Last week…

• I worked on two editing projects for two other authors. I’m getting close to The End!
• I published and promoted the release of Malcolm!

This next week will be insane for work and play!

• I must write the opening chapters of my next book, What Happens in Bozeman…  
• I need to complete two editing jobs! Then begin two more.
• I’d like to read another five to ten stories for my next anthology, Secret Identities.
• I begin the #The100DayProject, where I’ll be producing one piece of art a day.

Just shoot me now.

Open Contests

1. Flashback: Bad Moon Rising (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Coming Next Tuesday — Pre-order Malcolm Now! (Contest & Excerpt) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Getting ready for Valentine’s Day! — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
4. MALCOLM releases tonight, but let’s not forget those who came before him… (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
5. Gabbi Grey: The Tropiest of Tropes (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Show me what you made… (Contest) — TWO PRIZES! Win something made by me/Win a FREE book!
7. Cameron Allie: What’s happening in my world… (2 FREE Reads + Excerpt!) — EVERYONE! Two FREE reads!
8. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: What I want for dinner tonight! — Win an Amazon gift card!

Last week…

• I finished writing, formatted, and uploaded Malcolm to KDP! Yippee! Can’t wait for you to read it!
• I worked on two editing projects for two other authors. I’m not nearly done with either!
• I only read a handful of the stories submitted for my next anthology, Secret Identities.

This next week looks insane for work and play!

• Malcolm releases on Tuesday! I have to promo it—ads, blog, newsletter. That’s all work you don’t see!
• I must write the opening chapters of my next book, What Happens in Bozeman…  
• I need to complete two editing jobs!
• I’d like to read another five to ten stories for my next anthology, Secret Identities.

That’s enough, right? Ha! I also have Art Guild responsibilities, like getting the word out about our membership drive, the drop-off for a special exhibit we’re sponsoring at the center, and I have a class to teach on working with Gelli plates on Thursday! So, yes, I have a crazy-busy week ahead of me.

Open Contests

1. Happy Groundhog Day! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Tell me what’s happening here… — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. My Perfect Day (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
4. Word Search: Random Malcolm Things & an Excerpt! (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Send a Card to a Friend Day! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win a hand painted card!
6. Flashback: Bad Moon Rising (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
7. Coming Next Tuesday — Pre-order Malcolm Now! (Contest & Excerpt) — Win an Amazon gift card!
8. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Getting ready for Valentine’s Day! — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Diane Sallans!
*~*~*

December

 

1. I continued to work on Malcolm (Book #10 of Montana Bounty Hunters: Dead Horse, MT).
2. I completed 5 editing projects for other authors in December.
3. I didn’t write a lot in December, between the craft fair and getting ready for the holiday/having kids underfoot, but I don’t care. It was a fun month!

Health-related:

1. I have been concentrating on drinking more water, plus, I added drinking water mixed with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar twice a day to improve my liver health. It’s weird, but after the first couple of times of drinking it while wrinkling my nose, I actually like it.
2. I’ve managed to keep my blood pressure down to 135-155, despite the holiday excesses.

Happiness-related: 

1. I finished some last items for the Christmas craft fair and participated in early December. It was so much fun!
2. Here are some examples of things I completed before the fair. And yes, I painted tags for potholder sets. 🙂

January

For work-related, I plan:

1. To complete writing Malcolm, my next Montana Bounty Hunters book and publish it!
2. To begin work on What Happens in Bozeman, my next We are Dead Horse, MT, book!
3. To complete 4 editing projects in January!

For health related, I plan:

1. To start back on my Weight Watchers diet, because it’s time to get serious!
2. To continue to reduce salt, processed food, and incorporate foods good for blood pressure (spinach, broccoli, bananas) and my liver (apple cider vinegar, flax seeds, sunflower seeds).
3. To pay attention to my daily steps, trips up and down the stairs, and to incorporate some chair exercises and more walking.
4. To do more housework because my art room isn’t finished! Cleaning is exercise, too.

For happiness-related, I plan: 

1. To participate in the Gel Print January challenge where I’ll be making painted pages for collaging—at least one every day!
2. To assume the presidency of the local art guild, much as I don’t want to, but someone’s got to keep the organization going!

Contest

Comment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in January…
Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Beverly!
*~*~*

Today, in between working on my book and an editing job, I’m going to be working on my Mind Map for 2024.

What is a mind map? It’s a terrific brainstorming tool for all sorts of things—book plots, vacation plans, grocery lists… I know, I get obsessive about organizing tools! I actually used to teach an online class in mind mapping that was a leadup to the “Write 50 Books a Year” workshop my sister and I developed and taught online. The picture above is the result of my 2015 class.

It’s way too busy for me now. My chart will start with a central hub for 2024 Goals but won’t be writing-consumed this year. I’m adding things that make me happy—like family goals and artistic goals. Maybe by the end, it will be just as cluttered as this one was.

I already have my large piece of watercolor paper ready with a few hubs written in. When I finish, I’ll add colored pencil or paint pen embellishments so I can stand to look at it. But it will be something I go back to when I lay out my annual work plan and calendar.

