I know it’s been at least a month since I got in on Company Girl Coffee. I was determined to play today, which means I had to do a little copy and pasting. Havi has a Friday ritual too called The Friday Chicken where we all chime in on our weeks: what was hard and what was good. So here is my week in review, The Hard and The Good:
The Hard
I have not slept most of this week due to the evil, demonic entity known as insomnia. The rest of the hard stems from that. I’m way behind reading a book I’m reviewing, I’m way behind on the sermon I will be preaching Sunday, I’m way behind on writing projects and finding paying writing gigs. I’m way behind.
The Good
Hiring the personal trainer was a really good thing. I need the accountability to take care of myself through physical exercise. Plus I was feeling like crap yesterday when I went in (see evil, demonic insomnia above), and by the time we were done, I felt great. And I felt good the rest of the day. Getting up and moving does help me feel better. Now I need to find the same sort of accountability for my writing.
Columbia College’s Story Week Festival of Writers was just tremendous. I went around and heard authors read their work and talk about the craft, and it was marvelous. David Morrell (his books include First Blood, The Brotherhood of the Rose, and The Shimmer) totally rocks, and it you ever get a chance to hear him speak go. Change whatever you have to, reschedule whatever you have to, sell the dog if you have to, if you’re a writer and get the chance: GO! His love and dedication to writing is phenomenal. He is very blunt about how hard it is, but it’s also very obvious how much he loves what he does. And he has lots of good practical advice. I’ve just ordered his book The Successful Novelist. (Sorry for no links for the books, I don’t have the time right now. I’ll try to get them in later.)
I was sent a free book to do an advance review of by one of my favorite theologians! (N. T. Wright in case anyone was wondering.) And it is a very good book, and one that the Western Protestant Christian Church needs to hear. I’m not sure how much I can say before the reviews start going up, but I’ll let you know when I post the review.
I have set the number of pages I need to write a day on The Book Proposal. Like David Morrell said yesterday, I will write them everyday, no matter how long it takes. He made the point that writing is a perishable skill, and if you don’t use it everyday, you will lose it. That my friends, is one of my problems: I write a couple of times a week and am constantly reteaching myself the basics. To move on, I am going to have to write everyday. I had never thought about it before, but he’s absolutely right. Just like playing scales on an instrument, if I’m going to be a virtuoso at what I do, I am going to have to practice everyday.
Now I have to get ready to head to yoga then on to Trader Joes. I hope everyone has a great weekend! Wait! Before I go here is the literal, photogenic view from my window:
We are having a beautiful day in Chicago, and I am going to enjoy it. It’s supposed to snow this weekend. You gotta love Midwest weather.
Your blog intriges me and I will bookmark it for the future when I have time to check it out more.
I hope you get more sleep from now on. I have had baby insomnia, where I don’t get to sleep for days because the baby keeps me up all night and my 5 year old keeps me up all day. A little bit different then your insomnia, but just as bad.
Hope you got your sermon done on time and that it goes well.
.-= Marianne Aanderbakk´s last blog ..At my house =-.
What a beautiful view. I would sit and look out the window all day. 🙂
Great post. Glad you linked up for coffee this week.
-Melissa
.-= Melissa´s last blog ..Company Girl Coffee 3.19.10 =-.
No I hadn’t seen that Annie Dillard quote, and I have not read that book. I’m going to have to get it. Thanks for passing it on!
I love seeing Lake Michigan in your photo. My husband and I miss Chicago. Maybe some day we’ll live there again…
My heart goes out to you over the insomnia that is afflicting you. Lack of sleep is a huge barrier for my productivity as well, though I’m not exactly an insomniac. I just stay up too late catching up on tasks that have been put off earlier.
Finally, I wondered if you’d ever come across this quote from Annie Dillard:
A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time.
A schedule is a mock-up of reason and order–willed, faked, and so brought into being.
(The Writing Life)
I share it because as I found it instructive, as I tends to drift off-task at home. It used to be posted on my wall; perhaps it’s time for a “re-post.”