March-ing On

My "one word" for 2021 is FOCUS. To be honest, it's not working all that well. My thoughts are like Yahtzee dice - spilling out from my mind, scattering everywhere. But hey, we're only in the third month of the year. That's still plenty of time to work my word! 

 

WRITING

I recently redid my Writer's Manifesto. I love that it reminds me HOW I want to write, HOW I want my writing life to feel, to look. This time around, I emphasized having more fun and trusting the creative process. 

 

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READING

Two books I ended up liking more than I thought I would – Shiver by Allie Reynolds and The Woman Outside My Door by Rachel Ryan. I was pleasantly surprised to get so caught up in them! 

 

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WATCHING

Movies – "Come Play" was my kind of creepy and "Freaky" was the kind of campy horror movie that reminded me of "Scream." 

 

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WALKING

Seen on a walk: 

Photo by Madeline Mora-Summonte, 2021

Okay, I actually see this every day . . . because it's in front of our house! We had this bougainvillea planted soon after we moved in because we wanted a spot of color, one I'll hopefully be able to see from my office window soon. But we never realized how many people would enjoy our little tree, too. One lady even told my husband that she looks forward to riding her bike by it every day. (Fingers crossed my husband and I won't ruin it with our not-so-green thumbs . . . .) 

 

Miles walked as of 2/25/21 = 51/500. We passed the first official milestone! (Click here if you're wondering what this craziness is all about.)

 

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Do you have "one word" for 2021? If so, how's it working for you? Do you have a Writer's Manifesto or going to give one a try? Have you read or watched something that surprised you with how much you liked it? Is there anything on your route that brightens your walks or drives? 

IWSG: As Close to Camping as I Get

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One of my big goals for this year is to take my novella/novel as far as I can - writing, editing, researching publishing options, etc. I'm still kind of vague on what that should look like when December 31, 2018 rolls around, but I believe my gut will let me know.

Unfortunately, my gut is not big on deadlines.

So, I'm considering signing up for the April session of Camp NaNo. I've participated a few times over the years, but it's been awhile, and I'm hesitant.

Camp NaNo provides a deadline - great! But it also lets you set your own goal - project or word count - and this is not something I excel at. I make it either too easy or too hard, and I end up coming away from the experience with a stomach ache. (And, unfortunately, not one from eating too many s'mores.)

As March marches on, I'll continue to work on my novella/novel (for crying out loud, pick one!) and give more thought to Camp NaNo. Hmm, maybe I'll just go with my gut.

My gut really likes s'mores . . . .

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Any thoughts on what I should do? If I go to Camp, should I set a project or a word count goal? Have you ever done Camp NaNo? How did it go for you? 

The Off The Shelf Challenge: March

Progress? Um...not so much. I can't help myself. When I hear about new books coming out, I want to read them right away. Needless to say, this is not helping with The Off the Shelf Challenge. Sigh. Well, April is a new month...

Challenge Books read in January: 4
Challenge Books read in February: 5

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Challenge Books read in March: 1 (Hangs head in shame)
Non Challenge Books read in March: 4

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Total Challenge Books read so far in 2012: 10
Total Non Challenge Books read so far 2012: 7
Total Books read so far in 2012: 17

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Standouts from March include:

The Heroine's Bookshelf: Life Lessons, from Jane Austen to Laura Ingalls Wilder by Erin Blakemore - It's been sitting on my own shelf for awhile and I wish I had picked it up sooner. It was so much fun to go back and revisit my old friends from those books that meant so much to me when I was a kid. And I loved learning a bit more about the amazing women who created those long-lasting heroines.  

All Woman and Springtime by Brandon Jones - I was lucky enough to receive an advanced reader's copy of this, so you can see why I bumped it up above the poor, patiently waiting Challenge books. This is a dark story and, at times, disturbing to read but it is so well-written and so compelling. It comes out in May, but please don't wait until then to add it to your TBR list or to put your name on your library's "hold"/"reserve" list. (If you liked Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha, you'll love this!)