Welcome to The Monday Page 2009. This section of the blog is for posting your weekly goals and progress. The point of this page is to help you focus at the beginning of each week and set a target to meet. Writing your goals down and posting them publicly creates a sense of accountability that for some of us is more effective than mulling our ambitions over internally.
The comments on this page are to be kept short and sweet (“Just the facts, Ma’am.”) Our main blog page is the place to talk process and share ideas and challenges.
If it isn’t Monday and you’d like to post your goals, please do. We have a rolling admissions policy 
And for your first comment, don’t worry about last week’s goal (unless you had one). Here’s what to post as a comment:
1. Your name and the date
2. Last week’s goal (page count, time quota, chapter or section milestone, etc.)
3. Last week’s outcome (achieved goal, didn’t achieve goal, partially achieved goal)
4. This week’s goal (page count, time quota, chapter or section milestone, etc.)
5. Schedule for accomplishing this week’s goal (can be anything from “in ten minute stretches when my kids allow” or “between 10:00 and noon every day”–whatever is realistic)
Jump on in!
[Photo credit SBhoy]
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I’m two weeks late in setting up a new page for 2009 — but Cathy was right, we need one. So jump on over here, everyone! If anyone wants to re-post their 2009 entries on this page, go ahead — I will fix the timestamp to match your original post, and then delete it from the 2008 page.
1/13/09
Last week’s goal: Keep plowing along on the massive to-do list, without losing sight of the present moment. Will be moving in exactly 30 days….at which point I will have an office — not just an office, a library — I’ll be sharing with my husband when he’s home, but most of the time it will be my domain. Wow.
Outcome: Stress + with unusually bad sleep deprivation = no creativity. I did take a few photographs but that’s about it.
This week’s goal: Even though I’m moving, I’d like to take at least 20 minutes of every day to do something that I *want* to do. I realize that in general there are too many times where I spend an entire day doing things I *have* to do — working and taking care of everyone else. I need to make sure that my days and evenings aren’t entirely devoted to the to-do list. I’m starting to get seriously burnt out. Maybe I’m too overloaded to be seriously creative right now, but I can do a little something every day, and take a few moments to read a book.
thanks. m! sorry if i pressured. i know you have A LOT going on right now.
cathy1.19.2008
last week’s goals: find the groove again in the manuscript. blog contest, yoga. update van sticker after repairs, so i don’t drive illegally. make more contacts in area to net tutoring gigs, etc. ‘…and they’ll tell 2 friends and so on…’ as it’s report card time. paper org. i’m drowning in other people’s crap at my desk again. wed am commit to manuscript after c goes down for nap.
outcome: didn’t find groove again, but did work on it for a solid couple of hours on wed with baby sleeping on lap. changed that character name throoughout, printed the current 75 pages. still dealing with van issues, or avoiding them really. beginning to make more contacts locally. did a little desk organization. found the discs of my wedding photos that have been missing for a year or more and still haven’t been printed nicely. (thx for inspiration, brittany!). blog, contest piece. waaaay too much facebook this week.
this week’s goals: ugh. kids home from school today, the rest of the week is 1/2 days for exams. why are elementaries included in the schedule? THEY don’t have exams! don’t foresee much writing, esp with inauguration excitement and my current horrendous lack of sleep and all kids in house much more. will try for wed am read through of printed and edit ms. blog and contest.
1/19/09
Last week’s goal: Even though I’m moving, I’d like to take at least 20 minutes of every day to do something that I *want* to do. I realize that in general there are too many times where I spend an entire day doing things I *have* to do — working and taking care of everyone else. I need to make sure that my days and evenings aren’t entirely devoted to the to-do list. I’m starting to get seriously burnt out. Maybe I’m too overloaded to be seriously creative right now, but I can do a little something every day, and take a few moments to read a book.
Outcome: Thinking about several different art projects I look forward to working on in the new house. I did manage to get a few photos in, and I wrote a poem for last week’s contest prompt, so the week wasn’t a total wash — and I did go to my book group on Saturday night, which was great — but in general I am really feeling cranky about taking care of everything and everyone and not having enough fun. No real end in sight, and no sleep in sight either — four kids, including the baby, have been sick. Baby currently has a fever, cough, and congestion. Nights are ROUGH.
This week’s goal: Make some progress in pre-moving organization. (If I don’t make some headway, I’m going to end up with 354 boxes of miscellaneous and unwanted “stuff.”) Eyes on the prize! Three more weeks! Eyes on the prize! Stop complaining!
Hi all! Nice to see the 2009 page. Will try to make it over here more often than I did in 2008
Jen 1/20/09
This week (and continuing into the rest of the month) I will be preparing for an online trunk show hosted by the Etsybloggers team. First time I’ve done something like this and want to get at least 4 more items in the shop, which means making said items, getting decent pics, writing up descriptions, and finding the computer time to get everything where it needs to be. I’d love to do more than 4, but I think 2 per week is about as much as I can reasonably shoot for.
