Thursday’s Post-Publication Post: One Writer’s Summer To-Do List
North of the equator, we’ve just begun summer. Although I’m still going to be working 40 hours a week in my day job, still running the usual errands, still partaking in the same family responsibilities (and joys), I’m also hoping to accomplish certain writing-related goals before we merge into fall.
After all, for six weeks this summer, my 40 hours at the office will be recalibrated: heavier on Mondays-Thursdays with “summer Fridays” off. I hope to use those Fridays wisely. And I hope that I can use the general light and energy of the summer to help infuse some projects under way and others that I hope to start.
Herewith, items on my list of writerly hopes, plans, ambitions, and commitments for the season.
“MY” WRITING
- Continue promotion for Quiet Americans; track progress of new (non-Kindle) versions; calculate and send Q2 contribution to The Blue Card.
- Complete work on new short story and figure out if it may be a novel chapter; begin new story/novel chapter.
- Write at least one new poem; revise existing poem drafts.
- Draft Israel-related essay.
- Check where submissions are outstanding; follow up if appropriate; send out new submissions.
- Research/apply for short-term residencies for winter-spring 2012.
ASSIGNMENTS (SELF-IMPOSED/SOLICITED AND OTHER)
- Practice and deliver presentation for Manhattanville Writers Week session on “Social Media Strategies for Writers”.
- Research and write article due to The Writer on August 1.
- Prepare Q&A re: The Borrower, by Rebecca Makkai.
- Prepare Q&A re: Rethinking Creative Writing, by Stephanie Vanderslice.
- Prepare Q&A re: The Little Bride, by Anna Solomon.
- Peruse fall/winter catalogs for possible titles to review and monitor reviews-in-progress (track ARCs, read, write, etc.).
- Prepare and distribute July/August/September issues of The Practicing Writer.
- Consider if I want/need to seek additional fall/winter assignments.
QUALITY OF WRITING LIFE
- Research and purchase new computer.
- Have “writing dates” with friends.
- Make (and keep) annual appointments with ophthalmologist and optometrist. (Considering how much time I spend squinting into screens, taking care of my eyes seems more and more important.)
- Get apartment windows washed (and other household tasks). (It’s nice to have a clear view once those eyes are checked.)
- Read, read, read.
- Catch up on movies/go to museums/attend concerts & readings. Art feeds off other art! (And I live in New York City, for crying out loud! I’m practically tripping over all of these opportunities!)
- Get to the gym or go for a jog 2-3 times a week. (Sure, more would be nice, but let’s be realistic here, given my schedule and my usual response to heat and humidity.) Exercise energizes the body and helps clear and focus the mind.
And what about you? Have any of you made summer writing to-do lists? Care to share what’s on them?