Please welcome Maria K. Alexander, our guest on The Roses of Prose today.
Like many, I juggle a job during the day and writing
in between the early morning hours and in the evenings after the kids are in
bed. This means I get up before the sun and often go to bed much too late,
resulting in only five or six hours of sleep. I can attribute much of my
organization and discipline to my day job as a Project Manager, where my life revolves
around schedules, to do lists, and budgets. I regularly assess, manage, and
respond to risks. Re-planning and identifying creative solutions to a problem
is a skill I’m very familiar with. Here are a few things being in corporate
America has taught me that have helped me on my journey to publication:
1.
Develop
annual goals and objectives
Although it can be
painful to write, you should have a plan for your writing career—even if you’re
not published. And the plan shouldn’t just be in your head. Write it down. I
recently attended Bob Mayer and Jen Talty’s Write It Forward workshop and according
to them, you should have an overall five-year strategic plan along with
tactical goals to get there. Like I’m required to do twice a year for the day
job, I write down what I’ve accomplished toward meeting my goal. This helps me
to re-evaluate if I need to change my approach, establish additional tactical
goals, or maybe eliminate goals that don’t apply any longer. The publishing
industry is changing quickly, so you must continuously make sure the steps you’re
taking are on the road toward where you want to be.
2.
Daily
or weekly “to do” list
I’m a list person. It’s
been ingrained in me compliments of Mom and necessary for the day job. It
includes the key things I need to do over the next couple weeks, plus a few
‘wish’ items that I’d like to do if I have time. I keep the list right next to
my laptop and assess daily. Unfortunately, I often end up adding more items
than I cross off.
3.
Risk
Mitigation and Contingency Planning
There’s always going to
be something that comes up that will take you away from accomplishing your
writing. Sometimes, you’ll be able to plan for interruptions. Like when you
take a vacation. But other times it won’t be planned, and it impacts your
ability to write or possibly even meet a deadline. Try and go with the flow and
adjust your plan and your expectations, accordingly.
4.
There
will be failures
There will be times
when despite doing all you’ve set out to do, you don’t meet a goal. Maybe you
receive a bad review or a rejection. It happens and it’s easy to beat yourself
up about it. Don’t. It’s not worth it and will only keep you looking back
instead of moving forward. If possible, try to remain objective and take away
any key learnings that you can apply.
5.
Celebrate
your achievements
When you hit a goal,
receive an award, get a request for a partial or full manuscript, write the
words “the end” at the completion of your book, get an agent, or a publishing
contract, remember to celebrate. My local RWA Chapter (NJ Romance Writers)
does something at our monthly meetings where they give out Hershey Hugs when
you get bad news and a flower when you receive good news. It’s a fun way of
acknowledging a special moment.
Thanks for stopping by today. To celebrate the
Kindle release of my contemporary romance, Untangle My Heart,
I’m giving away a $25 Amazon GC.
Stop by the Contest
page of my website to enter. Through February 1st, Untangle My Heart
is available Free at Amazon.
If you’re so inclined, please pick up a copy and provide a fair and honest
review.
Blurb
for Untangle My Heart, by Maria K. Alexander
When her marriage ended in tragedy, Kate DiFrancesco
rebuilt her life, but has never gotten over the pain of what she lost. Seeking
the help of an ex-lover ignites feelings she’s promised never to have again.
She’ll need to untangle herself from dangers in her past in order to break the
hard shell around her heart.
Edward Weston has a lot to prove, both to his stuffy
upper-crust British family, and to
himself. Working alongside Kate, a woman he had a casual relationship
with, stirs unexpected feelings. Helping her family makes him realize what he's
missing. For the first time, he wants more than a one-night stand.
When Kate is threatened, Edward must overcome
feeling unworthy to protect the woman he loves and fight for the family he
never thought he’d have.
Excerpt:
“Privacy is a hard thing to find around here, so you
may want to lock the door. Especially when you’re wearing only a towel and my
sister is on the prowl.”
“I’ll have to remember that,” Edward said, taking a
step toward her. “I knew she was smitten, but didn’t think she would be waiting
in the room after my shower. I was struggling with a tactful way of getting her
out.”
“I’m sure you’re not accustomed to asking a woman to
leave your room.”
He gave her an unapologetic grin. “No, usually not.”
“I guess it’s partly my fault. I told her I don’t
have any claims to you. Apparently she took that to mean it was open season to
pursue you.”
“Yet you stopped by. Why?”
“I wanted to thank you again for your help today.
You dropped everything to come and help my family and that means a lot to me.”
He took another step toward her until he stood
directly in front of her. “You mean a lot to me. I’d do anything I could to
help you.”
She nodded in acknowledgement, not sure she could
trust her voice to speak with him all but touching her.
“And you’re wrong about not having a claim on me.”
His hands found their way to her waist. Her heart
thumped and she knew she should pull back, wanted to pull back. But his
blue-gray eyes held her in a hypnotic state and she couldn’t move.
You
can keep in touch with Maria at:
Website:
http://mariakalexander.com
The
Violet Femmes Blog: http://thevioletfemmes.com
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/MKAlexander1
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/mariakalexander
You can buy Untangle My Heart at:
For
Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.com/B00GVKRLOG
In
Print from The Wild Rose Press: http://bit.ly/InzITZ
