February Challenge

Now that January is behind us and we're in the second month of the new year, I feel like I need to give myself some kind of challenge. Something to revive my stale New Year's Resolutions and give my writing routine some pep. Unfortunately, the next NaNoWriMo isn't until June (and that might be a little over ambitious at this point in my harried life), so I'm left with the question of what to do.

I've found that I respond really well to challenges and deadlines, which I think is one of the many reasons why I've been loving my meetings with the Writer in Residence. It's forcing me to get my editing done, which would otherwise have probably sat on my To Do pile for months.

The important thing is to give yourself achievable goals that push you but don't break you. I'm thinking maybe I'll do some kind of submitting challenge, I haven't done one of those since October, or maybe now is a good time to sign up for another online writing class. The point is, I need to do something. What do you do when your writing routine needs a little shaking up? Are you feeling the need for a change of pace now that we've settled into the new year? Share your comments and ideas with us below in the comments section!

Submit-O-Rama

One of the hardest parts of being a writer (at least for myself, but I assume I'm not alone in this), is submitting your work. I never feel like it's good enough and I get insecure the second I start scouting for publications. My queries and cover letters feel contrived and poorly written and despite my research I never feel totally certain that my writing really belongs anywhere. To make a long story short, I find myself avoiding it at all costs. But not anymore.

Three days ago I saw a link posted on twitter for Submit-O-Rama. Intrigued, I followed it and decided to give it a try. Basically, there are a few different options, letting you choose your level of participation. I'm going for the Uber Challenge, where you must submit at least 30 times in the month of October. So, pretty much once a day right up until Halloween. But you can knock out a couple a day and give yourself a head start.

Why am I being so ambitious? Because last week was one of the worst weeks I've ever had at my job. And don't get me wrong, my job is a good one. I work with great people and the work itself is fine. But it's not the goal. It's not how I want to spend my time for the rest of my working life. The goal has always been to live off my writing full time. And that's never going to happen if I don't start submitting my work. I'm not saying it'll be easy. I think I have quite the blizzard of rejections waiting for me this month. But it's an important first step. Hopefully, I'll get some helpful criticism and learn a few things along the way.

As of today, I'm on track. We'll have to see how the rest of the month plays out. I encourage you all to give your own form of the challenge a try as well. I'll keep you posted on my status and hopefully we can all cheer each other on. Good luck, my friends!