It's all down on paper, but now what?

My last post was about reading. So much of the in-between then and now has been spent on publishing. I made a promise to myself that, before my birthday, I would have all of my “awaiting publication” books moved to “published.” Specifically, my Classroom Management for the Real World book that I published last year as an eBook would now come out in paperback. It is now.

I feel pretty accomplished in getting that task done. However, my brain has now gone to mush. I'm feeling a tiny bit overwhelmed by the tasks in front of me with events for Panther City Review, dealing with governmental agencies setting up direct sales (something I wasn't really planning to do and is now a paperwork nightmare), and trying to figure out just what's next for me. I have a potential book to publish from an author I respect, but to get started on that…it's daunting! First things first, though. I have to actually read the thing!

When I think back to why I began all of this in the first place, I realize that I've lost my way a bit. I started Fort Worth Writer’s Boot Camp as my escape from a bad work situation. I took the plunge and decided that, before I was 40, I would be a professional writer. Two months later, as reality was smacking me hard on the butt, I realized I needed a paying gig. I was contemplating my options when my dream library job opened up for me. I did not let the opportunity pass me by.

Three years later, I'm happy in my library, but I'm not writing like I should be. I am a professional, independently published author, but not of the type of writing I want to be known for. I need to get back to my novel. To something that brings out that creativity. I'm slowly letting go of extra activities that do not serve my final mission in life: to write and to publish. Getting myself back on track to what I need to do for me is of the utmost importance right now. Reclaiming a little bit here and there. Not jumping from one thing to another, but creating a stable environment to thrive. That is what I need. Really, that is what we all need to be able to accomplish what we desire in life.

Book Readin'

I usually feel an aching need to write sometimes. It burns within me and I must get words down on paper. I can't stop thinking of the stories in my head.

Today, though, I feel an aching need to read. My stories in my head aren't enough. I need the stories of others. I need my mind to expand further than that it currently contains. I need books. I need to see other people's words. Challenge myself intellectually.

So, what am I reading? The Zhivago Affair: The Kremlin, theCIA, and the Battle Over a Forbidden Book by Peter Finn and Petra Couvée. This is one of the two book club books for The Last Word Bookstore’s book club. The other, is Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak. I haven't read it yet, but I really hope to before the meeting at the end of the month. It's pretty a dense read, so the non-fiction gets hit up first. I'm a bit behind in my reading because I've been working steadily on the publication of both Panther City Review and my little book, Classroom Management for the Real World, but the Prologue has me sucked in already.

Of course, I did have to stop and write about that, but I am so ready to be a reader this week. Off to my books!