I know all jobs are stressful. We share many of the same stresses: family obligations, co-workers who drive us nuts (maybe not so much for me since I’m SELF-employed), the need to produce-produce-produce!
I haven’t been sleeping well. Lots of exciting things are maybe going to happen, and I can’t settle down until all the decisions are made and the contracts signed. And no, I’m not going to talk about what in particular has me so excited, because I don’t want to jinx it!
I have had several little excitements lately. Ones I can talk about.
1) The contract is signed for the Smokin’ Hot Firemen anthology I will edit for Cleis! And I already have 4 submissions!
2) I received acceptances for short stories I submitted to various collections: “The Long Ride Home” for Duty and Desire: Military Erotic Romance (Cleis Press); “Marmalade” for Girls, Girls Girls (Mischief); and “Soldier Girls” for Wild Girls, Wild Nights (Cleis Press).
3) We moved my daughter into the house across the road. Now, it’s just the boxes (which she and hubby can handle).
4) The dog my daughter rescued from the median in the highway gave birth to 9 healthy puppies.
All those things make me happy (maybe not the 9 puppies, so much! Why couldn’t it have been a manageable 4?), but there’s a ton of work I’m trying to get off my plate in case the more exciting things do happen. I finished the rough draft for Two Wild for Teacher yesterday. I’ll run through it a couple of times today, then ship it to my editor. She’ll be relieved. The book’s coming out next month! Then I dive straight into the sequel to Five Ways ‘Til Sunday. I believe it will be released in July, so I don’t dare drag my feet!
So, back to the not sleeping thing…
I have pills I could take, but I don’t like how I feel in the morning. The pool cooled off, so I can’t get my exercise there. I have to figure out a way to turn off my computer earlier in the evening and forget about Facebook, Twitter, and whatever else is happening in the blogosphere, just to let my mind rest. But you know, when things are hopping like this, my muses go haywire. Too many ideas screaming at me to write.
When you’re wired, what do you do to relax and fall asleep?
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Well….how about i give u all the puppies to make you smile!!! Lol
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Lol, I’ve been going through the same thing recently — no sleep. I work at home too and I have this tiny love seat in my office and there were four days last week in which I didn’t even leave my office to go sleep in my bedroom. I just took naps on my sofa and then went back to work. I really can’t help you out with any tips, because I don’t have any! If you hear of any that work from your other readers, be sure to pass them along, lol.
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Wow, your life is BUSY! I’m amazed you’re as prolific as you are. You’re such an inspiration. 🙂 Best of luck with all you have going on!
And double wow on the 9 puppies! I didn’t even realize dogs gave birth to litters that big, LOL. I thought 6 was about the limit. So nice that your daughter saved the momma dog. 🙂
And yay on the firemen submissions! I so want to write something to submit for that antho. Now if I can only find the time…
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I know what you mean. When I have soooo many things on my plate, I struggle to focus on one and get it done. But having a sprinting partner really helps….hint….hint!
Got my fingers crossed for all the fun things to come your way. Love ya, sis!
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LOL it sounds crazy but I play Bejeweled Blitz on my iTouch. Knocks me out in no time flat. If I read, I’ll stay up to finish the book. If I write, I’ll stay up to finish the chapter. So… I play a mindless game that puts me to bed.
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I’m fortunate to rarely experience sleepless nights. But I have a fairly strict regime of going into my bedroom every night at 9pm, get ready for bed, and reading. I think my body like that regime because I nearly always fall asleep within an hour of hitting the bed.
My husband isn’t so fortunate. 🙁 But he doesn’t have a regime either. When a sleep study was performed about three years ago, he did learn that a regime, especially going to bed at the same time every night, was critically important to sleeping. Even more important was getting up at the same time each morning regardless of how much sleep he had (or didn’t have!). Obviously he’s not following this advice…but when he did it was very helpful.
This would be tough for a writer, but you might see if you can fit a sleeping regime into your lifestyle.
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Not sleeping is a tough one and I’m one that sometimes falls into that. Also if I don’t get any writing done for awhile the ideas in my head start to overwhelm me and that is all I can think about. I solved that problem by when I can’t get the stories written I like to at least put my thoughts down on paper in the form of notes. Also my sister got me some supplement called melatonin which is not a sleeping pill and it don’t make you sleep it just puts back what your body needs. Getting into a routine also helps me relax and you can try a nice hot bath with some lavender scented soap and or candles. Sometime I even puts some music on really low to help me make myself relax. Now it sure can’t be some that makes you want to jump up and dance.
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That is so wonderful of your daughter to rescue the doggie and her pups. It speaks volumes about what a fine job you did raising her, Delilah.
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Wat do I do when I can’t fall asleep? TV!! What else. 😆
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You mean apart from alcohol? I find watching a favourite movie on DVD is very relaxing. I don’t have to concentrate because of the familiarity, I just relax & enjoy.
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I have a friend who has trouble sleeping–mainly staying asleep, I think. She runs to exhaust her body so that maybe her brain will shut off for a few hours ;p If I can’t sleep, sometimes I just get up and work on something for a while until I feel more sleepy. Others recommend getting up and making a list of everything on your mind–kind of doing a brain dump so that you can get on with the business of sleeping…
You sure have quite a bit on your plate, DD–take care of yourself!!!
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I have a story appearing in Wild Girls, Wild Nights too, and now I’m doubly excited because I’ve been dying to read Soldier Girls since you first mentioned it. What a sexy title!! 😀
(9 puppies?? As a cat-person, I am horrified on your behalf *teasing grin*)
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Thanks, ladies, for all your very sound advice!
M. Marie ! Congrats on Wild Girls! I can’t wait to see what you did as well!
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I have the same trouble. I started taking melatonin also. And a DVD that I have watched over and over again does the trick every time.