Tag Archives: lists

Tis The Season To Write Lists

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It’s rapidly approaching that time of year when lists take over……

I like to think I’m a  reasonably organised person  in my real world, my work world and in my creative world. (OK, I can be a bit OCD about my lists)

Even on an average day, my world is “post it” driven as I work my way from one reminder to the next.

My laptop frequently has several “post its” stuck to it to remind of anything from a trip to the dentist to promo event reminders associated with my book babies. (There’s 3 on there as I type)

However,  as the festive season approaches all too rapidly, longer lists start to over take the small square “post its”.

There’s:

gift lists

festive food lists

Christmas card and calendar lists

 

You get the picture!

There,there’s the 2018 Gig List to be added to the 2018 Calendar on 1 January. (It’s unlucky to hang the next year’s calendar before the year has begun so the dates need to wait on my list till then)

22 Feb – Brian Fallon

1Apr – Greta Van Fleet

16 Apr- The White Buffalo

This list is likely to grow considerably…….. 😉

Earlier today, I paused to take stock of the “Creative To Do” list for this week:

1- write more  of book baby 4

2- promote the Silver Lake series ( https://www.amazon.co.uk/Coral-McCallum/e/B00VYU1SZ6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4?qid=1510864732&sr=8-4 )

3- promote my Good Reads giveaway – its running till 3 Dec.(https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/261202-bonded-souls )

4- type up book baby 4 – target to reach 15k words

5- write and post blog

6- prep interview for blog (watch this space!)

I’ll not embarrass myself by confessing to how few have been ticked off……

Then, there’s a second, until now, unwritten list…. “The Waiting To Be Written” list:

1- book baby 4 ( ok, it’s nearly there!)

2- book 4 in the Silver Lake series ( write 2018/publish 2019)

3- next part to Silently Watching short story series ( I have half a plan for this!)

4- next part to The Soul Searcher short story series( eh….no clue what’s going to happen next)

5-next part to the Still As A Statue short story series ( maybe a bit of a clue where this one will end…)

6-next part of The Imp – remember him? (I do know where I am going with it…honest!)

EEEEKK!

Maybe I should start with a wish list…

Dear Santa

I’ve been a really good girl this year (well, most of the time). Can I please have a Time Turner like Hermione’s from Harry Potter so I can conjure up enough hours in every day to get through my To Do list.

Hope you like the milk and mince pie.

Love   Coral x

 

(Image sourced from Google- credits to the owner)

 

 

 

A Post-It note saves the day

Ever get the feeling that you can’t get out of your own road? Sound familiar? Well that’s me this week BIG time.

Usually I am a pretty well organised person both at the “salt mine” and at home. However, over the last few days, I can’t seem to get everything done that needs doing when I come home from work- including writing this blog entry! It’s been on the mental To Do list since Sunday morning and as I write it’s 7.35 on Wednesday night.

I’ve not been doing nothing. I can’t do nothing. I have accomplished a fair amount writing wise over the last few days that I am extremely proud of.( That story may fill a future blog but, to briefly fill you in, a few weeks ago I got involved in writing music reviews for a friend’s website. To date I’ve completed five for her – two of these in the last week.) Seeing my work online for all to see is giving me a buzz; seeing musicians that I admire subsequently “like” what I’ve said about their work has blown me away.

It’s blown me right off course! Hence the current state of disorganised chaos that is freaking me out.

Realising this had to stop immediately I made a list on a Post-It note before I left the “salt mine” tonight. These tasks must be put to bed before I’m allowed to snuggle under the duvet tonight!

OK – so a quick rundown of the last two and a half hours-

5:00pm    –   left work to drive home via my parents’ house to collect Boy Child.

6:00 pm   –   arrive home, having been a good mummy and stopped at the foot of   the hill to pick up Girl Child to give her a lift the rest of the way home. That hilll’s a killer! Rounded up the various furry members of the household who were loitering in the driveway and fed them.

6:30pm    –    Pizza’s in the oven for the kids’ dinner; the laundry has been rounded  up and has made it as far as the floor in front of the washing machine ; the towels that were in the drier have been returned to the bathroom; mail for the day has been opened. Two tasks have to be urgently      added to my magic Post-It list – new CD to iPod and complete cat’s               insurance form.

7:00 pm   –   I  have attempted the phone call that I needed to make but no one’s home. Left a message so can tick it off the list. While I’m eating dinner    I’m adding the new cd to my iTunes so that I can sync my precious                      iPod, I’m filling in the insurance form and pondering for the hundredth             time “what can I write in this blog entry?”.

Unplanned and irresistible distraction alert – it’s sunny outside and still warm enough to sit outdoors. I love the sun!

7:30pm    –     iPod updated, dinner eaten, washing under way in the machine,   Insurance form completed, road tax for the car sorted out for the next          twelve months.

Sun is now screaming on me!

7.35pm  –     I surrendered and am now sitting in the sun writing, this blog        listening to the new cd on my iPod and enjoying a sneaky mid-week                    Chardonnay.

The Post- it note is now all ticked off. Mission accomplished!

Here’s hoping normal organised chaos levels resume before I run out of Post –It notes

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