On a less exciting level, I also have to figure out the tax stuff for my new business. Started that last weekend, need to finish my schedule C in the next week or 2.
Also hope to dig back out one (or more) of the children’s book manuscripts and work on getting things in the publication pipeline again. As a concrete goal, I want to finish the draft of the ms I laid aside before the holidays.
Schedule: I’ll have about 3 uninterrupted hours next Tuesday morning. Might be able to grab 30 minutes here and there if/when the kids rest at the same time during the day. Otherwise, late at night as energy permits…..
Hello all – I’m not really participating in Monday pages etc at the moment so this is a bit of a cheat, but after months of being completely out of the creative loop I just wanted to post today’s small step somewhere. I’ve finally got round to getting my German short story proof-read by a couple of friends, and this afternoon sent it off to a short story magazine with my fingers crossed. It’s a very good magazine, so a very, very long shot, but it seemed far too serendipitous when I saw that their theme for the next (biannual) issue was exactly what I had written about. In any case, it felt good finally to have put it out there.
chasrlotte, welcome back, and what a fabulous step you’ve taken!
cathy 1.26.2008
last week’s goals: ugh. kids home from school today, the rest of the week is 1/2 days for exams. why are elementaries included in the schedule? THEY don’t have exams! don’t foresee much writing, esp with inauguration excitement and my current horrendous lack of sleep and all kids in house much more. will try for wed am read through of printed and edit ms. blog and contest.
outcome: i made some contacts re: research for ms, now i just need to follow through. 1 contest, 1 blog.
this week’s goals: write. sick kids, days off from school be d*mned. exercise: at least 2 20min yogas, and 20min on exercise ball 2x other days. weather permitting, walk.
1/26/09
Last week’s goal: Make some progress in pre-moving organization. Three more weeks! Eyes on the prize! Stop complaining!
Outcome: Staggering forward. Mildly alarming fact: No P&S yet signed for purchase, and we close in 11 days. Apparently everything will be fine, but it’s all a wee bit anxiety-provoking. Did make some progress divesting of household stuff and furniture. On the creative front, photographs and poem.
This week’s goal: Preparing for move. Daughter turns 13 tomorrow. Just keep my head above water.
cathy 2.2.2009
last week’s goals: write. sick kids, days off from school be d*mned. exercise: at least 2 20min yogas, and 20min on exercise ball 2x other days. weather permitting, walk.
outcome: 3 pages in ms, 1 contest, 1.5 blogs, and the gears grinding on the finish-a-thon that came about from my blog post. exercise: not regularly, but i did a bunch of yardwork on saturady, very satisfying and tried to stretch out with hand weights and exercise ball a few times, a little bit. i think clearing the yard helped clear my head, too. gotta love a good dump run!
this week’s goal: start finish-a-thon. make headway according to my goals set in that post. pages in manuscript a must;1 blog, 1 contest piece, reg exercise and sleep, sunshine. of course the forecast is for rain, but…
2/2/09
Last week’s goal: Preparing for move. Daughter turns 13 tomorrow. Just keep my head above water.
Outcome: Divesting of “stuff” like a bandit. Trying to avoid taking anything to the new house that we don’t actually want or need. Very cathartic. However, have saved all manner of things that I might want to use in collage or mixed-media projects. I’d better start making something in that department as soon as we get settled, as I have about four large boxes of supplies! Looking forward to it.
This week’s goal: The packers come tomorrow. The truck gets loaded Thursday. Need I say more??
woo-hoo, m!
Good luck, Miranda!!! Happy moving! and happy bday to your daughter!
2/3/09 (yes, it’s TUESDAY. ah well)
Happy about the goals: got SIX new items listed in the shop (and sold one within a matter of hours! yay!) Am really enjoying my latest project, handmade knitting needles. The trunk show was fun, though no immediate sales.
Also made significant progress with the book ms. Still need to work on the taxes, though.
Since my usual MO is to make it over here about once a month, and since this month is the (amazingly wonderful) February Finish-O-Thon! I’ll consider my February goals taken care of by my post over on that thread.