I kind of miss teaching the class because it made me think farther ahead then the final week of the year to get my plans in order, but hey, I’m doing it now. It’s never too late!

I love facing a New Year. It’s a chance to start over again. Twelve months of accomplishment are on the horizon. It’s new territory. What will the year bring? Am I ready for it?

What about you? Do you physically write down your goals or resolutions? Does your planning consist of a simple list or an elaborate spreadsheet?

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon GC, tell me.

This doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to do something foolish this week. Let’s study the card. The god displayed here is kind of easy to guess. He’s wearing a crown of grape leaves and grapes. He has tiny horns on his head. So, he’s Dionysus, the god of so many fun things: wine, parties, insanity, theater, and more. See the eagle sitting on the branch above him? It’s likely his dad, Zeus, making sure young Dionysus doesn’t do something really stupid. There’s a cave behind him and the sun is rising in the background, so I’m assuming he was partying all night and is just coming out. Is he drunk and ready to fall? He looks too merry. I think he intends to jump.

What on earth does this mean for me? There’s a hint of impulsiveness and high spirits here. So, that falls in line with the plans for the week. The kids only have half a week of school, so they’ll be underfoot creating chaos. We’ll be cooking meals together. The adults’ Christmas (the kids give us gifts before Christmas so we can concentrate on Santa and their gifts on Christmas Day) will be sometime this coming weekend because of my SIL’s shift with the PD. So, there will definitely be some celebrating going on. I envision movie nights, fun dinners, game nights, etc. We’re a fun-loving crowd. What does this mean for work for me? I likely have to plan to get it done in the early hours of the day, before all my little chaos agents rise.

Open Contests

1. Today is Letter Writing Day! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win a FREE book!
2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: When winter comes… — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Favorite Christmas/Winter Holiday Movie Quote! (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Saturday Puzzle-Contest — More Christmas Cheer — Win an Amazon gift card!

Well, this is an interesting card to begin my planning for the week. I had to check the book, The Mythic Tarot, to see which hero is depicted here, because I didn’t recognize the story. This is Bellerophon. He was an exuberant, boastful, brave young man. His hijinks caused the death of his brother, and he fled his home to another kingdom, where the queen there became enamored with him. The king there didn’t like that, so he set before him an impossible task—kill the chimera. He gets an assist from a seer who says he’s going to need Pegasus to do this, and Athena gives him a golden bridle to help him capture and ride Pegasus. He kills the chimera, but then gets so pumped up on how great he is that he decides to fly Pegasus to Mount Olympus to boast to the gods. Zeus isn’t impressed, sends a gadfly to bite Pegasus, and Pegasus bucks Bellerophon off his back and to his death. So, pride certainly wenteth before his fall.

What does this mean for me? Hmmm. I’m seeing a big blue sky, a triumphant journey, a conquered foe… Could this mean that my release this week, Little Green Dreams, will release with glorious expectations, only to find me bucked off my high when it crashes and burns? We’ll see.

Open Contests

1. November into December (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Delilah’s Daily Advent! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Saturday Puzzle-Contest! — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Word Search: Types of Christmas Tree Ornaments (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Krampusnacht & Saint Nicholas Day (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
6. Today is Letter Writing Day! (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
7. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: When winter comes… — Win an Amazon gift card!

Just a quick note before I start… Thanks to everyone posting on Facebook as part of the Daily Advent Countdown! It’s already been fun, and something I think I’ll do every year. I really like thinking up ways to play & celebrate online! On to my Sunday, pre-planning tarot card pull…

I’ve had this guy before. It’s Daedalus. You might know him as the father of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and melted his wax-and-feathers wings. Daedalus was a very inventive and prosperous man, who made things for kings. Here, he’s being a bit of a butt. Note the grapes framing the picture. Grapes always mean “plenty.” His wealth is cemented by the four golden pentacles he holds tightly in his arms. He’s not letting anyone steal those from him. But look at his eyes. He’s not happy, despite the fact he has so much. He’s watching his nephew Talos at the workbench, and that’s envy on his face. You see, he can already tell that Talos will be a better artisan than he is. He’s jealous!

So, what does this mean for me? It’s weird to pull this card now. I’m not paying any attention to any other person who’s doing better than me. I’m not jealous of anyone. Is the card telling me not to hoard my talents? Maybe…it’s telling me to “spend” my gifts. I’ll have to think about this one.

What does The Mythic Tarot book tell me? It says there may be a “stagnation of creative energy” if I “hold too tightly to things which are bound up with one’s sense of self-value.”

Open Contests

1. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Flea Market Treasure — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Gabbi Grey: A Sweet Story (Contest) —  This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Upcoming Releases & a Local Legend (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Anna T.S./Michal Scott: Frances Watkins Harper – A Woman’s Reach Must Exceed Her Grasp (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. November into December (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Delilah’s Daily Advent! (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
7. Saturday Puzzle-Contest! — Win an Amazon gift card!