“First, forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you're inspired or not. Habit will help you finish and polish your stories. Inspiration won't. Habit is persistence in practice.” ― Octavia E. Butler, Bloodchild and Other Stories I am trying to maintain my focus, being present in my own life, so much to do on the to do list. This started as a facebook post and got way out of hand. I thought I would take more time and flesh it out a bit more. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. What are you doing to keep focus? My creative goals: Read a book every week, a poem every day. Screenplay draft. Chapbook draft. Submit new poetry work. Schedule readings. Cookbook. Memoir. Novel. 5 year timeline. Here are some things I am trying out.
What are you doing to meet your creative goals?
0 Comments
I know it is August. August always feels like a new beginning. School starts. Summer is over. We all feel a bit older, yeah? I found this list I made in 2016 when I first moved to Savannah: Goals for 2016: Professional Goals: Write at least an hour each day. Read as much as I can get my hands on. Revise and send out work. Meet IRL the local poets here in Georgia. Take more photographs. Send that work out too. Research MFA programs. Send out chapbooks and whole book. Set up Etsy store for framed art. Personal Goals: Find a church. Go. Write handwritten letters to people I love. Keep in touch. Find time 3x a week to do something physical. Run.*** Breathe. Find a counsellor. Go. Find a massage therapist. Go. Find a nice way to turn down dating invitations. *Keep to it. The really cool thing about this list is the only thing I have yet to do is the etsy shop for my professional goals and find a church for personal (we have been to a few, still looking for the one that clicks).. But look too what these goals yielded in both 2016 and 2017. That book that I sent out became a published collection! I toured with it. It is on Amazon.com. I know a lot of local poets and writers now and they are fabulous and supportive. I did a lot of breathing. A lot of breathing. Two galleries hung my photographs. I bought a house. Gravel Hill. A five bedroom plantation house on just about four acres and near enough to the city. I have bees again. Land. Trees. I lost 20 more lbs. My kids rocked their first year of public school. I accepted my first dinner invitation and it was magical, healing, and that's all I will say about that. And through it all I wrote, sent out work, read, talked about writing. This list felt impossible when I made it. Impossible. This new list feels that way too: Goals for 2107/2018 Professional: Get up the online store Finish screenplay draft Revise book 2 enough to send out first half as a chap Update camera equipment Blog once a week Grow the writers' retreat Find full time employment that still meets my parenting goals Host a new writer's group (idea might work) Poetry Reading in NYC Personal: Find a church, go. Regain lost muscle tone Workout 3x a week Walk everyday Eat better, more vegetables Get porch repaired and painted |
Danelle Lejeune
|