I wanted to get anything else done at all. Two “keys” that when turned, unlocked a bunch of otherwise unusable potential.

Those keys for me are Sleep and Exercise.

There were many years I could get by on the minimums for these – especially sleep. But just in the past year, year and a half, I’ve noticed that I need more sleep just to get through a day with a reasonable amount of brain power, and I need more exercise to keep my body functioning at the level I think it should function.

Both of these revelations have been highly disappointing, because neither is something I want to spend any more time than necessary doing. And ironically enough, this year in particular I’ve been more physically limited than normal due to a few injuries, which made staying active challenging, to say the least.

I currently need a minimum of five hours of sleep to be rested, and six is optimal. Unfortunately, as much as I try to prioritize sleep, I’m rarely successful. Part of that is reading right before bed. And then sometimes not stopping, because…reading is fun. But I have no other time to read, really, and if I don’t stop writing soon enough, then…things sort of bleed together. Something I’ll be working on more stridently in the new year.

As to exercise, I’m finally back to regular yoga sessions every weekday morning, walking during my break at work most afternoons, gym workouts twice per week and dog walks three times per week (weather permitting). It’s been touch and go all year, as I got injured twice badly enough to require a workout break, and I don’t gain muscle as fast as I used to. Add hormonal changes into the mix, and it’s been frustrating, but regardless, I feel better and have more energy when I’m regularly working out than not. And the actual exercise sessions give my brain a much-needed mental break from the near-constant problem-solving I do both for work and in my personal life (more on that in a future post).

I’ve noticed that when I sleep enough, it’s easier to make good decisions about everything, including exercise and my health. It’s also easier to exercise impulse control, which is something I’ve gotten rather lax on over the years (to my great detriment). Supposedly, it’s also easier to lose weight when you get enough sleep. I haven’t noticed that, but sadly, you also have to eat less and move more, so…I’m working on the eating part. W

That also ties into the impulse control – when I sleep enough, and do the workouts even when I don’t feel like it, I’m far more likely to make good choices when it comes to food and how much of it I need. It’s a noticeable difference from day to day, and more and more I find myself really wanting to be that person who sleeps enough, and exercises enough to have the “powers” of sharp focus and impulse control at my disposal.

Sleep and Exercise.

Those are arguably my two “life keys” going forward, and the two things I’m going to prioritize heavily going into the new year (and this month too, because there’s no reason to waste a month just because it’s December!).

Is there anything in your life that stood out for you this year as something you want to prioritize going forward?

Oct 05 2022

Rest and Recalibration

Author: Jamie DeBree

I’ve been thinking (again). But I’ve also been not-thinking, which is something I haven’t allowed myself to do much of in…well, quite awhile. Somewhere I fell into the whole “productivity-is-life” mindset, and when I did that, I prioritized Getting Things Done over everything else in life, because it was more important to be moving forward than to let myself rest.

But last week, I had an epiphany. I had to refrain from physical activity for awhile due to a twisted ankle/foot (still not fully healed, but getting there), and while I was sitting on the couch one night, it occurred to me that I never actually just sit and watch TV anymore. I always have something going at the same time, whether it’s scrolling FB or playing a game or making something…I rarely just sit and consume.

The problem with that is, my brain really never gets a break. I’m always solving a puzzle or problem, or being creative in some way, which means I’m always making my mind work, but never letting it recharge. I wondered if that might be why I have trouble getting that last bit of revising done late in the evenings, so I decided to experiment. For the next few nights, I forced myself to put down my phone, not grab my switch, leave my laptop in the office, and just *watch TV* for the one hour a night that I normally get to sit.

I’m sure you can guess how that went. It was harder than I thought it would be, and it felt incredibly weird not “doing” anything while I was sitting there. But I paid better attention to the show we were watching, and I also found that when I sat down later to edit, I had more energy and brainpower to work with, so I worked faster and better than when I’m constantly trying to be productive all evening.

I also forced myself to stop working by 12:15am every night, so I could read a chapter or two of fiction before bed. Consuming, rather than expending, and then getting to bed in time for 5.5 to 6 hours of sleep.

