See what's new in The Faerie Apothecary Mystery Series.
I'm left handed, as you might be able to tell by the way my coffee cup is facing in the picture above. When I was growing up, we all believed the myths about handedness and brain dominance - that left handed people are creative but a little scatterbrained. We know now that's more myth than fact, but I believed it. That's mostly because I actually fit the stereotype.
As a kid, I was always thinking up stories and poems but forgetting my books, pencils, or other objects behind in class. Strangely, my math textbook was the one most forgotten. I wonder why. The absent-mindedness did not fade with age but my management skills improved.
That's a blessing now. While my desk isn't always as tidy as in the picture above, I am a pretty organized person. To do lists run my life and without them, I'd be lost. I have to admit that I don't always follow to-do lists and that even though I am a plotter for my books, I don't always abide by the outlines. In fact, I usually re-do the outline a few times for any book I work on.
Those redos mean that I work a little slower than I'd like. Still, I know that about myself, so I work that into my plans. It's like hitting the button on an alarm. I give myself allowance to hit the button once or twice - but that's it.
With my work, I give myself back-up due dates when I write. The first is generally the "best case scenario" due date, which is usually super optimistic. The second is the "still on track" due date, which is ahead of schedule. The last is the "lighting the fire" due date, which is the absolute last date before I start to panic. I try not to get to that one, but if I do, I know that it's the date of no return. Past that point, I'll only panic, so I don't give myself permission to cross that line.
These dates are a crutch. I don't want to build them into my schedule, but I used to be a perfectionist and nothing got done. Since life doesn't really allow anyone to be a perfectionist, when I'm tempted to think that way, I repeat the well-known mantra: Done is better than perfect, from Sheryl Sandberg's book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. I find that the mantra is the best way to channel my scatterbrained, perfectionist, to-do list making personality into getting things done.
So, what's been done this month?
I'm excited to announce that Chaos in the Countryside is now available as an audiobook! It's been narrated by Elizabeth Klett, who is just absolutely fantastic.
I'm doing an audiobook giveaway for my subscribers, so if you're subscribed this website you're automatically entered to win! Rules and conditions can be found here.
I'm also happy to unveil the cover for Charms and Changelings, Book 4 in the Faerie Apothecary Mysteries. You can read more about the upcoming book here.
I'm working on a few more projects right now, so stay tuned for more announcements!