The Plot Bunny Farm

Happy autumn!

2017-09-23T02:48:25Z

Also known as “birds will start flying into the window any day now” season.

No words.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Almost equal

2017-09-22T02:56:44Z

Autumnal equinox is tomorrow. I’ve always loved fall, crunching leaves under foot, sipping cider… not so much the growing dark, but we can’t have everything.

Wrote 262 words today, in addition to freelance works and having the kids home from school. Not much, but it’s progress.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

That didn’t last long

2017-09-21T02:07:57Z

Would you be surprised to hear I haven’t tracked since Friday? Didn’t write today, either.

But have a short video I took today. I apologize for the spottiness; kitchen window needs cleaning. (Also, I hope this works. I’ve never uploaded video through the app before!)

http://www.erinmhartshorn.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/20170920_182610.mp4

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Friday! And progress has been made

2017-09-16T03:37:59Z

Slight hitch at the beginning of the day, as we ran out of milk. Had to make eggs for the girl’s breakfast. So I ran off to the store after getting her on the bus to school. First time in 13 years of living here that I had to stop for a train at the train tracks.

( Read the rest of this entry � )

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Distracted faction

2017-09-15T02:59:10Z

I started tracking! Or, well, I started to start. Except I forgot some categories I wanted to use (like “social” and “personal”), and I stopped tracking after I actually started getting anything done. We’ll see how tomorrow goes.

So what did I spend the rest of my day on? Discussing Oreos on Twitter, working on different ways of looking at the data from the SFWA survey (like which member categories have more females than males), and going to the open house at our son’s school.

After that, got home, talked with our daughter about her homework, got her to bed, and wrote 252 words. Still not where I want to be, but better than the last few days.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Slowing down again

2017-09-14T01:58:02Z

Last week went even better than I’d thought, with several days over 1,000 words. This week is being more of a struggle — not sleeping as well, trouble focusing, barely eking out a hundred words or so each day (119 today, for those keeping score). As I said in my newsletter — which went out today, a couple days late — I’m considering tracking my time to see how much I’m spending in the different areas of my life. If you’ve got experience or anecdotes about your own time tracking methods, drop them in the comments. I’m interested!

Meanwhile, I’ll be working on enjoying fall and watching the changing seasons around me. Here, one of our holly bushes is covered with berries, but they haven’t begun to redden yet.

And here we have the sedum, the flowers just starting to open.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Weird split

2017-09-07T03:05:09Z

I was talking to our son today about current conditions in our country — specifically, the west is on fire, whereas the southernmost regions are reeling from Harvey or braced for Irma. Further north, we’re getting all the rain the west could use. So, yeah, weird split between fire and water. I’m concerned about all those in Irma’s path, those already hit and those bracing for impact.

The roughest thing for me about seeing these sorts of disasters is there’s nothing I can do. I can’t prevent them. I can’t lessen them. I can’t keep people from getting hurt. I can donate to those who can help, and that’s about it.

So I go about my day with only occasional checks of the news, as well as watching social media to see if my friends are safe. And I did manage words again.

Words written today: 1,032
Words written this month: 3,073
Words written 2017: 158,384
Average words/day 2017: 636
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)

Progress continues!

All of you out there — stay safe.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Big joys and small joys

2017-09-05T22:15:47Z

Big joy: The OPPM was released to SFWA’s membership today. Yes, it had the caveat that it’s always a work in progress, and will be updated in the future, but it’s out!

Another big joy: I got good words today. Well, I’ll know if they’re actually good later, but it’s certainly a good amount.

Words written today: 1,071
Words written this month: 2,041
Words written 2017: 157,352
Average words/day 2017: 634
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: nothing yet
Books read 2017: ? (Yes, I still need to figure that out.)

But look at that — twice the number of words I set as my goal! *happy dance*

Small joy: Season 7 of My Little Pony is out on Netflix, finally, so my daughter did her own little happy dance. (The Internet was reporting it was supposed to be out last month, but no such luck.)

