When I’m working in my office I generally have the television on. It’s a rather bad habit I started as a teenager. I’m not really watching it’s simply background noise. The other day I happened to notice The Thirteenth Warrior was on. It’s an interesting movie based on the book Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton. It stars Antonio Banderas as an Arab assisting a company of Norseman in stopping an ancient evil plaguing a Norse village. In one scene the warriors go out in search of the enemy and Banderas’ character asks “Have we anything resembling a plan?” I’d like to put that saying on my phone and computer as an audio reminder to make a daily plan.
Like most people, I have a very busy life. I have a full-time day job, a family, a large garden, pets, children, grandchildren, and writing deadlines. The only way I can keep it together and meet all my obligations is to plan.
I plan out my meals a week in advance. This way I know when to take out the frozen meat or when to do any other preparation that the meal requires. It also helps when I go to the store. I know what we are eating and I’ve checked my cupboards before I leave so I only buy what I need and don’t waste time or money.
For my garden, I begin planning in the fall. This way I know what I’m going to grow next year so I can order all my seeds ahead of time. Since I do most of my own starter plants I can set up a schedule for planting the seeds so I have seedlings ready to go into the ground as soon as the weather permits.
When I work on a story I do the same thing and start with a plan. I make character sheets for my main and secondary characters, an outline of what the story is about, and a list of any research I need to do. I find I can write much faster this way and don’t end up running off on a tangent.
Like I said, I try to plan. It doesn’t always work, but when things go wrong I have some sort of structure so the wheels don’t completely come off the wagon.
Do you try to make a plan?
Augustina Van Hoven
Proving Love is Strange
THE KISS OF A ROSE – Now available
www.augustinavanhoven.com
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Twitter: @augustinavhoven
A DISTANT PAST
In 1882, Rose Van Buren loved the wrong man and paid for it with her life. Now, more than a century later, the angel Gabriel has granted her another shot at living. In exchange, she must convince a smart, handsome, up-and-coming lawyer to set aside his lofty ambitions.
A FUTURE PRESENT
Stephen Winship is headed straight for the governor’s chair. He has a brilliant career, solid allies, and a seemingly perfect girlfriend. But night after night he finds himself dreaming of a heavenly beauty, a luminous but long-dead girl. Like some altered Ghost of Christmas Past, she shows him her own tragic tale in order to “save him.” And he’s beginning to see Rose is risking her heart as much as baring her soul. Yet falling for her will cost him everything—and open him up to a happiness he never imagined.
The second book in the series, THE THORN OF A ROSE, is coming out this fall