Yay for you for all the writing you’re getting done, Cathy! And thanks again for starting up the February motivation for finishing up stuff. Much appreciated!
cathy 2.9.2009
last week’s goal: start finish-a-thon. make headway according to my goals set in that post. pages in manuscript a must;1 blog, 1 contest piece, reg exercise and sleep, sunshine. of course the forecast is for rain, but…
outcome: monday was superproductive on the ms and the blog that posted today. i think i also did last week’s prompt on the same day. the rest of the week? enh. zippity do da. but i started the 100 push up challenge that was on liz’s tardis blog. of course, not exactly following the rules, but trying to do a few a day and increase. i’m starting from nothing. up to 5. flew a kite yesterday which involved running (anyone who knows me, that is a miracle) and some good stretching.
this week’s goals: if i can lay baby c down, i’m hoping for more of last monday today. for the rest of this week, i would like to try to chip away at the manuscript. having guests (dh’s aunt and uncle) this weekend and throwing a picnic, but weather is supposed to suck, so i may be piling 37 people into my house instead of a park. this could be very interesting as all the families have at least 1, if not 2 children with asperger’s syndrome or more fullblown autism, my house isn’t huge, and i have a spazzy dog. bringin up because i have to do something with my paper mess in the office/guest room, too.
cathy 2.16.2009
last week’s goals: if i can lay baby c down, i’m hoping for more of last monday today. for the rest of this week, i would like to try to chip away at the manuscript. having guests (dh’s aunt and uncle) this weekend and throwing a picnic, but weather is supposed to suck, so i may be piling 37 people into my house instead of a park. this could be very interesting as all the families have at least 1, if not 2 children with asperger’s syndrome or more fullblown autism, my house isn’t huge, and i have a spazzy dog. bringin up because i have to do something with my paper mess in the office/guest room, too.
outcome: picnic at park was a little chilly but nice. guests were good. valentine date is postponed. writing: 1 page in ms, blogged and contest piece. trying to gauge if baby c is heading toward skipping am nap. as i say this, she’s nursing to sleep. i don’t know, except, like brittany’s baby, the teething is endless.
this week’s goals: today, writing seems out, boys home from school. tues-thurs, if c naps in am, i will write in ms, 1 blog, 1 contest piece. fri, i’m booked, as well as whole weekend. why did we start this in february? why do i have such sleepless babies?
to give you an indication…it’s thursday.
cathy 2.26.2009
last week’s goals: today, writing seems out, boys home from school. tues-thurs, if c naps in am, i will write in ms, 1 blog, 1 contest piece. fri, i’m booked, as well as whole weekend. why did we start this in february? why do i have such sleepless babies?
outcome: about 3 pages in ms, a blog and poem for contest.
this week’s goals: ok it’s thurs, but i still have tomorrow am for manuscript, maybe saturday am, too, if i can leave c in bed w/dh and get downstairs early to write to the sounds of a godzilla movie. wrote a blog, still have next contest piece to do. light…
cathy 3.2.2009
back into the rhythm of things:
last week’s goals: ok it’s thurs, but i still have tomorrow am for manuscript, maybe saturday am, too, if i can leave c in bed w/dh and get downstairs early to write to the sounds of a godzilla movie. wrote a blog, still have next contest piece to do. light…
outcome: so i dialed back on ms pressure for a week. thanks for the permission, guys. still let it hover in the background, though. i did 2 blogs, forgetting about the one posted today (probably because i wasn’t thrilled with it). baby c’s teething and ranging has gone off the charts. i just allowed myself to be present for it. finished contest piece. i also wrote a letter for k’s coming of age program telling him my hopes and dreams and what it was like when he arrived in the world. it’s a secret for a couple of more weeks, so shhhhh….
this week: back to ms: naps are improving, setting aside 3 mornings this week for the possibility: tues, wed, thurs, barring another snow day. we’ll see what i can accomplish. 1 contest, 1 blog before next monday.
3/2/09
Well, I’ve been off of the Monday Page for a month, and I didn’t make it to the second half of the February Finish-a-thon as I’d hoped. But the good news is that we are 90% settled after our move, and I am getting very creatively “itchy.”
I am going to OPEN my manuscript file this week and spend 30 minutes getting my feet wet again. No more pressure than that. Will report back
cathy 3.9.2009
last week: back to ms: naps are improving, setting aside 3 mornings this week for the possibility: tues, wed, thurs, barring another snow day. we’ll see what i can accomplish. 1 contest, 1 blog before next monday.
outcome: naps not convenient to my alone time in the house, and still irregular. friday am was the 1st i could even open ms effectively, and was inspired as well. see today’s blog for details. apparently 2 blogs and a contest piece.
this week’s goals: ms (i really think there are only 3-5 good sessions of writing left before i do the big edit read through). hoping naps and alone time coincide for mon, tues, thurs or fri morning this week. 1 blog, 1 contest piece, lots more gardening before temp drop by wed. yoga?
oops…just posted the below on the 2008 page! no wonder no one had posted there in a while!
kelly: 3-9-09
hmmmm….i see i’m not the only one who hasn’t been here in a while! i learned something about goals this weekend. well, not really, i guess. i think i’ve always known this about myself. i think i’m just not much of a formal goal setter. got not a one of my feb-finish-a-thon goals done. yet this weekend? when i had no specific goals set? the girls and i tackled one juvenile diabetes walk on saturday and one birthday party on sunday. i also created 13, count ‘em 13!, new pendants in prep for the riverside arts market (my total goal for february was 10), and i finished weeding through and editing all my harvey collection photos. go take a peek in my flickr account. http://www.flickr.com/photos/kellynwarren/sets/72157615032964598/detail/
so goals for this week? um, none. we’ll just see happens.
