Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I found a solution to a major plot point problem in Garrett's book. It'll require significant rewriting but I think it'll make the conflict between him and Dotty (the female main character) a lot stronger. I didn't get much editing done but still feel like the week was productive. Now that I know how to fix the big plot issue, I'm hoping the rewriting will go much quicker.

Motivational Quote:  Allow yourself to be human. Look around you. Celebrate the little wins. Accept the downfalls with as much grace as you can muster. ~ Molly Burford (American writer)

What I'm Reading:  I didn't read much of Serial Killer Games by Kate Posey last week. It wasn't a book for me. I'm currently reading The Reality of Everything by Rebecca Yarros. This is the fifth and final book in her Flight & Glory series. I should finish it this evening.

Random Things:  Most people in my area were disappointed that the groundhog saw his shadow on Feb. 2nd. Yes, I'm as tired of winter as everyone else, but it didn't matter to me whether the groundhog saw his shadow or not. We always have at least six more weeks of winter. Winter has never ended in February in my area. We're lucky if winter is over by mid-April or early May.

Random Photo:

  Mrs. Green was fascinated with the rotating circle of white dots during a Windows update
 

 

Monday Check In

 Welcome to my first Monday Check In of 2026. 

Last week...

Writing Related:  I spent the last week reading through the draft of Garrett's story and making a lot of notes. Leaving it alone for about a month really helped me see what needs fixing. There are some plot holes that need filling, some areas that need fleshing out in terms of description and emotion, a sub-plot that kind of meandered off into nothing, and of course way too many uses of the word "just." It seems to be one of my favorite words to use in my writing. I'm not sure how much time I'll get to work on revisions this week as both my mom and I have doctor appointments, I have a four hour class, and we'll be having family visiting on Thursday that may take up most of the day. 

Motivational Quote:  "We have to believe that we are never too old, never too jaded, and never too broken to take our first steps toward change. We wake up every single day with the ability to start fresh - it is never too late to take advantage of that." ~ Bianca Sparacino (Canadian writer)

What I'm Reading:  I started reading Beyond What is Given by Rebecca Yarros yesterday afternoon. It's the third book in her Flight & Glory series. 

Random Things:  I really want to make good use of my time this year so I'm trying a new to me way of scheduling my day. I'm hoping it'll help keep me on track not only with my writing career goals, but with some projects around the house I'd like to have checked off by June. I'm going to follow the new process for the 1st quarter of the year and see how it goes. It'll be hard to see if the process is working this month as my family has a lot going in January. No slow start to the new year for us but things will slow down drastically in February and March which I'm pretty happy about. Those are the worst of the winter months where I live so I'm fine with not having a million things to do outside the house during that time. 

Random Photo

One of my sisters gave me this coffee cup as a gift. I think applies to reading and when I'm writing and have to stop for one reason or another while the words are flowing. 
 

 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I managed to get 5k written last week despite dealing with the fallout from an unforeseen event. There are still some details that need to be taken care of and I'm having a minor medical procedure done tomorrow so I'm not sure how much I'll get written this week. 

Motivational Quote:  "Decide what is yours to hold and let the rest go." ~ Taylor Swift.             I came across this quote a few days ago. It felt the like the universe was trying to tell me there is only so much I do regarding the unexpected event I mentioned above so I'm doing what I can and hoping for the best.

What I'm Reading:  I started reading The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros last night. It's a stand alone contemporary romance novel. I'm not very far into it but I'm enjoying it so far. 

Random Thoughts:  I can't believe it's the last day of March. This month has flown by. For me, March usually drags on and on and on. It's the month that seems to never end. It's more than likely because by the time early March arrives, I'm so tired of winter weather that I'm anxiously counting the days to spring. I don't mean the official start of spring shown on calendars, I mean real spring - when the days are sunny with temperatures in the 60's and low 70's. Unfortunately, those days don't usually show up in my area until the end of April or early May. 

Random Photo:

I'm a big fan of Pop-Tarts and eat way more of them than I should. My sister bought this from an Etsy shop and gave it to me for Christmas last year.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I worked on Garrett's book. I was able to keep to my writing schedule but didn't quite make my 12k goal by the end of week. I'm about 500 words short. I don't have any appointments etc this week so I'm hoping to get a significant amount of writing done to get back on track to meet the deadline to have the first draft written.

Motivational Quote:  "Courage, determination, and a single minded vision. These are the qualities the biggest achievers have in common." ~ Shah Rukh Khan

What I'm Reading:  I'm currently reading Great and Precious Things by Rebecca Yarros. This is a contemporary romance.

Random Thoughts:  Even though the official start of spring isn't for a few more weeks, I'm starting my annual spring cleaning chores. I have a few additional tasks this year. I want to go through our cookbook book shelf and donate any that we don't really use.  

Random Photo:  

                                           Homemade Chocolate Brownie Muffins