How NOT to juggle beta reads, blogging, and prepping for NaNoWriMo: October in Review

October Posts

1. Beta Reader Stress and Trying Not to Embarrass Myself at my First Author Fair: September in Review
2. Top Books of Summer 2019
3. Tips on Promoting Your Books When You Lack Self Confidence
4. Sign up for my Mailing List and Receive a Free copy of Riley’s Story this January

Speculative Chic Posts
1. Magical Dressmaking: A Review of Elizabeth Lim’s Spin the Dawn

It’s so good to be here…

I listen to a lot of music at my day job, as it helps me stay focused. A couple weeks back, I was called away from my desk, and when I came back, the shuffle function had brought me to a new song. As I slipped in an earbud, I could hear the singer gear up for the chorus “We’ve made it through the year. It’s so good to be here!”

I immediately yanked off the headphones. Not because I dislike the song, “Christmas C’mon” by Lindsey Stirling featuring Becky G. Not even because October is a bit early for holly jolly Christmas music. No, my reasoning was a bit more visceral. I still have time! I wanted to cry out in protest. The year’s not over yet. I still have time!

There’s something about coming to the end of October that can really get to me. Only having two months left is hard enough, but those months are always super busy, thanks to multiple holidays, and the whirlwind that is National Novel Writing Month. And the fact that the days are steadily getting shorter and shorter only seems to drive the point home: I’m running out of time.

So it should come as a surprise to no one that I spent a big chunk of October completely stressed out.

Preptober is Different Once you Start Publishing

Out of everything I worked on last month, the piece of writing I think I enjoyed the most was actually a blog post, taking what it was like completing NaNoWriMo the first time I did it way back in 2004, and comparing it to now (keep an eye out for it, it’s coming in a  week!). But one of the biggest differences is the fact that writing isn’t just something I sit down and complete once a year. I’m always working on something.

And last month all of those somethings converged in one giant clusterfuck.

There were my beta reads for both Riley’s Story and Red and Black 3. There was prepping for next month’s NaNoWriMo. The were my normal blogging duties, both here and on speculative chic. There was that secret project I mentioned last month. My additional duties as a published author (amazon ads! my monthly newsletter! social media!). Oh, and you know, regular life stuff, which can also be stressful at times.

Basically, I put way too much stuff on my plate, and the results weren’t always timely or ideal (Riley’s Story, at least, is off to my copyeditor and should come out in January, as planned). If one good thing can be said about this month, it’s that I learned a lot. I learned the value of putting padding in between projects, just in case things run over. I also relearned that I am someone who is very easily overwhelmed, and that when I am overwhelmed, I tend to get caught up in these negative thought spirals that keep my up and night and make it hard to concentrate on either of my jobs.

I get it, we all need to work hard sometimes. It’s a necessary part of being a writer. But writing is a side hustle for me, and there are only twenty-four hours in a day. When I forget this, I am more likely to make mistakes, and I am less likely to be happy.

As you can see, this is something I really need to remember as I go into National Novel Writing Month, and one of the busiest times of the year.

What’s Up Next?

Bring on National Novel Writing Month! By the time this blog entry goes up, things will have already started. I hope to post daily word count updates on my twitter, and regular updates on instagram as well. If you’re also doing NaNoWriMo, feel free to add me as a buddy.

On top of that, I’m waiting on feedback from my beta readers for a new ending for Red and Black 3. Since my copyeditor will be busy with Riley’s Story until December, I probably won’t stress out too much about that project until I finish up November. And of course there’s that secret project.

Let’s see how well I can juggle things this time around.