I found I’m at least half again more productive when I give myself some time to just consume during the evenings rather than trying to fill every waking moment with a “productive” activity. Which gave me a new mantra that I am repeating to myself every time I get that panicky “I’m-not-getting-anything-done” feeling:

I am not a robot.

I’m not a machine that can just keep going and going and going with the occasional reboot or update. As much as I’d love to be, I’m only just a human, which means if I push and push and push to get things done all day, everyday, I will eventually burn out, and probably age faster than I need to while I’m at it.

I need sleep, and time to just veg out without trying to solve a mystery or puzzle or problem. I need time to consume for a little bit each day, or I’ll cease being able to efficiently write,

So that’s my takeaway from last week, and part of the reason this post is so late. I’m forcing myself to go to bed on time (okay! Earlier! Sheesh!), to not look at my phone while I’m watching TV, and to give myself a couple of quick breaks during the day where my mind can just rest and not try to solve problems.

I’ll eventually get into a rhythm, and getting these posts done along with everything else will fit in somehow. But for now. I’m declaring this one done so I can get to bed.

What do you do to give yourself (and your mind, specifically) a break from all the “be-productive-ness” in life?

Jan 11 2022

Variety News: January 11, 2022

Author: Jamie DeBree

Photo of the Week

T-Rex, anyone? It’s a bit more “pinterest-y” than the tattoo artist I go to normally likes, but he’s graciously agreed to design a T-Rex and palms tattoo for me. Appointment set for Feb. 3rd! Something to look forward to.

General News
Is there any time of year more motivating than the first couple weeks of January? I got a lot done last week, which I feel pretty good about. I also did some light workouts, and found out I’m way, way more out of shape than I thought. I also figured out this weekend that it’s far too easy to overdo it with the shape I’m in. So, while I can’t really make my workouts any easier (I mean, seriously…I’d have to sit on the couch and do nothing), I can slow down and give myself ample rest time for muscle recovery. It’s really frustrating that my body can’t just “bounce back” like it once could. *sigh* But I will be in better shape at the end of the year, no matter how slow I have to go.

I got a surprising (in a good way) amount of writing and writing-related things done last week though, so it wasn’t all bad. And my eye is finally stable enough that I was able to order new lenses for my glasses, so that should make everything easier in terms of writing/working on publishing stuff.

I spent way too much time fighting with apps last week…my new organizing app and widget weren’t communicating like they should, and installing Spotify seemed to crater Stitcher, which is what I’d been listening to my favorite podcasts on. Stitcher still isn’t working, and the Spotify app isn’t recognizing my premium account so…we’ll see. I may just have to jettison them both and find something else, but I’ll give it a few more days and a little more thought.

Speaking of podcasts, it’s weird, but while I have trouble following fiction in audio form, I don’t have any trouble following non-fiction podcasts. I wonder why that is? Different requirements from the brain, perhaps. It’s odd, but I do enjoy the writing podcasts I listen to, so I’m glad I can process them better than audio fiction.

Currently Reading
On my kindle (app): Creative Self-Publishing by Orna A. Ross (non-fiction)
Print fiction: A Gambling Man by David Baldacci (thriller)

I finished The Lost Duke of Wyndham, which was a fun romantic romp, as Julia Quinn’s books always are. More to the point…I finished a book! It’s been so long since reading was a priority that it feels almost foreign to actually get to the end.

Video Highlight
Beckman’s Dog Training videos are some of my absolute favorites. He knows dogs, and his advice is always spot on. This is the one I watched this week. If you have dogs or just want a better understanding of canine behavior, do check him out:

Listening Highlight

Writing Excuses – httpss://writingexcuses.com/ (podcast)

I didn’t listen to much music this week, but the reason I was fighting with my streaming apps was because I really like to listen to this podcast while I’m making dog food on Sunday nights. I started at the very beginning a year or so ago, and I’m not quite halfway through season 16. Once I get caught up, I’ll listen one morning a week – it’s a weekly podcast.

If you’re a writer, I’d highly, highly recommend starting at the beginning and listening to everything. I can’t tell you how much I’ve learned about craft and philosophy and plotting and…well, so many things, even when the genre isn’t something I’d normally write in, I learn a ton from these 15 minute conversations. Do check it out. I think there are transcripts on the site if you’d rather read than listen (though I find it very entertaining and not at all difficult to pay attention to).

