Category: Deadlines

Posted in Deadlines, First Drafts

Writing: The Gift of Little Pieces

Posted on by beckylevine

I may have mentioned before that July seems to be a month of (wonderful) deadlines, and August is setting itself up to be that way. It would be easy, but depressing, to just let my fiction go and give into the panic worry that maybe there isn’t enough time for it all.

I’m trying to respond to that temptation with one word: Nonsense!

Not nonsense as in I’m Wonder Woman (whose new costume, I LOVE, btw!) and being able to do it all. But nonsense as in reminding myself that if I just take that hour of panic worry that I can easily use up in a single day, and give it to my fiction, well, hey, look: presto-magico…progress! And no depression. 🙂

And-as usual-I’m making a discovery along the way. This first draft I’m working on has its own moments of panic (yes, this time, PANIC) about where I’m going and how much I don’t know and how much I will have to weave together even when I DO know it and, oh, I could go on and on…. But guess what? The panic drops when I’m just working in little bits of time and pages.

I take one morning to plot out a new scene. All sorts of questions rise up to haunt me–“Oh, yeah, and where is THIS going to lead?” “You DO know this means you’ll be rereading those books about fancy-schmancy department stores?” “You’ve decided to write about a sabbath dinner after all, because…why?!”

Well, guess what? All I have to do that morning is plot that one scene. That evening, or the next morning, I can write it…or half of it. That afternoon, read just one chapter on department stores, for now. The next morning, plot that scene. And so on. When I’m not looking at hours of plotting and writing–all in one fell swoop–when there’s only so much time (and, oh, yes, panic) I can give to my fiction that day, it’s…easier.

Maybe it’s not the best way to immerse myself in the story, maybe it’s not the best way to get hundreds and thousands of fiction words onto the page. On the other hand, maybe it’s exactly how I need to be doing it this month.

Do you work best in small chunks or in long, dedicated hours? Are there times when one style works better for you than the other?

Have a wonderful writing week!

Posted in Deadlines, Getting Organized, Page Proofs

Deadlines, Revisited

Posted on by beckylevine

Way back here, almost a year ago, when I was just getting started with The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide, I posted about how I seriously dislike deadlines.

Boy, that feels a long time ago.

Since, then I’ve met several deadlines, and all of them have felt pretty good. Probably because, as I wrote more of the book, as my critique group did their wonderful slicing and dicing, and as the book started taking it’s true, whole form, the nervousness I was feeling  about it died down. Which is good.

I didn’t expect, though, to find myself actually enjoying a deadline.

This week, I’ve been working on page proofs. In the “old” days, this would have meant the publisher mailing me (as in stuff envelope, apply stamps, drop in mail slot) the physical proofs, that I would have read through with red pen in hand.

Nope. My editor emailed me a PDF of the pages, with instructions for basically typing of a list of things I find that may need to be fixed. Because I can be slightly anal, I set up a table for this–just one column for the page number and another for “Change this to this.” (All dependent on my editor’s blessing, of course!)

This is what I’m doing for the next few days. This is all I’m doing.

And, you know, it’s kind of relaxing.

There’s something peaceful, for a small chunk of time, about having one project–one project only–asking for my attention. I’m not working on anything else, because this deadline takes priority. I take my laptop over to the comfy couch, get my tea, put the Internet on Pandora (wondering WHY The Rolling Stones are showing up on my Van Morrison station), and I read. I read, then stop, make a note, and read some more.

Soothing.

And, okay, it doesn’t hurt that I”m feeling a huge sense of relief and delight that–yes, many drafts after that first deadline–I’m still loving this book.

How do you feel about deadlines? What’s your favorite way to dig into the work that has to be done?

Posted in Deadlines

Deadlines–Big & Small

Posted on by beckylevine

I met a deadline yesterday. I sent a chunk of chapters, the first big set from The Critiquer’s Survival Guide, off to my own critique group. (Yes, I really do practice what I preach!) I had checked with them ahead of time and found out they were okay with reading these pages over the T’giving holiday. I knew I wouldn’t get much writing done myself, with traveling and school being out, so this was great news. I told them I’d get them the files by Tuesday noon.

But…yesterday was Sunday.

Yep. I HATE deadlines. I have, ever since college, when I found out how much I stressed when papers were due or tests were looming. Way back then, I had friends who thrived on those last-minute all-nighters; they just sent me into a world of headaches and sore stomachs. So I learned a way to deal with those deadlines.

I set my own. Early. After the first year of school, I had every paper finished at least 24 hours ahead of time, and studied hard enough for tests to be able to put the books away just when a lot of other kids were pulling theirs out.

I still use this trick. Sure I still end up running on adrenaline for a while. I still have to push myself to add more hours, stick with it, get the work done. It’s just a mind game I play with myself. Except…this mind game has some real pluses.

Here’s what happens when I set (and meet) my own deadlines:

  • I end up with free time. There’s always another project waiting, more work to be done. If you don’t finish until the last minute, you often have no choice but to leap right back into the fray.
  • I use this free time to reward myself. Remember free2cr8’s Rewardathon Box? Today, I spent extra time on the treadmill, then relaxed with a book for a while. I’m sitting quietly in a quiet house, sipping my tea. I’ll probably do the dishes SOMETIME today, but I’m not rushing there, I can tell you that. And I won’t have to rush when I DO get to them.
  • I get to recharge. As much as we love writing, we can’t do it day in and day out without a breather. At least I can’t. Not for hours at a time. We have to let our finger, eyes, and brains relax. For a little bit.
  • I get to look at my project from a little further out. I know where I’m going next on this book, but I need some time to let it simmer. If I had to jump back in NOW, I’d write garbage and spend more time deleting paragraphs than producing them. I barely have to think about what’s coming; I just have to NOT think about what’s just gone. For a day. My brain will do the rest.

The Tuesday deadline was self-imposed, but it was real. If I didn’t get the files finished by then, it wouldn’t happen until after Thanksgiving. And the big deadline for this book doesn’t really leave me that kind of leeway. So, yes, Tuesday counted. And if I’d waited for them, I’d have found myself clicking Send, then spinning in a quick whirlwind, doing a complete 180 and spiraling instantly into laundry, packing, cooking, and cleaning for the holiday.

No break. No reward.

If you’re writing fiction, this technique works, too. You may or may not have an official deadline for a novel, for a draft, but you can set them up for yourselves. Look ahead on the calendar. What’s coming–say, in December. What do you want to have done by the time school lets out, or its time to wrap presents for whichever holiday you might celebrate? Now–what if you push that deadline back, just a day or two? You’ll have quiet time, for yourself, before those wonderful children are with you 24/7. You’ll have time to finish that book you’ve been reading, time to putter around the house with your music on, time to let your brain chill.

And something that can be done in twenty-one days can, I very much believe, be done in nineteen.

Like I said, it’s a mind game. And I know that there are times when the game is not possible–when the workload is too big and the timeline is too short.

But if you get a chance, give the game a try. Remember, you’re the one making the rules.

How do you handle deadlines, official or otherwise? What tricks do you play on your brain to make it happen?