Jen 3/9/09 Well here I am for my monthly visit… actually On A Monday this time!
So happy to hear about the progress being made by folks… Go, Cathy, Go! Yay Kelly for 13 pendants!!!! And hope you get to scratch that itch soon, Miranda!
February was very interesting and although I didn’t meet all my goals, particularly in getting something posted regularly to the shop, I feel pretty good about things. I was making new items but the weather didn’t cooperate for photography (I shoot my pics outdoors, always a dicey thing to plan for in February!) and this week I’ve finally gotten some decent pics, so i’m listing them now.
Last month, I got one picture book ms all done and sent out! Aaaand…. already received a rejection. Ah well. Back to the publication research to send it out again! No progress on the website (sigh) and mostly done with business tax stuff.
For March, I MUST finish taxes, and I really want to get going on my website. I will get that ms sent back out. Having fun with my new bookmark baubles in the shop, so will make more of those. Been slacking on the blog, but have a big backlog of posts I want to do. Just a matter of finding the time (as always)…. And ’tis the season, so I know I’ll be spending lots of latent creative time in the garden, yanking weeds and dreaming of sprouting seeds.
cathy 3.16.2009
almost let monday get by me without writing goals! really should after today’s discussion! it’s also very nice to see some of the old names back here!
last week’s goals: ms (i really think there are only 3-5 good sessions of writing left before i do the big edit read through). hoping naps and alone time coincide for mon, tues, thurs or fri morning this week. 1 blog, 1 contest piece, lots more gardening before temp drop by wed. yoga?
outcome: naps all over the place. i wrote a long piece for maps prompt, a blog, and sundry stuff, nothing having a thing to do with the manuscript. i’m okay with it except my internal voice wants to hit me over the head with a book, but i keep sticking my tongue out at it. it’s working out quite nicely this way. lotsa rain, no gardening, i laugh that i listed yoga, but i have started doing burpees, need to improve pushup and jump portions. but i can do ten! that’s a lot for someone who spent a year in bed relatively recently! and i just bought a new pair of jeans in my old, pre-baby size!
Miranda
3/17/09
I think that the rant I just posted qualifies as a Monday Page entry of sorts, no?
http://creativeconstruction.wordpress.com/2009/03/16/why-setting-goals-can-backfire/#comment-2965
oops, 3.16.2009 continued
i forgot this week’s goals.
it’s tues. now, 10 am, c just dropped off to nemo’s dreamland on my lap and i’m forcing/inspired to write in manuscript. hoping to accomplish the scene i’ve been dreading writing – the big bully scene. i love my main character and realize i don’t want to beat the crap out of him or even start the scene. that may have been my big sticking problem. i don’t want to put the fist in his face. anyway, i want to get that done now, and 2 more good sessions in ams this week plus this week and next, i really want to revisit research on comets, observatories and such, so i can finalize this thing. 1 blog and 1 contest. i think these are realistic goals. ithink this can be finished, including revision reading and editing by mid-april.
cathy 3.23.2009
last week’s goals:forcing/inspired to write in manuscript. hoping to accomplish the scene i’ve been dreading writing – the big bully scene. i love my main character and realize i don’t want to beat the crap out of him or even start the scene. that may have been my big sticking problem. i don’t want to put the fist in his face. anyway, i want to get that done now, and 2 more good sessions in ams this week plus this week and next, i really want to revisit research on comets, observatories and such, so i can finalize this thing. 1 blog and 1 contest.
outcome: finished ‘the scene’ in two sessions. too emotionally attached for one. unfortunately, what i wrote seems to need another scene written for it.
a mini blog and a ccontest piece.
this week’s goals: prep for c’s 1st bday party and the possibilty of my parents visiting for it. low-key, family event. 1 blog, 1 contest piece, and hope for ms, still need to do that research.
cathy 3.30.2009
last week’s goals: prep for c’s 1st bday party and the possibilty of my parents visiting for it. low-key, family event. 1 blog, 1 contest piece, and hope for ms, still need to do that research.
outcome: i had a random early wake-up insight and inspiration into another sticking point at the end of my ms. got it down longhand yesterday – will type it in, fix and complete that today (ehem, that’s the plan anyway, and my plans rarely work out w/o interruption). they all seem to be crucial elements to the tale now that i’m at the end, and find it difficult to write them even when i have been visualizing them for ages. blog, contest done. i squeezed in one yoga session, and a bit of gardening, exercisewise.
speaking of contest: how are we going to organize this creative challenge weekly still – we skipped a next topic for the first week, any ideas? i put mine out there on the contest comments and kelly volunteered to format, so what should we do for next week?
this week’s goals: bday plans shifted, so prep continues for wed eve event. edit and complete longhand bit mentioned above, and a blog at least, plus one creative endeavor, whatever it is! keep up physical activity.