Jan 01 2022

Resolutions & Goals for 2022

Author: Jamie DeBree

It took me awhile to nail down my “big three” resolutions this year. The things I want to accomplish are very broad daily habit and routine changes, and in order to be a “resolution”, they have to be specific and measurable. I also have to have a solid, workable plan in place that will allow me to reach them before I can elevate a goal to “resolution” status. Setting myself up for success, so to speak.

What I ended up with (along with a longer list of smaller goals), is these:

Write Daily: 10 words minimum of fiction or poetry
Read Daily: 100 words minimum of fiction or poetry.
Move Daily: 5 minutes minimum of meaningful movement that makes the body stronger or more flexible

The minimums are intentionally low, because the amounts aren’t really the point. The point is to establish daily habits that can be reached even if everything in my life is going badly for some reason. The larger result will be to shape my days to include the things I feel are most important to my overall mental and physical well-being, eventually without having to put much thought into it at all.

I spent a lot of time last year lamenting the fact that I just don’t have time for everything I want to do. And that’s true – I’ll be cutting some things out of my schedule this year to ensure I can meet my goals, but the thing I really want to keep in mind this year is that nothing takes as long as I think it will. Instead of focusing on how much time I don’t have, I want to make good use of the time I do have. And that includes not wasting so much time worrying about whether I actually have time to do these things, because they’re already built into my daily schedule.

So that’s my plan for the new year. Write, read, and move in ways that will foster more of the same. I’ve been so frustrated that I haven’t been doing more of the things I love just because I either “don’t have time” or am just too lazy to start. I think that making these a priority, even on the weekends, will put me in a better, more positive frame of mind overall, and lower the stress level I’ve been dealing with for awhile now.

To faciliate the new plans and routines, I’ve been switching to a new planning system. My old one involves several different apps and planners, and the new one brings pretty much everything together into one system that allows me to see the bigger picture more clearly. I’ve been using ToDoist and Cozi, plus my own daily planning sheets on my tablet. I’m consolidating the ToDoist and Cozi information into the My Life Organized system, which is not only more comprehensive, but it’s a one-time buy rather than a subscription service. So win-win! I’m keeping the daily planning sheets on my reMarkable, because there’s something about writing out my general to-do list by hand that makes it stick in my brain better, but I did get some new templates to make that easier and more organized as well.

So – the resolutions are made, I’ve already rearranged my late-night schedule during the week to cut a few things out and open up time for both writing and reading, and my exercise times are scheduled as well.

I just need to figure out the weekend schedules, and then I’ll be well on my way to success.

One of my lesser goals this year is to get back to regular blogging, and I’m working on finding a regular slot in my schedule for that as well. So with any luck, regular blogging will resume next week. Not just here, but on my other neglected blogs as well.

Who knows? Maybe the pups will be able to keep up with their blog this year as well. We shall see!

Wishing you a 2022 filled with all the things that make you happy, and healthy ways to cope with those that don’t.

Dec 31 2021

Year in Review – December 31, 2021

Author: Jamie DeBree

If I were asked to sum up the last year in words, I’d have to simply say, “Well, that was interesting.” So much has happened, and so much hasn’t happened too…it’s an odd roller coaster ride I’m on right now, and I’d really love a break.

I had good momentum coming into this year. I had confidence and determination and I was ready to write and do all sorts of productive things. I did start out strong with the writing, and then…our Murphy dog crashed, kept going downhill, and finally died in mid-February. It always knocks me off-kilter to lose a pet, and he was one of my favorites, so it took a few weeks before we were ready to look at getting Athena another companion. And right when we started looking, Apollo needed a new home, so…voila! Puppy! And all the fun and very time-intensive requirements that entails.

Needless to say, while I’ve been picking at my writing here and there, I never quite got that momentum back due to all sorts of setbacks (including a couple of illnesses and some medical problems that had to be at least looked at, if not fixed). Clearly I need to work on that more, since good routines would have kept me writing for the most part.