Small sadness: It’s pouring rain, which means I won’t be going to the weekly meet-up of the NaNo group writers. But I miss more often than I go, so it’s only a small sadness.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Summer reprise

2017-09-05T03:36:30Z

Today, I did the same thing I did most of the summer — saw my husband off to work, then went back to bed. May have been a mistake, given the current time and the fact that I can’t do it tomorrow, but I enjoyed the sleep.

Today’s count: 518 words

So far, so good.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Doubling up!

2017-09-04T02:19:07Z

In this case, I have doubled from 112 words yesterday to 226 words today, all written while my daughter was doing soccer practice. I must have looked a little odd sitting there in my camp chair, left hand wrapped around both the umbrella handle and the iPad, as I pecked away with my right hand. Very happy with the words.

Also was pleased with daughter, who was not the fastest nor most graceful on her team, but who did happily participate. And when they switched from practice to play, she did her best, first on defense and then as goalie. Next week, though, we’ll definitely bring a hair tie for her.

The rest of the weekend was split between puttery house and family stuff (organizing under the kitchen sink, baking chocolate chip cookies, supervising daughter very laxly as she did laundry) and SFWA stuff (hit a milestone on the OPPM). Oh, and watching my husband play Arkham Knight.

I’ve got a lot on the agenda for work and SFWA and home this coming week, too, but I want to ramp up the writing to at least 500 words per day this week. I won’t lie — I want more. I’d love to be doing ten times that and have the next book drafted in a couple of weeks. But I know I can’t jump from here to there without burning out — and probably dropping other things I’m responsible for getting done as well. So I’m setting the bar at 500 this week, and we’ll see how that goes.

(Oh, yeah — and it’s occurred to me that Inktober is in less than a month! I can’t wait!)

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Turn of the month

2017-09-02T02:37:54Z

Happy September! And so the first week of the school year has passed, and the early stages of fall are upon us.

I got 114 words today. I also totaled up my August work, and I’m not terribly thrilled with it — only 8,802 words for the month, an average of less than 300 per day. Clearly, I have to do better this month.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

More loose ends

2017-09-01T02:10:12Z

Although I did write yesterday, I got to it so late, I didn’t bother posting. For the record, I got 101 words yesterday and 160 today.

So many things to juggle — SFWA work on the OPPM, invoicing for copyediting, finishing up an application for the Sustainable Arts Foundation’s award for writers who are also parents, taking the kids shopping for shoes (and pants for the girl, as she outgrew last year’s), back to school night to meet teachers, school paperwork — and that’s just today and yesterday. As I said, lots of loose ends, and this week is just about tying some of them off.

One of the girl’s homework assignments is to bring leaves to school so they can classify them. Maybe I should send a hosta leaf with her.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Watermelon nights

2017-08-30T02:33:31Z

Today’s subject line brought to you by this earworm that a friend gifted me with to cheer me up:

Good day. Finished a freelance job, visited the library, bought a watermelon from a farm stand (as I said, earworm), and managed to track down the particular notebook our son needs for one class. And I wrote 152 words and finished off the current scene.

This week, as I try to catch up loose ends and make sure the kids get off on the right foot for school, my goal is at least 100 words a day. Next week, it can go up again.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

End of the line

2017-08-26T03:44:22Z

Last day of summer vacation (not counting the weekend). I didn’t spend as much time as I could have this week with the kids, though I did make sure to spend some.

Still writing, too. 451 words today, after SFWA stuff and freelance work. More next week!

The big adventure for the week, though, was going to Genrepalooza in Manhattan. Organized by MWA’s NY chapter and HWA, it had writers from RWA (NY chapter there, too, I believe), SFWA, the Author’s Guild, and maybe others — I didn’t talk to everyone, and the pictures I took are blurry. I enjoyed the trip, though, and took pics in New York. Had to take pictures of the Chrysler Building, as anyone who’s read my short story “Blood and Gold” will understand.