Rest easy, Cathy — the contest will be back this Wednesday, thanks to Kelly. So you’re only missing a week!
Need a creative prompt? Here’s one: write a poem to give to Baby C on her 18th birthday
cathy 3.6.2009
oops. didn’t see your message, miranda, but that’s a great idea!
HELP! ANYONE WANT A WRITING DATE THIS WEEK? i’m not easily self motivated to set aside time without knowing someone else is there, too, even virtually.
last week’s goals:…edit and complete longhand bit mentioned above, and a blog at least, plus one creative endeavor, whatever it is! keep up physical activity.
outcome: didn’t get that edit into the ms, but wrote another longhand idea out. just ‘finished’ blog, contest piece was minimal but done. lots of the to do list is in midstate or less at the moment due to enjoying the weekend rather than spend it griping. which happened anyway. i did walk all over busch gardens on sunday, so that was my exercise, and a bit of gardening stuff. a bit.
this week’s goals: kids have spring break, so i don’t foresee much success in ms or whatever, just try to entertain the boys and keep c on somewhat of a nap schedule. squeeze in whatever i can, try to keep boys away from me for my usual morning computer time, then see what happens in the writing. writing date anyone?
oops, 2 ways, it’s wed, and i wrote march instead of april last week!
cathy 4.15.2009
last week’s goals: kids have spring break, so i don’t foresee much success in ms or whatever, just try to entertain the boys and keep c on somewhat of a nap schedule. squeeze in whatever i can, try to keep boys away from me for my usual morning computer time, then see what happens in the writing. writing date anyone?
outcome: i was correct in assuming i wouldn’t do much in ms. i wrote a couple of blogs and a couple of fair to middling toss-offs for weekly challenge. got caught up. had fun with kids. travelled.
this week’s goals: boys back in school yesterday, halfway through, but i’ll try to get in 2 type-in longhands to manuscript sessions this week at the minimum, and i have started back into yoga sessions as of yesterday, 3 per week is my goal. 1 blog, 1 contest piece. i find if i keep physical activity up, i can keep up writing better.
I’ve been forgetting to do this … time to get back in the habit.
This week’s goals … Finish 2-3 paintings for the May solo show. coming up soon …
Frame 6 rose paintings for a special Descanso Gardens rose garden paintout and show.
Frame and deliver 2 paintings to a prospective collector by Thursday morning.
Make a dozen or so canvas panels for an away workshop I’m taking next week.
Print out about 2 dozen photos of current paintings to take for “show and tell” this weekend
Pack for the workshop and try not to leave something like my easel at home.
cathy 4.20.09
last week’s goals: i’ll try to get in 2 type-in longhands to manuscript sessions this week at the minimum, and i have started back into yoga sessions as of yesterday, 3 per week is my goal. 1 blog, 1 contest piece. i find if i keep physical activity up, i can keep up writing better.
outcome. nope, didn’t get to ms. did blog, did contest. did 1 yoga session, 2 big gardening sessions and a few walks re: exercise.
this week: i’ve given myself a deadline of this fri to finish my book during chloe’s naps (which she just started one, so i should hop to it). wish me luck! 1 blog, 1 contest. more gardening, yoga and walks.
I’m amazed that I was able to get here this week . . . . I’m actually out of town for a training session, and I was able to get on the hotel computer. So, I don’t know if I’ll be able to submit everything I wanted to send for this week’s creativity challenge, but I’ll try! That’s my first goal for this week ;o)
When I get home from this trip, I have a ton of organizing to do before I can pursue my creative projects – but that’s a good place to start.
I have several “wearable art” projects in various stages of development, so that is my second goal: to finish up two sewing projects.
Last goal for this week: make some progress on the eBooks that I’ve been trying to finish up for several weeks now.
I hope that putting all of this in writing will make a serious impression in my little brain to get myself focused!