The three main resolutions I picked at the start of last year were:

– 5.5 hours of sleep nightly
– 12 flash fiction stories for a collection published in Dec.
-Read a minimum of 12 books

The only one of these that I came close enough to accomplishing is the first one. While I did have a few four hour nights, for the most part I was very cognizant of getting to bed and getting enough sleep. And I could definitely tell the difference when I didn’t.

When I realized that my resolutions weren’t exactly reachable any longer, I re-prioritized. I moved those to the “goals” list, and brought three of the goals up to priority status:

– Get eye problem figured out and mitigated
– Get a checkup for back/hip pain
– Publish something (anything) to be available no later than Dec. 31st, 2021

I did better with this list, though whether I get to cross the last one off is debatable. I had eye surgery done on my right eye, and it’s still healing, but the doc is optimistic.

I got a checkup and then a CT scan, and then an emergency room visit for the pain in my hip (and lower right abdomen. Whether or not I have a smoldering appendix remains to be seen, but it isn’t any of the “super-bad” things it could have been, so I’m glad I got it checked. I do have some gastric issues that are requiring a bit of a diet change, so I’ll be figuring that out in the next year.

As to the last one, I didn’t publish anything publicly, but I did get a story written, edited, printed, and sent out with my Christmas cards (something I’ve been doing for three years now). I think in a pinch, we can call that published, so I’m claiming that just because it was a lot of work just to get that one story fit for others to read.

I did get four of the twelve flash stories drafted, plus the start of a fifth. So while I didn’t complete that project, I did get a good start on it, and I plan to finish it this year for sure. I just really, really need to re-establish a daily writing habit. That’s going to be key for me moving forward.

There are so many things I’d have liked to do this past year, and so many excuses as to why I didn’t do them. I played a lot of games, and spent a lot of time thinking things would take too much time instead of just doing them anyways (because tasks rarely take quite as long as it seems they will).

I spent too much money, spent too much time sick or dealing with physical problems, and focused far too much on what I couldn’t get done instead of what I could. And I get why I did that, but…it’s time to stop, re-evaluate, reorganize, and get to moving forward again, sans excuses.

How am I going to do that, you might be wondering?

Stay tuned for the resolution post tomorrow. I have resolutions and goals. I have a plan. I have tools that will help me remember that tasks rarely take as long as I think they will.

Hopefully those things and a healthy dose of optimism and determination will get me farther in 2022.

Jan 08 2021

Resolutions, Goals, and Rough Starts

Author: Jamie DeBree

I was planning to post this Monday (the 4th), which tells you how my year has started off so far. I’ve had all sorts of issues, both organizational and mental, so I’m off to a bit of a slow start. That said, the “mental” part of it was mostly trying to decide on my “big three” resolutions for the year. I wanted to choose things that would really positively impact my life over the long term, but were well within reach without straining too much.

Given those parameters, these are the three Resolutions I chose:

– Get 5.5 hours of sleep daily
– Write 12 flash fiction pieces and publish as a collection in December
– Read a minimum of 12 books this year.

The first and third will take some time to…well, set aside the time on a regular basis. Routines need to be redone, and honestly, I’d prefer six hours of sleep, but I made the resolution for what I thought was actually doable. Getting enough sleep is really the resolution that will have the most impact on everything else I want to do, simply because when I’m rested, I make better decisions, I manage time more wisely, and I perform better no matter what I’m doing or trying to do. Sleep is the cornerstone of everything in life, but it’s also the one thing I’m most willing to give up when I want to do something else. Sleep is boring and feels ultimately unproductive. But it’s vital, and I need to give it much higher priority than I do.

I haven’t been making time for reading at all – whenever I get a quiet moment, I’m generally either decompressing or writing. Quiet moments are unfortunately hard to come by. But I have a ton of books I really do want to read, and I just need to set aside time to do that. I want to make it a priority. So I shall.

As for writing…man, I feel like I’ve been drifting in this story wasteland/dreamscape for the last several years. I lost confidence, I lost ambition, and while I’ve been writing all this time, I haven’t bothered to publish anything in way too long. I knew I needed to learn and grow in order to gain confidence, but a lot of writing “instruction” tells you what to do, but not exactly how to execute it. This leaves people like me, who need things broken down to base elements in order to learn, floundering.