Pictures from the trip:

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

In a pickle

2017-08-23T03:31:42Z

I had trouble settling down to work today — a touch nervous about tomorrow’s adventure, which I’ll likely post about on Thursday — so I did a mix of things. I did a chunk of freelance proofreading, and told the author she’ll have the file back Friday. Also did some cooking — a pot of beans, plus a dozen jars of sliced pickles. I was going to make salsa, too, or bake the latest recipe from Sparkle World with our daughter, but that seemed like a bit much.

Eventually settled enough to write 142 words. It’s not a lot, but it is progress.

And for those keeping track, six days until the kids are back in school (Monday). I have mixed emotions about this. On the one hand, peace and quiet and lack of interruptions will be sort of nice. On the other, I like being able to spend some time each day with them. (Of course, if I get a ton of words next week, the emotions won’t be mixed at all!)

And now, photos of the pickle process.

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

Eclipsed work

2017-08-21T23:12:55Z

(Which is probably at least the three hundredth eclipse pun headline you’ve seen today, I know.)

I have to confess that I haven’t been writing much. The last week was focused on getting Siren Circle up for sale. Today, while waiting in line for eclipse viewing glasses, I started outlining another novella — this one to be a prequel novella, before Ghost Garages, and thus hopefully a good hook for people to start the series. I will get back to work on the third Boston Technowitch book, though.

So pictures today:

Originally published at . You can comment here or there.

comments

And done again (mostly)

2017-08-16T01:24:34Z

Still have to do a couple tweaks on the last chapter, plus argue with Word on some formatting issues. (Sometimes unchecking “Same as previous” for header works; sometimes it doesn’t.) Yes, it really is like this, one thing and then one more thing, when you already think you’re done.

In more fun news, I’m getting ready to dive into the results from SFWA’s membership survey! Can’t wait to see what everyone had to say.

And then more words on book 3 …

What are you up to?

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Mushrooms!

2017-08-14T23:32:47Z

In our yard. Which is not fantastic, but not exactly surprising, either. And gives an indication of just how much rain we’ve been getting.

Anyway, not a lot on the new word front today, and what there was, I didn’t count, as I was working through edits on Siren Circle and hence, both adding and deleting as I went. I may add some words later on book 3, Troll Tunnels.

Meanwhile, enjoy these pictures.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Today was a perfect ten

2017-08-11T02:40:04Z

(On the calendar, at least.)

In actual fact, it wasn’t a bad day. I got some normal adulting tasks done, knocked a couple freelance tasks off my to-do list, poked at the writing (yeah, not a lot there — only 59 words), and cooked dinner. But I’m going to try to get to bed before 11 and hope sleep will make tomorrow more productive.

Words written today: 59
Words written this month: 7,563
Words written 2017: 154,072
Average words/day 2017: 694
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: 5
Books read 2017: ?
Days until school starts: 18

The month’s good start is rapidly falling away. Have to see if I can get back on track next week.

Tonight’s dinner

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Just one more thing

2017-08-10T04:23:44Z

… and one more, and one more, and …

Is it just me? I keep taking on little things at random intervals, and that works great for a week or two, but then these other little things land, and suddenly I’m needing more sleep so I’m clear-headed enough for everything, but I’m not sure how to get more in my schedule. Yeah, maybe that’s just me. And it’s a recent thing, too — used to be I’d skip sleep to try to get everything done,forgetting about diminishing returns.

Anyway, only 152 words today, but also some thoughts for further down the series, so that’s good.

Random things from today:

Saw the new building that my husband’s department got moved to.

Made a simple strawberry ice cream with the girl. (Whip 2 cups heavy cream with 1 can sweetened condensed milk. Fold in 2 cups mashed strawberries and some pink food coloring. Stick it in the freezer.)

