Perfect Picture Book Friday is on a Thanksgiving break this week, so I’m having my month-end being-accountable-to-my-friends-and-colleagues time today. I’m going to start things off in a different way this time, though.
I’ve been playing with book spine poems the last couple of days, since reading Annette Simon’s guest blog post on the PiBoIdMo blog, Spine-Tingling Inspiration. My poem (and I use the term loosely) is equal parts hope, promise, determination, and gratitude. I hope you’ll be able to read the titles (they’ll be printed at the bottom of this post, just in case).
And now, the accountability:
Let’s start with something successful, shall we?
PiBoIdMo: It’s been a great month of inspiration and support, both through the wonderful posts at Tara Lazar’s blog, and in the PiBoIdMo Facebook group. As you can see from the Idea-O-Meter to the right of the screen, I managed to come up with 30 picture book ideas during the month of November. In my personal challenge to also come up with a few ideas for Middle Grade novels, I didn’t keep pace with the output for PiBoIdMo (I really didn’t expect to!) but I have 10 ideas that I didn’t have at the beginning of the month, and I’m eager to get to work on them.
12×12: Another month has passed without a picture book draft, but I don’t count it as total loss. Because of PiBoIdMo, I am well-fueled for next year’s 12×12, and look forward to seeing what I can do in 2014.
Writing: Recently I had a breakthrough of sorts with the novel-for-grownups that I’ve been revising, and that has moved me forward greatly in my thought processes, and has made the revision process much more of a joy. Revising a project that was first written in 2010 means that although the basic story is solid, there has had to be a lot of cutting and rewriting. For example, yesterday I cut 1,300 words from chapter 10, and replaced them with 1,878 freshly written words. That was very satisfying! I think all this work will some day be worthwhile. (Someday, little by little, if I follow my heart… see above.)
Blogging: I’ve enjoyed linking my Monday posts with my Friday Perfect Picture Book picks this month. I don’t think it would be possible to do that all the time, but it’s been fun.
Next month, I’ll be participating in Susanna Leonard Hill’s Pretty Much World-Famous 3rd Annual Holiday Writing Contest. Watch for my story on December 9th. There are some amazing prizes this time around, and there’s still time to enter. Why don’t you join us? You can find the rules at the link above.
Also in December, I’ll be launching my Grammar Q&A series. I’ll be answering grammatical and word usage questions the third Monday of each month. I’m pleased to say that a great question has come in for my inaugural post. I’ll be answering it — hopefully to the questioner’s satisfaction — on Monday, December 16th.
Flubs2Fixes: Thanks to a suggestion from a colleague, I have added query letters, and query submission packages (letter, synopsis, sample pages, or for non-fiction, letter and proposal) to the list of things I’m prepared to proofread or copy edit. I look forward to the business taking off (and taking me with it)! In December, I’ll be doing more promotion such as setting up a Facebook page and a LinkedIn page.
Many of you have helped to spread the word about Flubs 2 Fixes. I would thank you from the bottom of my mug of blue copy editing pencils, if I had one. As it is, I will have to thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Now on to December, as I try to live out my book spine poem:
Live a Life You Love / Make Your Creative Dreams Real /
Someday / Little by Little /
The Very Fairy Princess Follows Her Heart /
My Name is Elizabeth! /
Writing Irresistible Kidlit / Starting Your Career as a Freelance Editor /
Grateful /
~ ~ ~
What did your November hold? What do you look forward to in December?
I need to do one of those spine poems. 🙂 Good luck in December! I turn 12 – in the 12th month of the year (on the 24th, which is a multiple of 12 – WHOA! 🙂 )!
Thanks, Erik! Ooooh, how exciting — turning 12 in the 12th month on the multiple of 12. That is so cool. I love those cool numerical things. Yay YOU!!!!
Beth, every time I read one of your accountability posts, I feel like such an underachiever! Let’s see – I did my 30 ideas, wrote a manuscript (barely), revised a manuscript (barely), and ….ummm……picked up some dry cleaning and went to the car wash….. ? Ugh. 🙂