But I recently took a chance on a writing class called Depth in Writing by Dean Wesley Smith, and he broke things down in such a way that I got it. And my writing improved dramatically in a short time – noticeable even to myself. That was a huge confidence boost, and I bought several more of his online classes to take throughout this year.

Sometimes with learning, it’s not the subject matter so much, but the best match in teaching styles and learning styles.

So now that I have some confidence back, I need to establish a writing workflow that’s conducive to daily progress. I also need to come up with some deadlines, so that those twelve short stories aren’t the only things I work on all year. They need to be strictly flash fiction (1k words max) so I have time to work on the longer novels and short stories I’d really like to publish this year.

In addition to these “big three” resolutions, I also have some other goals I’d like to work towards. Things like cleaning my makeup brushes more often, and losing ten pounds, and keeping my kitchen sinks cleaned out better. And definitely writing and publishing more books.

I’ve also decided to do a journaling project of sorts. I bought myself two journals, one small, and one a more comfortable writing size, though still not too big. The small one is for a word-of-the-day. Instead of picking one word for the whole year, I’m picking one word for the day, and writing it down in the small journal each night. No commentary, no explanation, just the day’s date, and the word. It takes very little time at all (though I’ll admit I have not hit everyday just yet – creating new routines takes time), and at the end of the week every Sunday, I’ll go back and grab all the words for that particular week and put them in the larger journal. I might write a story, I might write an entry that includes them, I might just right down the list of words and close the book. I think it will be interesting to follow my daily whims and moods, and see what becomes of the practice at the end of each week.

So that’s the plan for the year so far. Three big resolutions to sleep, write, and read, some smaller goals that I’ll get to if I get to, and a word of the day journaling project.

I know we’re starting out on a bumpy note, but I have a feeling it’s going to be a very clarifying year overall. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Do you make resolutions or goals? Or are you just winging it and hoping for the best? Either way, I wish you luck, good fortune and good health.

Aug 10 2020

A Kick in the Head

Author: Jamie DeBree

Things that have happened since I last posted:

– I’ve established a daily writing habit before work (I know, I’m as surprised as anyone to be writing productively in the *morning*)
– I have a fairly extensive mask wardrobe
– Two new tote bags that are lighter than my leather bag was, and I think it’s affecting my shoulder/neck issues for the better
– I’ve actually finished a draft, and started a new one
– I’ve been reading before bed again – finished two books and am working on another

I’ve written a bunch of posts since the “Toast” one, and deemed all of them unfit for whatever reason. Mostly because I felt like posting about mundane stuff might appear tone deaf or inappropriate given the state of things and all the civil unrest. I’ve been “escaping” in Animal Crossing and walking the dogs in the evenings, and generally just staying in my own little work/life “bubble”. Think of that what you will. It’s how I’ve been dealing.

But it’s time to get moving again, and my “kick in the head” came from a rather unexpected invitation by our local bookstore to do a virtual author interview. I agreed, and in prepping for the experience, I realized something important about my writing and myself that made me want to get out of my fog and back into productivity in my writing life (work life has been incredibly productive all year, but also incredibly draining, which hasn’t helped the writing life thing).

The thing I needed most was confidence. I got that – just a little shot, and it’s enough, I think, to get me moving again.

My main focus this week is figuring out the time aspect. I need time to update covers, update social media pages, update blogs, and do various publishing & maintenance tasks. But more than anything, I need time to edit and revise. I have several drafts in the edit/revise phase, and they’re “stuck” there due to my lack of making time to work on them. I could release all of those drafts as finished manuscripts within the next six months if I could just set aside some time for “marking up” and time for “typing in”.

So, that’s my goal for the week. Find two 20-minute time slots that can be “set” for each weekday and dedicated for mark-ups and type-ins. It’s really not all that easy, because I need quiet and headspace for those time slots. But, I’m determined. There has to be a way.

If I can do that early enough in the week, then my secondary goal is to set aside one more time slot for writing blog posts. Will I be successful?

You’ll find out next week!

Writer | DBA | Dog Wrangler