PS I really have been wanting to get back to my exercise routine, but this little thing called TIME keeps calling me out of my house long before I’m ready to go!
cathy 4.27.2009
last week’s goals: i’ve given myself a deadline of this fri to finish my book during chloe’s naps (which she just started one, so i should hop to it). wish me luck! 1 blog, 1 contest. more gardening, yoga and walks.
outcome: not quite finished still, but i ended up putting in about 17 hours, which was extraordinary on my part. there are scenes that emotionally needed to happen that i didn’t fit into the rest, and i still need building to the scenes i longhand wrote that really are the end of the book when i type them in and flesh them out. i did garden, walk, and started a tai chi class, awesome! and blog and contest.
this week: have a lot of interference to writing on my plate, but i’ll see what i can do. k’s actual bday tomorrow, wed, all day field trip i have to accompany s on – bus 7:45am-approx 6pm. oh boy, he’s going to burn out on this one. won’t be pretty. but it’s educational! and i’m leaving town on fri for long weekend, so i have to prep all day thurs for that. i guess i finish book next week.
cathy 5.7.2009
now that my computer has finally been dewormed…
last week’s goals:have a lot of interference to writing on my plate, but i’ll see what i can do. k’s actual bday tomorrow, wed, all day field trip i have to accompany s on – bus 7:45am-approx 6pm. oh boy, he’s going to burn out on this one. won’t be pretty. but it’s educational! and i’m leaving town on fri for long weekend, so i have to prep all day thurs for that. i guess i finish book next week
outcome: s got sick for field trip, so dr instead, he was fine, just a cough. whirlwind trip to new orleans allowed honey and i to reconnect through shared gimpy walks all over french quarter and jazzfest, eating amazing food, listening to fab music and just focussing on each other. much needed. got back, got a computer worm and have been dealing with the fallout since. stupidly, i passed the infection to dh;s computer when mine was longer usable.
koobface is a viral worm specific to facebook. don’t open any links unless you’re absolutely sure about them. even then, be cautious.
so, no, didn’t finish this week.
next week’s goals: thinking ahead since it’s thursday and a halfday of school with a pediatric appt. tomorrow i interview someone for a proflie idea for literary mama’s site. i’ll submit it and see, but i think it willbe an interesting article anyway. this weekend: get veggie seeds and starters in the veggie plots out back-if it ever stops raining and isn’t 90+ degrees at the same time. week ahead: write article from tomorrow’s interview and blog, contest (tough one for me) and finish up last couple of scenes in the ms, really. 4th deadline?
cathy 5.11.2009
last/this week’s goals: thinking ahead since it’s thursday and a halfday of school with a pediatric appt. tomorrow i interview someone for a proflie idea for literary mama’s site. i’ll submit it and see, but i think it willbe an interesting article anyway. this weekend: get veggie seeds and starters in the veggie plots out back-if it ever stops raining and isn’t 90+ degrees at the same time. week ahead: write article from tomorrow’s interview and blog, contest (tough one for me) and finish up last couple of scenes in the ms, really. 4th deadline?
outcome so far: interviewed my profile subject. fascinating. blogged and about to work on challenge piece for tomorrow night’s deadline. all dirt has been moved from 2 yr old dirt pile to veg plots, all seeds and plants are in and copiously watered. yesterday was very productive on the garden front! feels good, and sore. i moved a total of 6 wheelbarrows of dirt, reweeded, etc. and my back didn’t go out. thank you, tai chi! watermelon, cantaloupe, butternut squash, yellow squash, zucchini, cukes; carrots, green beans, beets, spinach; 3 types tomatoes, 2 types peas, green peppers, okra. the okra is from my own seeds! herbs planted: oregano, basil, thyme, lavender.
this week’s goal: water and weed! get back to ms – looks like a fairly normal week, though plumber is here now. write last three scenes i need to cover 2 written longhandish…1 researched. then this sucker is done, until my last edit phase. write article from notes for profile piece.
help s with huge va history abc picture book he needs to complete before the 21st.
Sunday, June 7
GOAL: To just write. Even if it is for 15 minutes.
Trust me on this, it’s about the only goal I can commit to right now. And God as my witness, I plan to keep it!
cathy 6.8.2009
wow, has it been that long since i popped up here?
thanks, bethany, i’ll copy you. I like your goal. there is something to be said for simplicity.
GOAL: To just write. Even if it is for 15 minutes. more specific: the interview into an article by the end of the week.
oops, tuesday:
cathy 6.16.2009
last week’s goal: To just write. Even if it is for 15 minutes. more specific: the interview into an article by the end of the week.
outcome: a poem i’m pretty pleased with, but can tweak the end. blogging regularly, if minimally; not the article. thought a lot about the hole in the middle of my ms.
this week’s goal: print 3 reader/edit copies. send to 2 friends in new england who’ve expressed interest and connections, even with the hole in the middle. start my edits. today is last day of school, i don’t know how i’ll get things done this week once boys are home.
oh and have a fictionette running in facebook. cool concept, give it a try.
cathy 6.22.2009
last week’s goal: print 3 reader/edit copies. send to 2 friends in new england who’ve expressed interest and connections, even with the hole in the middle. start my edits. today is last day of school, i don’t know how i’ll get things done this week once boys are home.
outcome: printed, bound, sent out copies to readers. still haven’t written the interview article that’s weeks old now. settling into a summer day schedule with the guys home. last week was a relative bust. blogged, tho.
this week’s goal: clean off the mountain of caca from my desk so i can find the things i want to write from, like the interview notes…i have many ideas for blogs this morning. depending on the day, maybe i can sketch some out for the week. i’d also like to organize the box that grew into the file cabinet again.