Made the okonomiyaki again. Pickled ginger is a good addition. As is bacon.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Insert witticism here

2017-08-09T02:57:08Z

Another slow day. Got some progress on projects for SFWA this morning, including forward momentum on the Operations, Policies, and Procedures Manual (OPPM). Told the members at the business meeting during the Nebula Conference that we’d have the OPPM out to them by Labor Day, and I’m moving forward on it. (Note: this is a living document, which is to say it will always be a document in progress, as procedures are updated, added, or deleted, so at best, it will be the current version, subject to revision, with new versions issued periodically. I still would like it as complete as possible before issuing this version to the membership.)

Also took the kids to the comics and game store, the library, and the ice cream shop. Also went over them expectations for their summer homework. (Reading for the boy, practicing multiplication facts for the girl.)

And I wrote.

Words written today: 336
Words written this month: 7,352
Words written 2017: 153,861
Average words/day 2017: 699
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: 2 more chapters of Castle Hangnail
Books read 2017: ?
Days until school starts: 20

Fallen below 1k/day for this month, so I’m going to have to work on that. But other stuff on tomorrow’s agenda, including some more freelance work, as well as final edits on Siren Circle.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Must be Monday

2017-08-08T02:04:44Z

Mostly because I was supposed to get back to work — may have taken the weekend off, but it’s a work day now — and I didn’t really want to. Started to work through feedback on Siren Circle, though, and if all goes well, I should be formatting it tomorrow to get up for sale. But editing is a lot of “Hmmm, change this clause here, move these two paragraphs to a different chapter, and add a couple lines of explanation here.” So, not a lot of new words today. More than yesterday, though, when I literally did NO WORDS AT ALL.

Words written today: 2,450
Words written this month: 7,016
Words written 2017: 153,525
Average words/day 2017: 701
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: 4 chapters of Castle Hangnail with daughter
Books read 2017: ?
Days until school starts: 21

(And yes, I just looked at Excel, saw my count was at 6,998 for the month and opened Scrivener back up just to cross the 7k mark for the month and stay above 1k/day for the month.)

By the way, if you want to see some gorgeous artwork, head to Twitter and check out the #visiblewomen hashtag.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

A few words, anyway

2017-08-06T04:46:05Z

Tonight was gaming night. (They stopped right before facing Strahd! They wanted to prepare spells and be well rested. What’s a DM to do? *ponders adding traps to encounter* [probably not]) So, as I’m the current DM, I spent a good chunk of the day prepping maps — and of course, the players went different directions than expected, so I had to draw a couple on the fly.

Fabulous time with our friends (and wonderful food, too!), which in turn means only 47 words for the day. With which I’m happy, so all is well with the world.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Words continue

2017-08-05T02:59:00Z

Not as many today as yesterday, but still a respectable amount. Quite pleased to have crossed the 10,000-word mark on the new novel. (No, edits on Siren Circle are not complete yet. Soon!) Might spend some of my time this weekend making sure this beginning is solid — everyone introduced or re-introduced clearly, sufficient description, nothing contradicting earlier books. The cleaner this is now, the easier it makes the rest of it.

Words written today: 1,562
Words written this month: 6,784
Words written 2017: 153,293
Average words/day 2017: 710
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: 1 chapter
Books read 2017: ?
Days until school starts: 24

I hope the start of August has been good to you!

Also, tonight’s dinner:

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments

Epic timing

2017-08-04T01:54:45Z

Tonight, because of the thunderstorm (it is a dark and stormy night) our daughter wanted scary stories for bedtime. I told her I had a very short one. “You have to go back to school in 25 days!”

“Really, Mom?”

“Yes, really. You have less than a month of summer left. Mwah-hah-hah-hah!”

At which point, lightning crashed and thunder boomed, punctuating my evil laugh. Definitely the best way to end a scary story.

Words written today: 2,543
Words written this month: 5,222
Words written 2017: 151,731
Average words/day 2017: 706
Books completed 2017: 2 (plus 1 novella)
Pages read today: 5
Books read 2017: ?
Days until school starts: 25

Yes! I got past that 150,000 mark! So happy for this! Also, daughter and I made cupcakes today. It was a good day.

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.

comments