Travel, Goals and Sex Words (that got your attention, didn’t it?)

Travel

I am so distracted by the RWA’s Annual Conference next week that I’m finding it hard to think about anything else.

Today I ran around like a crazy woman picking up the last minute things I thought I needed. Only to get home, take stock of what I already had and realize I probably only needed about half of what I bought. * sigh * I get a little crazed whenever I travel and think I have to buy new everything. But I did need to get sunscreen, travel size contact solution, Tide To Go and socks. The two new outfits were completely unnecessary, but I’ll pack them anyway.

Goals and Expectations

I was reading the newsletter that Holly Lisle sends out. If you’re not familiar with Holly, go to hollylisle.com (I’m adding it to my favorite websites list). Holly writes sci-fi, fantasy and offers tons of free advice for writers, as well as books on writing and classes you can take. I took her ‘How To Think Sideways’ course—highly recommend it if you’re looking for away to kick start your writing and learning how to talk to your muse. It’s fascinating. Oh, and learning about the four thinking barriers—worth the price of the whole course, IMO.

In her newsletter this week she talks about setting goals and having expectations and how to tell the difference. She describes a goal as something you have control of—an action you control the outcome of. An expectation is something that others control. For example—Saying that you are going to complete your novel in a year is a goal. You control if you do indeed complete your novel in one year. No one else does. Saying that you will be on the NYT bestseller’s list is an expectation. You have no control over whether or not you sell your book to a publisher or an agent or how many people will buy that book. Holly goes on to say that in order to avoid disappointment you need to differentiate between an expectation and a goal. If you think that being on the NYT bestseller’s list is a goal, you will end up frustrated and disappointed.

Holly goes on to suggest sitting down and making a list and identifying which are goals and which are expectations and then start working on the goals. Working on the goals may lead to realizing some of your expectations. But, as with everything in life, it isn’t a guarantee. But you will certainly never make it to the NYT bestseller’s list if you NEVER write that book. I believe after I return from Orlando I will be taking her up on her advice.  

Sex Words

If you haven’t yet, or never have, check out Vauxhall Vixens blog. This week Eloisa James was their guest blogger. She wrote about ‘sex words’. It was great and the comments back were equally interesting. In the end I think nearly every person who commented was in agreement that anything ‘throbbing’ or ‘heaving’ was over done and in some case, just plain frightening. You can find Vauxhall Vixens at http://vauxhallvixens.blogspot.com/

Next week's blog

Not sure if I'll be posting next week. I will have a laptop with me, but Friday is a full day of workshops and I don't know if I'll have enough energy, or brains, left to write a post, but you just never know. 

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