Blogger: Mary Keeley
Publishing business slows down in December. Agents typically don’t shop proposals because they could get lost in an electronic pile somewhere. Editors are busy finishing up current projects in production so they can take time off during the Christmas holidays. For writers and agents this is a good time to get our work and lives in order.
Did Thanksgiving sneak up on you the way it has on me? Yikes . . . and I’m hosting. I had my wake-up call. After a busy year, I need to reorganize. Maybe you do too.
This is my favorite holiday, though. Roasting the turkey with trimmings and baking the pies rekindles the foundational sense of home-and-hearth for me. Unless you have a deadline looming, the long holiday weekend is priority time to focus on family and dear friends that are like family. But come Monday morning, November 26, I’m going to get my end-of-year plan lined up and ready to go in December. Are you with me?
Here are some areas to consider in devising a plan:
- Clean out electronic and paper files.
- Purchase a book on organizing like Smart Office Organizing by Sandra Felton and Marsha Sims, or a productivity tool to help you with your plan.
- Brainstorm ways you will continue to build your platform and establish your brand.
- Work up a weekly schedule for 2013 to reserve time for:
- Prayer, praise, guidance, and thanksgiving for the gift and passion God entrusted to you
- Research and reading for pleasure, enrichment, and growth in craft
- Social media
- Writing! In my case, I’ll be reading proposals.
- Time for personal growth, family and friends, recreation—those things that contribute to our whole person.
- Address housekeeping needs on your WIP: read it with fresh eyes. Refine, eliminate every unnecessary word, and proofread for grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors.
- Polish your proposal.
It’s good practice to go through this process, even if you think you have a pretty good system. There is always room for improvement, and the review will update you on all facets of your working environment.
Won’t it feel great to begin 2013 with electronic and paper files organized and a new and improved schedule in place?
What did I miss? What are the most urgent tasks you need to tackle between now and the end of the year? What organizing tips can you share that work well for you? And how do you bring the meaning of Thanksgiving into your family tradition?
Ellen
Thank you Mary, I love your posts!
Mary Keeley
Thanks, Ellen.
Jeanne T
Mary, I love your suggestions! I’m an organizer by nature, but I can see I can learn from you. 🙂
For literal housekeeping, I have piles in a number of rooms I plan to deal with so I can start my new year with clean surfaces. This helps me to focus.
I’ve never thought about clearing out paper and electronic files. I’m definitely going to do that. I’ll think on other organizing tips.
For Thanksgiving, we have a special breakfast with our kids. We begin with 5 kernels of popcorn on each plate (representative of what Pilgrims ate in a day during their first winter here). We go around the table and share things we’re thankful for and I record them in our family thankful journal.
What traditions do you have?
Lisa
I love that idea, thank you for sharing it!
Mary Keeley
I’m with you, Jeanne. Clean surfaces help me to function in an orderly way and add to my enjoyment of my work space.
What a great Thanksgiving breakfast tradition for your children. A meaningful reminder for them in light of today’s want-for-nothing culture.
My family’s Thanksgiving tradition after the big meal is to play board games, bring up things we’re thankful for as they come to mind, and maybe take a walk if the weather permits.
Kathryn Barker
What a fabulous idea….could be used in a classroom too. Thanks for sharing Jeanne,
Kathryn Barker
What a fabulous idea….could be used in a classroom too. Thanks for sharing Jeanne.
Evangeline Denmark
Jeanne, I’m so thankful to be in critique group with you. You are so gracious to those of us in the organizationally-challenged category. When we publish our Writer’s Cookbook, you get TOP billing, which is only right as Brandy and I will contribute grilled cheese recipes, and you will offer delicious and healthy recipes for full meals!
Which brings me to my End of the Year To Do list–if I could once and for all develop some kind of system for healthy meal planning, it’d benefit my family and my writing life!
Jeanne T
Evangeling, my kids are wondering why I’m laughing so hard at this moment. Start getting those grilled cheese recipes ready, my friend! 😉
Jeanne T
I can’t take total credit for these traditions. Many years ago, as a teacher I read about the 5 kernels idea and used it in my classroom. When we had kids, I transfered the idea into a family tradition. I think the Thankful Journal idea came from Barbara Rainey at Family Life. My kids love them both, and we always go back through the journal and read previos years’ lists.
