Thoughtful Thursday - Procrastination "A Time Killer"

I recently read an article by Maria Mallory about the top six ways a writer procrastinates.  Guess what?  All of them involve social media, which means by writing this article I am procrastinating.  I'd like to say I'm surprised, but I'm not.  The six she listed are:

Twitter

Facebook

Blogging

Triberr

KDP/Pub It

Writer Forums

 Now a few of those are writer related only, but Twitter and Facebook along with Google+ chew up and swallow the time of everyone who chooses to play in their sandbox.  Time that some of us should be spending doing other things. 

Okay, as a writer, I'm guilty of all those listed above except Kindle Direct Publishing and Pub It, since I haven't yet ventured into self-publishing.  Although I do have a NovelRank account to track my Amazon sales.  However, I can't say I spend too much time ogling my sales numbers since they aren't very stellar at the moment, and I don't like getting depressed.

A great procrastination tool, which the author failed to mention, is Pinterest.  Also not specifically writer related.  I've visited and poked around, but managed not to fall prey to its enticements, yet.

E-mail is another evil, time-sucking vampire.  I spend way too many hours playing in my e-mail box, though I will admit most of what I'm reading are postings from the writer forums and Yahoo groups I've joined.  So, for my major time wasting activities, I'm an avid Triberr user, which counts as Twitter in my book, even if I am not directly viewing the tweets I've received.  Facebook, which I try to limit my postings to once a week.  Google+, which I should check once a week, but haven't so much as peeked in for a few months, and my two blogs where I currently do only 4 blog posts a week between them.  Even so, I don't spend as much time writing as I should.  So, now what?

 A week later, Mallory wrote another blog article on the six ways to combat procrastination.  What she lists is very good advice, except I know I won't follow it.  All the same, I'll share the list with you.

Disconnect your router - I'm not the only one using the Internet in our house, so that's not possible for me.

Turn off the phones - not a major time waster for me, so little point in doing something I'm simply going to have to undo a few hours afterwards.

Limit your music to non-intrusive instrumentals when you're writing - already do that, so it's not going to change anything for me.

Skip the household chores - What? I'm supposed to do housework? Who knew?

Enlist a writing buddy and/or timer - Just discovered "Write or Die," but haven't employed it yet, so that's still in the realm of possibilities for me.

Search out items that will inspire you to write - I tend to do this in my spare time, since I can get story ideas from the strangest places, like those little teasers you see on AOL's home page.

Most of these recommendations can be applied to anything you want to accomplish, not just writing.  Painting, needlework, even reading, if that's one of your goals.  So, although this article is directed toward writers, if you have a hobby or avocation that you just aren't getting to because of time wasters absorbing all your attention, maybe these suggestions from Maria Mallory will work for you, too.

It's a thought.

http://abcsoferotica.wordpress.com/2012/06/04/top-six-ways-to-procrastinate-as-a-writer/

http://abcsoferotica.wordpress.com/2012/06/11/top-six-ways-to-combat-writing-procrastination/

Thoughtful Thursday - What should authors do, write quickly, or write well?

Is that the question?  I recently read a blog article where the author indicated that writing one book a year wasn't sufficient to meet reader demand.  While I agree with the sentiment, I also don't think readers enjoy "cookie-cutter" romances or "by-the-book" thrillers.  With the number of free books being offered on Amazon for the Kindle, I know I won't run out of reading material for a long, long time.  In addition, I am purchasing books whenever my wallet will allow.  So, I'm not sure killing myself, as an author, will make my readers any happier.  I currently have three works in progress (WIPs).  Four, if my sequel to Mortal Illusions actually remains two separate books as it is now.  I wanted to get four or five books out by the end of the year, with one out in March.  Well, that didn't happen.  Still hasn't.  So, where did the time go?

Unfortunately, both my sequel to Mortal Illusions and my follow-up book to Arrested by Love required more revisions than I anticipated, so they are both still in the editing process right now.  I'm not happy about it, but I'd rather they be good than just published.  The past few weeks, I've been getting ready for a conference I'm attending the first weekend of June, so my writing time is suffering.  And, as a result, my blogging has suffered as well.  Sigh.

As for reading, I limit my reading time to just before bedtime (around 1 or 2 AM).  If I'm still wired after reading for an hour or so, I will listen to one of my books on tape (I subscribe to Audible).  That usually takes me to 3, sometimes 4 in the morning.  During the day, when I'm not "creating" swag, I try to spend my time writing or editing my current WIP.

Example of a Book Thong

I also want to stay on top of my e-mail and writing lists, learn new things, and communicate with other readers and writers.  So, given there are only so many hours in the day, and I do not function well without sleep, I'm trying to decide where my time is best spent.  I'm not sure all the time I'm spending creating "book thongs" for the conference is what I should be doing, but it meets a creative need, and I like giving away new "toys" to my readers.  So, I'll continue with my current plan.  As for my two blogs, well I'll need to beg your indulgence for a little while longer.

I will get back on schedule, but probably not until mid-June.  Until then, I'll try to post if I come across anything I feel I should share, however, I would be interested in your opinions regarding the number of books a year you think an author should publish.  One, two, four?  Inquiring minds want to know.

NY Times Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/business/in-e-reader-age-of-writers-cramp-a-book-a-year-is-slacking.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20120513