Miranda 6.22.09
Been quite a while since I had much of anything going on in terms of creative goals. But I feel like I’m finding my feet again. The baby is now 13.5 months old and is starting to “play” with his 4-year-old brother. Things might be getting easier (although I’m scared to even SAY that, lest I jinx myself). Have been thinking about my nonfiction work a lot, but in the meantime, a new short story pushed its way to the fore and I spent several hours working on it on Saturday. One of those things where I’m simply writing what *I* would enjoy reading and not worrying about all the rest of it — for now, anyway.
This week’s goal: I’ve planned the week, and I think I can manage my client workload as well as work on the short story, and perhaps even dip back into the nonfiction ms. Right now, I have time blocked off on Thursday during the day (while sitter is here). If things on the work front go well, I should be able to squeeze in a bit more time on Wednesday, and/or perhaps during an evening or two. Will play it by ear, but at minimum get two hours of writing time in on Thursday.
glad to see you, m! congrats on the story pushing through!
cathy 7.6.2009
wow, i have become oarless…this past week has been crazy, but even before that i feel like my creativity, while present in mind, has seriously floundered on the shore. goals i set prevously, fegedaboudit. so i will start anew:
this week’s goal: clean desk/office area, file or trash. clean slate the area, then write the article i interviewed someone for about a month or so ago. man, it would be so much better if i had an external deadline. 1 challenge, daily blog, and finish reading pride & prejudice.
A Monday! And I’m here! Incredible already. I have two weeks and a weekend left before the Renegade Craft Fair. I still have quite the to-do list for that and the external deadline is enough motivator that I don’t really need to type it out here. Preparation for this has been almost all-consuming for quite some time. I just wanted to say that I’m still lurking and plan to be more present after the Fair, with a return to writing goals. More later!
oops, tuesday…
cathy 7.14.2009
last week’s goal: clean desk/office area, file or trash. clean slate the area, then write the article i interviewed someone for about a month or so ago. man, it would be so much better if i had an external deadline. 1 challenge, daily blog, and finish reading pride & prejudice.
outcome: i did clean my desk, write a poem i like, started a short story, laid foundation for another in characters, finally finished the 6 month process of cleaning and rearranging s’s room. pride and prjudice is taking me longer to read than any book i have maintained interest in, in my life. i usually eat fiction within a couple of days, this is taking me weeks! i can’t seem to get that article out of the notes. also reached 5oth personal blog post! i have posted daily, weekdays since i started. that’s creative! not always great, but done!
this week’s goal: work on writings i’ve started, mentioned above: short stories, article, blog, challenge, taking it freely this week, see what happens.
cathy 7.20.2009
last week’s goal: work on writings i’ve started, mentioned above: short stories, article, blog, challenge, taking it freely this week, see what happens.
outcome: while i may not have done specifics beyond blogging and challenge, i really felt steeped in the creative brew this week. there always seems to be a cycle to this for me, and i’m definitely in the seed below the surface about to break through phase. a couple of metaphors, but i think something big is coming, just not sure what. maybe time to look fo that old screenplay outline after all.
this week’s goal: organize the box of papers into the file cabinet, which will get me in the file cabinet to find the screenplay outline, that may be in a notebook upstairs, but at least it’s a start at physical space clearing/brain clearing, which also will get c out of rummaging the box temptations. challenge, continue daily blog, and whatever else comes. hey, it’s summer – free-wheeling it while ms is out to readers.
cathy 7.27.2009
last week’s goal: organize the box of papers into the file cabinet, which will get me in the file cabinet to find the screenplay outline, that may be in a notebook upstairs, but at least it’s a start at physical space clearing/brain clearing, which also will get c out of rummaging the box temptations. challenge, continue daily blog, and whatever else comes. hey, it’s summer – free-wheeling it while ms is out to readers.
outcome: i scoff at the opening line! haha. i prepped for painters for while i’m out of town.
this week: pack to go visiting up north and get my boys back! finish moving furniture out of bedroom for painter. visit, get my boys and see how mom’s doing post-stroke. she’s home now! relax, enjoy, cram too much and much needed visiting in.
not monday, thurs, but i have a good excuse.
cathy 8.6.2009
last week: pack to go visiting up north and get my boys back! finish moving furniture out of bedroom for painter. visit, get my boys and see how mom’s doing post-stroke. she’s home now! relax, enjoy, cram too much and much needed visiting in.
outcome: done, in spades. awesome time at miranda’s with mary, too!