Mary, I love the idea of playing games or/and taking a walk. Sounds so relaxing. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Lisa
I LOVE organizing. I think I will be trying to focus on my WIP and proposal. I like to do lots of projects at the same time, but that makes it harder to actually finish something. The holidays are also a time for me to have permission to be still with my family. I love what surfaces in those moments.
Mary Keeley
Lisa, I’d say if you can accomplish work on your WIP and your proposal and have precious time with your family in December, you will be in excellent shape to begin 2013.
Kathryn Barker
I’m ready to establish a new plan for this next year and to revise my goal list.
Tossing antiquated clothes and shoes (yikes, not sure I can do this) from my closet is a high priority.
And the bountiful tea stash cupboard is next. Why do I keep two tablespoons of Berry Berry or Shanghi Lime tea?
Glad you mentioned the electronic files…that is also a must.
Polishing my proposal and WIP remain at the top of my list.
Thanks Mary for the great suggestions…have a tea-riffic weekend!
Mary Keeley
Kathryn, it looks like you’ve already been thinking about cleaning and reorganizing. I hope you have fun checking all those tasks on your to-do list as you complete them.
How long can you keep tea and be confident it is still fresh?
Kathryn Barker
Mary, loose leaf tea can be kept for at least a year if stored in an airtight opaque container. However, tea hoarder that I am, I have steeped tea I’ve had for more than two years and haven’t noticed any detrimental taste issues.
Do you have a favorite tea?
Lindsay Harrel
This year, my CP and I are using the last few weeks of the year to crank out our first drafts and get them ready for critique just before Christmas. 🙂 It will feel good to end the year knowing we both have a manuscript ready for polishing and revision.
I am taking time off of work (full-time job) and writing the week of Christmas, and I’m so looking forward to relaxing at home with my husband and dogs, being grateful for all the blessings I’ve been given.
Mary Keeley
Lindsay, that sounds like a well-balanced plan. Best wishes for a solid first draft. And enjoy the cozy time at home. You’ll be rested and ready to dive in to the new year.
Jeanne T
Good for you, Lindsay! May your fingers fly over the keyboard! 🙂
Nikole Hahn
The paperwork (groan). I need to organize it before the tax year and get my writing organized. Good idea to wait until January to submit things like proposals. Meanwhile, write, write, write.
Mary Keeley
Nicole, I know what you mean about paperwork. I’m good about organizing financial papers for taxes, but I have a pile under my desk that is waiting for new folders to be created.
Jennifer Major
For me, the “end of the year” is June. When all psychotic running in 100 different directions boils down to soccer practice and who gets the good lawn chair.
I cannot keep my house clean or free of that certain aroma that comes from 4 hockey bags in the TV room.
Febreeze, Lysol and denial are quite helpful.
If I can get my MS tucked away and the sequel ready for the crit peeps by Christmas, then I’ll be alright.
Ann Bracken
Ah, denial, my favorite way of dealing with countertops, bathrooms, bedrooms and the freshness of the air.
Mary Keeley
Ah, I remember those days well, Jennifer, even the scent, LOL. I hope you reach your goal by Christmas. Might I suggest some fresh balsam for the holidays.
Jennifer Major @Jjumping
Great idea Mary! I may just fill the bags with balsam boughs NOW! Are/were you a hockey mom?
Laura Frantz
Love this, Mary. You’re so right – there’s always room for improvement. I recently spent several hours cleaning out my office after turning in another book and OH MY! I felt loads lighter after taking several wheelbarrow loads (no joke) out. It left me wondering why I’d let things get so cluttered.
Thank you for your thoughts above and especially this gem – *Prayer, praise, guidance, and thanksgiving for the gift and passion God entrusted to you.
Amen.
Happy early Thanksgiving to you and everyone at Books&Such:)
Mary Keeley
Impressive cleaning, Laura. You are an inspiration. I look forward to that loads lighter feeling.
Happy early Thanksgiving to you as well.
