Goals

Revision is not insurmountable. I have identified the work, divided it, subdivided it, and have manageable tasks to accomplish. Good deal. I can do this.

As a side issue, the last meeting of the Muse Collective required me to set my short story free to find a publisher. I am currently hiding from the daunting task of learning to write a cover letter.

Then, just to make sure that I get utterly submerged in the whole writing gig, Shannon suggested a new goal, one that does not replace the work on the novel, but adds to it. Each month, I must submit a piece of fiction that has never been submitted before. If that means I dust one off and revise it, fine. If I must daydream for three hours, write for two, and have something new, also fine.

This does a few things:

  • Get used to producing a broader range than one novel
  • Get used to sending my babies away
  • Get used to rejection
  • Become published, frequently (eventually, one assumes)
  • Which will give me publishing credits for my cover letters
  • And will also get my name out there
  • BUT MOSTLY — it will be fun and keep me enthusiastic during the revision process, and later during the submission process.

The Muse Collective supports this plan wholeheartedly. So. I’m learning to write cover letters, as I’ve given myself a deadline of tomorrow to mail out Sight Unseen.