Invented Deadlines

Invented Deadlines February was an insane month for me. I presented and sold books at the  Wisconsin State Reading Association Convention.  I launched a  new book  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ a process that included a party, a  public reading event, a plethora of  social media posts, a month of book launch  dedicated blog entries, an interview with the  local newspaper  and lots of thought, heart, and energy. Both my son and husband had birthdays and the  college baseball season  started up again, which impacts my household in a big way. I lead a Gifted and Talented Network Young Author Day. Oh yeah, and I worked two part-time jobs and helped keep two human children dressed appropriately, fed, bathed, and otherwise alive. Don’t get me wrong†¦ it was a fun busy. A bored writer is a broke writer, but needless to say, I was silently looking forward to March, a decidedly slower month for me†¦ at least according to my calendar. Now that I am here, solidly in March, my head is still swiveling. Instead of bouncing from task to task, my gaze is casting about for the next thing to work on. What needs and deserves my attention? This is one thing I don’t think entrepreneurs talk about enough. When you are your own boss, how do you decide what to work on? My usual mode of operation dictates that whatever project has the next deadline gets the number one spot on my radar of attention. In February that radar was full. But now? Not so much. To prevent myself from falling into patterns of inefficiency and nonproductivity, I invent deadlines. Deciding on a must-be-done deadline motivates me to push forward. As a writer I am very used to deadlines and use my experience with that mindset to propel me to success. Here’s an example. I’ve been meaning to re-do my  teaching materials  for the  Orphan Train Ridersseries since I republished the collection in a single volume. During a slow week in January, I decided having these materials ready to go for WSRA (the aforementioned state reading conference) would be a good idea. It was only a ten-hour project†¦ but for some reason, it remained unfinished. Had I not invented the self-imposed deadline it probably still wouldn’t be done, and I’d have one less  product  floating out there in my passive income stream. This month I have decided to submit a piece for the next issue of the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild’s Literary Journal,  Barstow and Grand. Rewriting and polishing a piece, including taking it to my critique group, doing additional drafts and finally turning it in was the perfect bite-sized project to keep me busy until more work came around. If you are wondering what you could add to your open radar, here are a few invented deadlines you could create for yourself.   Ã‚     Find a writing contest, or better yet, subscribe to a weekly newsletter like  Reedsy  or  FundsforWriters, so these opportunities are delivered like clockwork to your inbox each week.   Ã‚     Compose a query letter for a work in progress. Even if the manuscript isn’t close to being done, it is a necessary evil that must be completed at some time. Having a â€Å"shitty first draft† to come back to down the road will be super helpful.   Ã‚     Revise a piece from the past. And then, maybe r(e)submit it!   Ã‚     Write a blog post   Ã‚     Join a class or writing program. I know I’m biased because I created it, but  Story Seedlings  is an awesome way to jump-start a story project.