Kathryn Elliott
Happy Thanksgiving, Mary! (And to all the other blog-o-sphere friends!)I have a great, albeit unattractive, organizing tip for anyone with sports-kids. I keep a Rubbermaid trash can, the BIG kind you drag to the curb, beside the entry door from the garage into the house. After (sporting event of choice) my kids drop all their equipment in the bucket so when we leave for the next (sporting event of choice) we avoid, “Where’s my glove, stick, bat?” Works like a charm. The cans are also a great way to store all your gardening equipment in one spot, (rakes, shovels, brooms), head up/handle down.
My urgent task? Finish the WIP. I’m crafting a letter to Santa for a stocking full of uninterrupted time.
Mary Keeley
Happy Thanksgiving to you too, Kathryn. Thanks for those great tips. I wish I’d thought of them while my athletes were growing up. I hope you get your uninterrupted time over the holidays.
Kathryn Elliott
Happy Thanksgiving, Mary! (And to all the other blog-o-sphere friends!)I have a great, albeit unattractive, organizing tip for anyone with sports-kids. I keep a Rubbermaid trash can, the BIG kind you drag to the curb, beside the entry door from the garage into the house. After (sporting event of choice) my kids drop all their equipment in the bucket so when we leave for the next (sporting event of choice) we avoid, “Where’s my glove, stick, bat?” Works like a charm. The cans are also a great way to store all your gardening equipment in one spot, (rakes, shovels, brooms), head up/handle down.
My urgent task? Finish the WIP. I’m crafting a letter to Santa for a stocking full of uninterrupted time. 🙂
Gabrielle Meyer
Thank you for the helpful tips, Mary. I love the months of November and December for all the nostalgia and traditions. My husband owns a landscaping business, so the end of November means it’s time for him to be home and over the winter months we work on all the household projects that are left undone through the summer. This winter we’re focusing on the walk-out basement that hasn’t been renovated yet. I have a room picked out, facing the Mississippi, that will be mine, all mine! In a household with four young children, I’ve been craving a writing space where I can spread out and dream.
Happy thanksgiving!
Mary Keeley
Happy thanksgiving and congratulations on getting your own writing and dreaming room with a gorgeous view , Gabrielle. That will be a pleasant way to launch into the new year. And how nice you’ll have time to focus on those household projects.
Erin Keeley Marshall
Thanks for the great tips. I love the clearheaded feeling I get after I’ve purged and reorganized. Love, love, love it!
One other area I like to get a handle on before the year is up is the receipts and invoices for tax purposes. When I feel like I’ve got the general numbers in my head regarding writing and editing income and expenses, I feel as though I can be ready when all the forms start coming into my mailbox in January. And it helps me plan and set goals for the following year.
Mary Keeley
Yes, thanks for adding that to the list, Erin. Why wait until tax season is bearing down. Organizing receipts and invoices now is a great head start.
Ann Bracken
My goals for the end of the year is to:
1) see if what I wrote for NaNoWriMo is worth keeping.
2) work on edits from a previous book.
3) start outlining the next book.
4) scrape the snow off the ground and plant my flowering bulbs (at least the garlic and shallots got planted!).
5) spend as much time as possible with the chickens who flew the coop before they head out in their separate directions again while keeping the one still at home happy.
The Thanksgiving tradition in my husband’s family (where we’ll be this year) is to eat ourselves silly and then marinate in front of many Scrabble boards, having our annual championship rounds. Even the young kids participate. It’s a heated competition with loads of laughter. They really like the themed games (ie: all words must come from the Harry Potter series).
Ann Bracken
Note to self: must proof-read more thoroughly before posting.
My goals for the end of the year ARE to:
Gabrielle Meyer
Ann, I wish there was an edit button on blog comments! After I hit send, I realized I didn’t capitalize the T in Thanksgiving. 😉
Christina Berry Tarabochia
Because the chicken comment followed the gardening goal, at first I really thought you had much loved chickens you wanted to spend quality time with. LOL-I live in Oregon and this wouldn’t be far off!
Jennifer Major @Jjumping
Ann? Did someone say Scrabble???
Care to play for money?
Or, heyyyyy, winner gets a 3 book deal!!
(I’m totally bragging now, I once scored 523 against the computer.)
Gabrielle Meyer
I’ll take you on, Jennifer! My mother-in-law is a Master Scrabbler (is it a thing?) and she’s teaching me her tricks, but I know she’s keeping a few up her sleeve because she continues to beat me. 🙂
Mary Keeley
Ann, do you agree that writing them down as you’ve done helps you to make the best use of your time each day?
