Sweet November

No, this is not a stray movie post, and I haven't seen that particular movie. The title reference comes from looking at my schedule for November and going "eep." Thankfully (heh) Thanksgiving plans are firm and at least one pre-Thanksgiving outing with other friends is set. The eep-inducing schedule items include:

• moderating this awesome online workshop on Riding the Writing Life Rollercoaster with instructor Barbara Wallace
• While simultaneously taking another online workshop on voice because that's my focus for the learning-to-be-a-better-writer part of life
• also making all the mumblemumbles for Christmas presents because this is the first time I get to devote to that now that things have (hah) relatively settled down
• I signed up for NaNoWriMo (I'm Unzadi on there; feel free to friend me) to pound out a draft of Nothing Short of Heaven
• polishing two, count them, two projects that have editors or agents wanting a look at them
• plotting out (pun unintended, but what the heck, it fits) my workload for the next year
• including roughing out the level two of my From Fanfiction to Fantastic Fiction workshop
• new art techniques and frequent practice (reference above mention of mumblemumbles)
• read at least one book a week, as if I'm not reading, I'm not writing

Know what? I love it. The more I have to do in this regard, the better I do it. I work great under pressure, but if left to work free-range, as it were, I'll wander off and be found days later with naught but a vintage paperback and a Moleskine notebook filled with incomprehensible scribbles about Moonlight, Lapsang Souchong tea and the fashions of Georgian England. Or in a fetal position under my desk, clutching a half emptied bag of chocolate covered gummi bears.

I bemoaned my crammed schedule to a friend last night, who gave me a knowing look and said "you're going to do it all and it's all going to be great." Since this friend is the pragmatic, sensible sort, I'm betting she's going to be right. I'll still whinge at some points and I do still want the chocolate covered gummi bears, but I'm looking forward to a great November.