this week:recoup, reorganize, find my brain. i got back one copy of critqued manuscript. was given overview verbally which was good, but in a quick flip through, this friend seems to have scribbled edits into every page! remind myself it’s a first draft. i’m a little fearful to venture into it. blogs, contest, hang with kids productively, figure out how to get my van back on the road or replace it.
cathy 8.17.2009
last week, well, 11 days: week:recoup, reorganize, find my brain. i got back one copy of critqued manuscript. was given overview verbally which was good, but in a quick flip through, this friend seems to have scribbled edits into every page! remind myself it’s a first draft. i’m a little fearful to venture into it. blogs, contest, hang with kids productively, figure out how to get my van back on the road or replace it.
outcome: van issues being resolved in steps. still fearful to venture into ms while also waiting for a couple of other responses. wrote a poem in a notebook i’d like to edit, blogged, contest, and hung out with kids productively, in some instances. still organizing. had some fun, too.
this week’s goals: not feeling like i can actually make some beyond: edit poem, maybe write another, blog, and contest. start prepping kids for school. write a little everyday, something that matters, creatively.
cathy 9.2.2009
oh bullox. it’s wed. two weeks plus later.
ok my lazy, brain dead, kid-filled august is over. school starts next week, so do a gazillion appts. creatively, once the kids are back in school, the plan is to start back into the manuscript as i now have 2 reader copies back. i’ve been peeking at the opening pages, etc and it doesn’t look so bad. i also have put word out to find other astronomy types who have observatory experience. i don’t know why i didn’t try this avenue before, but i have been getting lots of responses pointing in good directions.
i guess this is really next week’s plan. or maybe a two weeker. but k’s ap english summer project is about to take over my computer for a few days.
9.8.2009
ok, tues. that’s a day better than last week and i have labor day to thank for my excuse. last week’s outcome, peeked into critique copies a bit.
too many appts and first day of school today. writing, not going to happen. tomorrow, kids in school and no appts. will dig into manuscript. also have a poem kicking around a notebook upstairs, and a need to refresh and write the article for the interview i conducted 6 weeks ago or more? ugh. embarrassing. also going to get back intoa physical routine. started doing exercise ball manuveurs yesterday….
cathy 9.14.2009
it’s monday, and though this is supposed to be a business only scheduling motivating thing, i’m feeling very pooey about it, probably because i’ve been so uninspired and now my schedule has amped with dr appts and lessons and stuff, but still not work outside the home. and i still am not quite back into the ms even though i have every intention of getting to it, because now, i don’t have the time and the quiet and the motivation all at once for anything but poetry and even though i am feeling poetry, i don’t have the mental, physical sound space for it. and my office corner is a mess that i don’t want to file when c is napping and can’t file while she isn’t. and my back has been killing me for 2 weeks now.
thank you for listening to the rant.
ok, business:
this week’s goals: start organizing while c naps. try to jot ideas down for poems as they come. dig back into ms starting on wed when nothing is scheduled til taekwando at 5. start regularly inserting 20min yoga workout or walk into every day.
cathy 9.21.2009
last week’s goal:start organizing while c naps. try to jot ideas down for poems as they come. dig back into ms starting on wed when nothing is scheduled til taekwando at 5. start regularly inserting 20min yoga workout or walk into every day.
outcome: saw drs instead. trying toget a handle on a bigger situation. trying to be loving to myself and care for my health.
this week’s goals: start with organizing papers and maintaining blog. anything above and beyond that is icing.
9/27/09
Goal for today: finish the flashback scenes I’m working on; try for 1K words. (Starting wordcount = 7,860.) Begin working on character development worksheet for protagonist. I do not have a block of time set aside for today, so will have to work around the edges.
9/27/09 PM
Results: Got to 8,420 for a net total of 560. (I made some minor deletions, which didn’t help the net.) Also started on character worksheet. Stayed up late to get this much done — so while I didn’t quite hit my mark, none of this would have happened today without being public with my goal today and I’m pleased considering that I didn’t have any child-free time aside from the evening. Thanks for keeping me accountable!
cathy 9.28.2009
first, that’s great, m!
last week’s goals: start with organizing papers and maintaining blog. anything above and beyond that is icing.
outcome: not organized to standards. but maintained blog consistently and wrote 1/2 an article based on old interview.
this week’s goals: complete article, more blogging daily and possibly start work on a collaborative memoir of a ww2 vet at my church who has a very interesting perspective of his time in the war. gave him my card yesterday and he seemed interested, has started a memoir himself already.
skip whataever i said a few weeks ago.
cathy 10. 19.2009
this week i am focussing on editing the manuscript, sick kids and me be damned. well, not really, but if i can focus here and there amap on the manuscript, then i just might get somewhere with it.
cathy 10.26.2009
last week was a bust. i’ve said enough in comment threads already. trying again this week.