Your Thanksgiving tradition sounds much like my family’s.
Jenny Leo
Sounds like a great plan, Mary. I’m glad you mentioned Sandra Felton. I’ve appreciated many of her books over the years, starting with “The Messies Manual.”
Mary Keeley
Yes, Jenny, I thought “The Organizer Lady” would be quickly associated with our topic.
Wanda Rosseland
I’ve been working on cleaning my office and trying to figure out how to organize my writing for next year, on a calendar. I’d like a biggish one with spaces large enough to write on and so far haven’t found one that looks like it would work. Do any of you use a calendar or planner for listing writing goals and projects?
Love the five popcorn kernels for thanks. We have a lot to thank the Pilgrims and Indians for. Happy Thanksgiving all!
Mary Keeley
Wanda, how about a big desktop calendar that you could hang on the wall when you aren’t adding to or checking something off that’s completed?
Susi Robinson Rutz
Mary, I’m working out how I will delegate in the next year to free up the time I need to progress on my manuscript, schedule speaking engagements and focus on my blog to help build my platform. I tend to be a bit of a control freak and want to have my hands in everything, but I realize that a solid plan for delegating tasks is the only way that I will be able to realize my publishing dreams.
Mary Keeley
Susi, that’s a milestone realization. Those you delegate might not do things as thoroughly as you would, but it’s okay (talking to self as well).
Cheryl Malandrinos
These types of posts tend to be my favorites. I’m organized by nature, but the end of the year gets my mind ready to set goals for the coming year. That means I finalize things that have been left hanging around for too long. I hate to start a new year with unfinished business.
I’ve spent the day organizing one of my gazillion bookcases, getting rid of books I won’t read again in order to donate them to the church tag sale. That will help me unclutter my office too, where the books are in piles on the floor because I have no space for them. 🙂
Like you, this year has gotten away from me. My first goal for 2013: learn to say no more often.
Mary Keeley
Good point about organizing time, Cheryl. It’s why a daily or weekly schedule is beneficial. I’m going to allow flex time each week for service, either regular and spontaneous. When that window is filled, I know it’s time to say no. Would that work for you too?
Cheryl Malandrinos
It might help. My challenge is that my work schedule is so unpredictable. Some of my time is also dedicated to my blogs, many of which I use to promote authors. I truly hate to say no to someone looking for book promotion.
Jackie Layton
I think you must have posted this for me.
Organization is not my strongest suit. It’s also good to know to approach an agent in December.
Thanks for all the great tips, and happy Thanksgiving!
Mary Keeley
You’re welcome, Jackie. Happy Thanksgiving.
Anita Mae Draper
Great suggestions, Mary.
Traditionally, I use the first week of January for cleaning out files and putting books back on the shelves (that’s a biggie). They’re the days between Jan 1st and when the kids go back to school (typically 4-7th depending on the calendar). It’s a family thing, just like the Christmas holidays are family days…the days where I actually play games like Mario Kart, Wii Sports, and Connect Rafting with the family instead of hiding in my cave.
Good to know about agents not shopping proposals in December. Thanks!
Mary Keeley
Anita, it sounds like that system works efficiently in a week’s time, with you and your family in the same mode. I’m impressed.
Cecelia Dowdy
Urgent tasks? Yikes!! My list is endless!!
Donna Clark Goodrich
My biggest goal for next year (besides books I’m working on) is to get my marketing records in order. About three years ago (at the advice of a well-meaning friend) I put all my sales/ rejections, etc. on disk and destroyed the paper records. You can guess what happened? My computer crashed and I lost all the records. Now I have to go back and reconstruct them–at least the sales for which I have copies in notebooks. I’m not so worried about re-submitting to those who rejected them earlier as probaby editors and needs have changed, plus I will have tweaked them to make them better. When I finish that, I can start sending out reprints again…The other thing I’m going to do next year is PUT MYSELF IN MY SCHEDULE. With writing and also proofreading and editing for writers and publishers, and taking care of a disabled husband, my energy runs thin sometimes.
Marilyn Rhoads
Thank you for your tips on organization, and the blog on grammar. Two of my critique groups have shared your comments.
We’re working on incorporating the new changes, especially the s’s change.
Enjoy the holidays!