Each year in January, Max Regan hosts two weekends of writing intensives. These four days, with their small and large group sessions, create an opportunity to begin the year focused on your work as a writer. To benefit from the opportunities of these weekends, you need to put aside other things that call your attention and put your identity as a writer up front and center.
The first of the intensives found me with a writing space that was completely topsy-turvy. My mom had all our rugs cleaned and to do so they had to move all my things about and unplug my stuff. They supposedly put everything back ‘where it was,’ but in reality they just moved the heavy objects to more or less the general area of the room where they thought they had originally been. Needless to say, it was a hot mess.
So the first session, I took time to re-organize the writing space. I also had the opportunity to share my conundrum. I have one book that needs minor tweaks and is then ready to head out to copyediting — War Rising. I have another book with a significant amount of already written chapters and a clear outline toward finishing — Gortive Offensive. I also have Love’s Flame, the second book in The Dragon and His Kitten Series outlined and needing a first draft. So what should I do first?
Well, as I went through the first weekend, I made some strategic decisions. War Rising, book 2 of Thyrein’s Galactic Wall series, was the one that needed to be on my desk first. Clearly, the gap between book 1, United Vidden, and this one has been too long, even though fans of the universe got a chance to learn about Nichamir and Denipia in Love’s Call last year. That book is not the follow up of United Vidden and so War Rising is essential to move forward.
So, when the second intensive weekend came along, in spite of the fact that I had not finished actually re-organizing ALL the space of the room, I decided to use the sitting area section that was open and available and begin the final read through of War Rising. I also had the opportunity to work various short stories in the groups and place them into contests. I even submitted some poetry, though I don’t really think my poetry is that great. But then if you don’t submit, the answer is always no. Maybe I’ll get a yes on some of this?
Anyway, this month is all about getting War Rising ready to go to copy edits. By the end of the second intensive, I was half way through the novel. Last weekend, I had to stop and put away the Christmas decor before my HOA sent us a lovely letter about it. I’m committed to pushing this book out to the next phase of production by end of January, so this weekend is the final push. Wish me luck!
Well, we finally are on holiday. I rather like the school calendar CyFair has more than the one we used in Alief. We let out for the winter break on Thursday but we don’t return to work until Monday, January 8th. It’s nice having those days post New Year’s to get things done rather than extra days during the hectic pre-Christmas time.
The one bad thing about the calendar is that we don’t get a day of work before the kids arrive. January 8 is the first day back for everyone. So there’s no time to be in our rooms and prepare. The school will be open on Friday January 5th and I will go early and do a morning of cleaning out the old and being ready for the new.
Plus, now that I have a better handle on the time I need for school work, I can plan the time allotments for Inklings, Houston Writers Guild, and my own writing time much more realistically. It has been hit or miss with that this semester and it has added stress as I toggle from one thing to another in a disjointed manner. I hope to start 2024 with a more streamlined agenda — you guys remember my post about how I do my time allotments, right?
This will be our final blog post for the year. Ellen, Rachel and I will be back the first week in January. Hope everyone’s holidays are full of love and laughter. See you in 2024!